The European Centre for Theoretical Studies in Nuclear Physics and Related Areas (ECT*) in Trento (Italy) provides a dedicated and structured combination of scientific activities for a large international scientific community. The Centre acts as an "intellectual" centre of competence, complementary in scope and activities to existing research facilities based at universities or experimental laboratories. It promotes coordination of European research efforts in nuclear physics in a broad sense. The activities are workshops, collaboration meetings, a doctoral training programme and specialised courses. ECT* also offers visiting fellowships for junior and senior researchers.

The main scientific activities carried out at ECT* concern Nuclear Physics in a broad sense and Related Areas. This included low energy Nuclear Physics and Nuclear Structure, Quantum Chromodynamics and Hadron Physics, Physics of Matter under Extreme Conditions and Ultra-relativistic Heavy Ion Collisions. Related areas include topics in Astrophysics, Particle Physics, Condensed Matter Physics and Many-Body Theory, Bose-Einstein Condensation.

The ECT* is sponsored by the "Fondazione Bruno Kessler (FBK) " in collaboration with the "Assessorato alla Cultura" (Provincia Autonoma di Trento), funding agencies of EU Member and Associated States, the Department of Physics of the University of Trento. It also receives support from various actions of the Framework Programmes of the European Commission.

The ECT* is an institutional member of NuPECC, the ESF Associated Nuclear Physics European Collaboration Committee.