As the Australian National University (ANU) announced on April 6, 2021, it acknowledges Professor Sauer's achievements in establishing scientific relationships between the ANU and TUM as well as his research work on sustainable land management and agricultural productivity in Australia by appointing him as honorary professor at the Arndt-Corden Department of Economics of the Crawford School of Public Policy.
 
For several years and initiated by Professor Sauer, the Chair Group of Production and Resource Economics at TUM and the Arndt-Corden Department of Economics at ANU have been strategic partners in production and resource economics research. The thematic focus of their innovative work, in which the Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences (ABARES), a national research institute affiliated to the Australian Ministry of Agriculture, is also involved, is the dynamics and sustainability of agricultural production. The commitment of Professor Sauer and his colleagues at the Australian National University, a world-class university (ranked 31st in the QS World University Rankings 2021), shall in the long run also enrich the teaching program of the participating universities and enable research stays at the respective partner university.