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United Universities 5th Panel Discussion

Europe, 29 June 2021. The UUU Panel Debate n°5 has invited administrators of European University Alliances to talk about the “Powers of the Periphery. How networking empowers regions and fosters creativity.”

Watch the teaser: youtu.be/RYk4iSzYPSk

What is periphery? Is Brussels an appendix of Berlin? Is Berlin a suburb of Leipzig? Haven’t the inhabitants of the Capitals not always been the marginalised? Are the vitamins not in the skin of the apple, rather than in the core? Is Oscar Wilde right that only shallow people do not judge by appearances, and “the true mystery of the world is the visible, not the invisible…?″ The centre produces the periphery, and how free and diverse universities are, depends on their environment and history, their funding and their inter-relatedness with the world.   This discussion wants to learn about European University Alliances, a little what they are, and a lot how international networking might have changed the meaning of periphery in regard to innovation, science and social development.

Guests

Hannes Raffaseder, composer. He is also Chief Research and Innovation Officer, head of the Institute of Media production at Sankt Pölten University of Applied Sciences, near Vienna in Austria, and coordinator of the European University Alliance E³UDRES² led by his university.

Elena Theodoropoulou, Associate Professor at University of the Aegean in Greece in the field of philosophy of education. As Vice-Rector of Academic Affairs & Student Welfare she is academic coordinator on behalf of the UAegean in the ERUA Alliance. Elena teaches and publishes, among other things, about Education and Ethics.

Rónán Ó Muirthile, academic researcher and educator focused on original storytelling and facilitating others in developing the skills and abilities to tell those stories. He works at the Institute of Art Design and Technology in Dublin, Ireland, where he is also responsible for coordinating his school’s part in the European Universities Alliance for Film and Media Arts or FILMEU.

Audronė Telešienė, professor in sociology and communication at Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania. She is the project scientific lead at KTU of the SMART-ER project, the virtual research institute for smart European Regions at the ECIU University. Her scientific interest lies on the topics related to public governance and sustainable development.

Eric Tschirhart, Professor of Physiology at the University of Luxembourg and Special Advisor to the rector for the university alliance UNIVERSEH and the Université de la Grande Région. Under the team leadership of Eric, the University of Luxembourg will focus on stimulating entrepreneurial skills among students through university-business cooperation, as well as strengthening the sustainability of the network and its communication. Of particular interest for our topic is the University of the Greater region (UniGR), a regional cross-border network of universities founded in 2008, where 7 universities in Belgium, Germany, France and Luxembourg work together.

Florian Schweigert, Vice President for International Affairs at the University of Potsdam, Germany, and coordinates the EDUC Alliance. In our recent interview about EDUC, a new university alliance including the universities of Masaryk, Pécs, Cagliari, Rennes 1, and Paris Nanterre, he explains the alliance’s focus on shared learning and teaching capacities, and short-term collaborative study programmes. ESNA interview, June 2021

Peter van der Hijden, independent higher education strategy advisor who lives in Brussels. He has worked 23 years for the European Commission where he became Head of Sector Higher Education Policy and contributed to the Erasmus programme, the Bologna Process, Horizon and ERA. He now supports European Universities and promotes micro-credentials.

Host: Tino Brömme, ESNA European Higher Education News, www.esna.tv

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Event Video

United Universities 4th Panel Discussion

Europe, 11 May 2021. European University Alliances are coming with a great promise: to make the ‘student-centred’ university happen, and to create courses and degrees for the 21st century.

As of today, there are 41 of these new alliances or networks across Europe testing co-operative models and involving students, researchers and administration. The European Commission funds these co-operations, and the newly created departments in the universities put them into practice.

4th UUU Panel Debate: “Degree design, competence frameworks, and horizontal mindsets”

Watch the teaser: youtu.be/RYk4iSzYPSk

We have gathered for the 4th UUU Panel Debate to see how that actually works! – There is great demand in society to create quality jobs for many, a perspective for citizens of Europe, and an education preparing for a globalised world. What do the efforts look like that the University Alliances put into study programmes for people with a ‘horizontal’ mindset, able to think and work across academic disciplines and national borderlines?

Let’s also ask how education policy evolves – in order to support such a highly complex practice, to create competence frameworks and quality assurance standards coping with diverging national regulations and an uneven economic and cultural pace across the European Union!

Guests

Robert Wagenaar, Professor of History and Politics of Higher Education, Director of the International Tuning Academy in Groningen, and author of “REFORM! TUNING the Modernisation Process of Higher Education in Europe. A blueprint for student-centred learning” (2019)

Antonella Forlino, Professor of Biochemistry, and Prorector of International Relations at the University of Pavia, member of the EC2U Alliance. ESNA interview on Deutschlandradio,15.06.2020

François Taddei, Director of the Center for Research and Interdisciplinarity (CRI) in Paris, advisor to the CIRCLE.U alliance, and author of “Learning in the 21st century” (2020). ESNA interview, 30.03.2020

Maria Gravari-Barbas, former Vice-President for International Relations at Paris 1 Pantheon Sorbonne, and Chair of the Cultural Heritage Focus Area of the Una Europa alliance

Host: Tino Brömme, ESNA European Higher Education News, www.esna.tv

 

Credits

‘The Graduate’ CREDITS: Embassy Pictures (1967). Cast: Anne Bancroft, Dustin Hoffman, Katharine Ross. Director: Mike Nichols. Producer: Lawrence Turman. Screenwriters: Calder Willingham, Buck Henry

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Event Project News Video

United Universities 3rd Panel Discussion

Europe, 13 April 2021. Mingling among journalists, authors, strategy advisors, university administrators, researchers, students — to gain deeper insights into higher education policy in Europe. The initiative ‘United Universities of Europe’ has gathered distinguished guests to discuss the current state of European University Alliances, their recent past and imminent future.

This 3rd UUU Panel Debate navigates between past and future. What’s the status quo of European University Alliances? What did they achieve so far? How did Corona and Brexit affect them? What are their current challenges? What will the future look like for them? Will they change the European higher education landscape or disappear?

Journalist Tino Brömme from Berlin, and higher ed strategist Peter van der Hijden from Brussels, discuss it. A special light on the damage inflicted by Brexit on British and Continental universities is being cast by journalist Anne Corbett, Paris, and Nenad Zrnić, vice-rector of the University of Belgrade.

What does the future hold? — Pedro Marques talks about his research on university-society interaction in science-fiction literature, and European students reflect on their utopia of the future university, before Brömme/van der Hijden consider what the upcoming decisions of the European Council mean for European Universities.

Guests:

Anne Corbett is a Senior Associate at LSE Consulting with long-standing experience in the field of higher education and Europe as a researcher, a journalist and a contributor to public policy. She holds a PhD in political science and a BA in History. Her work has appeared in the education press and British dailies. She continues to write for University World News where she recently published A mercantilist approach to higher education post-Brexit. Her books include Universities and the Europe of Knowledge.

Pedro Marques is specialised in regional development, innovation and governance in peripheral regions of the EU. He works at ingenio, a research institute affiliated with the Technical University of Valencia, a member of the European University Alliance ENHANCE. Not only is he a Ramon y Cajal fellow but also a principal investigator in a Innovative Training Network funded by the European Union. He is co-author of the research paper Fiction lagging behind or non-fiction defending the indefensible? University-industry (et al.) interaction in science fiction.

Peter van der Hijden is an independent strategy advisor, helping European University Alliances on the design and further strategic positioning of their proposals. He has worked for the European Commission where his main experience lied in higher education and research: the Erasmus Programme, the modernisation agenda for universities, the European Higher Education Area (Bologna Process) and the European Research Area. His latest article, Mitigating brain drain by connecting universities, discusses a policy report of the European Commission.

Nenad Zrnić is Vice-Rector for International Relations at the University of Belgrade, a member of the European University Alliance Circle U. He is a full professor in the field of material handling and logistics, a corresponding member of the Academy of Engineering Sciences of Serbia. Since 2015 he is a coordinator of one of the working groups for preparing new Serbian Law on a Higher Education.

As part of the 3rd UUU Panel Debate, students of the Una Europa alliance were interviewed about the question: How is your ideal university of the future? They had just participated in Una Europa’s first Student Congress on February 24, 2021. — Their answers showed how aware today’s students are of flexible learning paths, of the world’s ever stronger interconnections and of their own potential to contribute to better learning and teaching environments? The participants are Emily Hartmann (Freie Universität Berlin), Giacomo Zanni (Università di Bologna), Hubert Jakub Bieniek (Uniwersytet Jagielloński), Luca Di Cunto (Università di Bologna), and Weronika Łukasińska (Uniwersytet Jagielloński).

Host:

Tino Brömme, a graduate in communication science and media consultancy, has worked for over 30 years as a journalist, publisher, moderator and event manager across Europe. He was the founder of the multilingual student magazine WORK|OUT, and the news agency ESNA. He publishes articles and multimedia content, mainly on science policy, and is currently preparing a documentary film about Universities in the 21st Century.

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News

CHARM-EU launches Sustainability Master

Barcelona, 8 April 2021. The CHARM-EU university alliance has just launched a Master in Global Challenges for Sustainability as a new international, innovative, flexible, inclusive programme with a challenge-driven, research-based curriculum. International student mobility is at the core of the programme which will start in September 2021. The deadline for applications is soon: 15 April 2021.

Global Challenges for Sustainability 

Students on the Master’s in Global Challenges for Sustainability will take 3 compulsory phases. The Preparatory Phase module will be featuring general capacities related to sustainability, social innovation and transdisciplinary research. The second part of the master’s degree will be flexible, allowing students to choose on one of three sustainability themes: Water, Food or Life & Health. Finally, students will be required to do a capstone project on a sustainability challenge in collaboration with extra academic actors (i.e. business, community and society).

The programme is unique and innovative in various aspects, including the flexible three phased course structure, integrated mobility experiences, broader content focus, overall transdisciplinary approach and challenge-based environment.

This is a unique opportunity to obtain an accredited master’s degree jointly awarded by the five CHARM-EU partners’ universities: University of Barcelona, Trinity College Dublin, Utrecht University, Eötvös Loránd University and University of Montpellier.

As a student you will have the opportunity to: 

  • develop creative and critical thinking skills
  • research and evaluate complex societal challenges from different stakeholder and intercultural perspectives
  • assess and integrate different disciplinary and transdisciplinary knowledge and research methodologies 
  • acquire expertise and communicate effectively on ‘real-life’ and complex issues 
  • acquire advanced transversal competencies in problem solving, entrepreneurialism, innovation, digital skills and a life-long learning disposition.

An innovative learning experience 

The master’s programme is utilizing innovative pedagogies of the five CHARM-EU partner institutions, supporting knowledge in cross-disciplinary and intercultural teams, and striving to make the knowledge square – education, research, innovation and service to society – a reality.

The programme will be student centered, as students will be able to direct their own learning processes. 

Mobility as a key feature 

International activities, such as student mobility is at the core of the Master’s in Global Challenges for Sustainability. CHARM-EU identifies mobility as a key tool for enhancing the quality of all teaching and learning processes for all prospective CHARM-EU citizens. CHARM-EU students therefore will be part of one university community with multiple campuses across countries creating a unified international ecosystem with seamless mobility flows and accompanying international activities. 

Who can apply?

The Master’s in Global Challenges for Sustainability is aimed at graduates of any discipline from diverse backgrounds who want to acquire advanced knowledge of sustainability by addressing real and global societal challenges. Students will learn challenge analysis skills and extend their capabilities to address and develop solutions for complex problems.

Applicants will need to hold at least a bachelor’s degree or recognised equivalent to a bachelor’s degree. An English language certification (C1) is necessary for programme admission. 

Apply now! 

CHARM-EU

CHARM-EU is an alliance between the University of Barcelona (coordinator), Trinity College Dublin, Utrecht University, the University of Montpellier and Eötvös Loránd University in Budapest. CHARM-EU represents a Challenge-Driven, Accessible, Research-based and Mobile model for the co-creation of a European University aligned with the European Values, the European Green Deal and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

You can find out more about CHARM-EU in this video. 

Further information

The Masters in Global Challenges for Sustainability will have 90 ECTS credits and it extends over 18 months. The Master’s degree is jointly awarded by the five CHARM-EU partner universities. All course information and online application details are available at: www.charm-eu.eu/masters/globalchallenges  

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News

Circle U. gets a legal identity

circle u.

Louvain, 30.03.2021. The seven partner universities have set up the Circle U. AISBL to frame the long-term collaboration in the alliance.

The Circle U. partner universities established Circle U. AISBL as an international not-for-profit organisation under Belgian law. The official signing took place in the presence of the President of the Université de Paris, Christine Clerici, Hege Landmark-Høyvik, Counsellor for Education in the Mission of Norway to the EU, representing the University of Oslo, and Rector Vincent Blondel of UCLouvain, who also signed on behalf of Aarhus University, the University of Belgrade, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin and King’s College London. Given the Covid-19 pandemic, strict sanitary measures were put in place.

The establishment of the new organisation marks a first milestone in the 3-year Erasmus+ project to set up the alliance. But the new organisation also points beyond the initial project collaboration.

The Circle U. AISBL shows our commitment to building a truly European University, and will help facilitate the long-term joint management of our alliance. It gives us a framework for working together that goes beyond project cycles, and provides a platform for collaboration with other universities and other organisations on our own terms and on a longer horizon, says Rector Blondel.

Original link: www.circle-u.eu/news/2021/circle-u.-gets-a-legal-identity.html

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News Other

EUA paper on governance models

Brussels, 18 March 2021. This is the first briefing in a new EUA series focused on evolving university governance. The publication explores the governance set-up of the European University Alliances formed under the EU’s European Universities Initiative.

For the first time, the document by Thomas Estermann, Enora Bennetot Pruvot and Hristiyana Stoyanova, presents a comparative overview of the complex governance structures of these networks, examining their ability to sustain beyond the three-year project time frame, while remaining relevant for their members.

The analysis highlights several challenges that focus on the alliances’ governance sustainability and draws the attention of universities and policy makers to the conditions needed to sustain their financial capacity and ensure increased collaboration and better alignment with institutional strategic priorities.

Download here

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Interview Video

United Universities – Is it science fiction?

Berlin and Valencia, 5 March 2021. Science fiction literature is a classic field for scientists to ask self-referential questions. A recent study follows this path, and Tino Brömme, host of the UUU Debate series, interrogates Pedro Marques about the paper he wrote as a co-author of Joaquín Azagra and Laura Salmerón.

This is interesting for an audience curious about spirit and knowledge, and in particular, about European University Alliances, those new, EU-funded university networks set up as experimental cross-border social laboratories.

ENHANCE is one of these European University Alliances, it includes the Universitat Politècnica de València, to which Pedro’s research is affiliated. How does society value science? How do citizens see the University? How does literature, as a segment of public perception, depict researchers? Are they in it only for money, fame and power? Are universities ivory towers of an arrogant elite? Do scientists work for the public good? — European University Alliances like ENHANCE are forced by the EU’s funding requirements to claim that they are working “for society” —, but how true is that?

The interview is part of the UUU Panel Debate series started in 2020 at the Berlin Science Week. It has been produced by ESNA European Higher Education News, moderated by Tino Brömme, recorded and edited by Tomas Rigoni, provided with a soundtrack by Ralf Briechle, and supervised by Caucaso Factory (www.caucaso.info) and StartupTV (www.startuptv.io).

Teaser

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Event Interview

How see students the university of the future?

Europe, 24 February 2021. As part of the 3rd UUU Panel Debate students of the Una Europa alliance answered the question: What is your ideal university of the future?

Participants:

  • Emily Hartmann (Freie Universität Berlin)
  • Giacomo Zanni (Università di Bologna)
  • Hubert Jakub Bieniek (Uniwersytet Jagielloński)
  • Luca Di Cunto (Università di Bologna)
  • Weronika Łukasińska (Uniwersytet Jagielloński)

More on the UnaEuropa student congress:
www.una-europa.eu/calendar/una-europa-students-dream-the-future-european-university

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Event News

The European Uni – One Idea, Different Models

Registration here

Berlin & online, 3 March 2021. As part of the Una Europa Staff Week, on March 3rd, 9.30 a.m. CET, the homonymous University Alliance plans an online talk titled “The European University — One Idea, Different Models.”

The organisers have chosen a broad approach, they think “that the idea of the European University has seen the development of multifaceted models over the course of the last years. There is a proliferation of networks and programs, which aim at making the European university landscape more diverse and inclusive by fostering relationships between universities and encouraging collaboration between a multitude of different actors. In this talk, we want to ask which steps have been taken towards the idea of a European university and discuss directions for future developments that unfold from the joint activities of university alliances, networks, and partnerships.”

The FU website informs: “There is a proliferation of models, programs and formats among [University Alliances]. The aims and objectives of the various networks are very heterogeneous. Some concentrate their co-cooperation on specific research themes, others on student mobility, some want to create a unified European Campus, others plan to create ‘only’ joint programs. Most of them hope to enable students at some point to obtain a degree by combining studies in several EU countries. Some chose partners who were very much like themselves, others went for complimentary partners.”

In this talk, representatives of the three networks Una Europa, Eutopia and Unite! have been invited to discuss the different paths these networks are currently going. They will talk about challenges they all have to face and the hopes they have for their future development. Among the questions to be discussed will be the following:

  • Which strategies and instruments of cooperation have been successful, particularly in times of a pandemic?
  • How far do the universities within the networks want to go in terms of forming a new joint European identify?
  • What are currently the main challenges in building European structures and programs – legal issues, financial issues, visionary issues, national egoisms to name but a few?
  • Where do the new networks see themselves in comparison to already existing European higher education institutions?
  • How far did some individual universities already change in the process?
  • What are the biggest positive aspects of the networks? Or is it too early to tell?
  • What are best practice models? A fusion of European universities into one or a European network?
  • Some networks have UK member institutions – how will the networks deal with Brexit?
  • How can we make the networks sustainable in terms of finance?
  • How would you measure the success of a ‘European University’?
  • Where do we envisage the networks in ten years from now?”

These questions will be discussed by our panel of experts:

  • James Smith, Vice-Principal International at University of Edinburgh, and Representative of Una Europa
  • Eva Wiberg, Vice-Chancellor at the University of Gothenburg, and Representative of EUTOPIA
  • Jens Schneider, Vice President of Transfer and International Affairs at Technische Universität Darmstadt, and Representative of UNITE!

The panel discussion will be moderated by Verena Blechinger-Talcott, Vice-President International at Freie Universität Berlin, and Representative of Una Europa.

Sources: Una Europa | FU Berlin

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News

Scottish research universities in Europe after Brexit

scotland europe esna

Brussels & online, 5 February 2021. “Scottish universities harnessing research excellence to address global challenges with European partners” is the title of this online discusson organised by the Scotland House Brussels. Participants are representatitives of the University of Glasgow and the University of Edinburgh, alongside the League of European Research Universities (LERU) and The Guild.

This conversation, taking place after confirmation of the UK’s association to Horizon Europe, focuses on how the world-leading research undertaken by Scottish universities remains important and relevant to Europe. Speakers discuss how, through Horizon Europe, Scotland’s researchers continue to work with partners across Europe to address our shared global challenges.
This event brings together the Principals from the University of Glasgow and the University of Edinburgh, as well as the Secretary-Generals of LERU and the Guild, to discuss how universities will collaborate as European partners, and the crucial role networks will play in keeping UK universities engaged in European research discourse and collaboration.

Speakers

  • Professor Sir Anton Muscatelli, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, University of Glasgow
  • Professor Peter Mathieson, Principal and Vice-Chancellor, University of Edinburgh
  • Professor Kurt Deketelaere, Secretary-General, LERU
  • Professor Jan Palmowski, Secretary-General, The Guild
    and
  • John Struthers, Professor of Economics at the University of The West of Scotland