How is Higher Education shaping the future of Europe and charting new pathways for global collaboration? The European Association of International Education’s (EAIE) Conference in Toulouse, France (17-20 September, 2024) will provide a unique opportunity to explore answers to this question, and many more, with real-life examples, testimonials, and facts.
This is the very first time that the European Universities Alliances, a flag ship initiative of the European Commission and its European Education Area since 2019, will come together and present themselves in a united way at a major international conference, giving the opportunity to the international Higher Education community to better understand the dimension of the European Universities Initiative, which is co-funding today a total of 64 Alliances.
By showcasing their collaborative efforts and dynamizing a series of joint activities European Universities Alliances will take the stand as pioneers of a new paradigm of cooperation in Higher Education, paving their way to a leading role in shaping the global landscape of academia and research. They will also provide insight into their contributions as key actors in a transformative approach aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), viewing Higher Education as the catalyst for building a more resilient, sustainable, and equitable society.
Inspired by the EAIE Conference’s theme En Route!, the Alliances will disseminate their objectives and actions, share the impact created, and communicate information regarding the results achieved by them on topics such as mobility or new joint programs.
The Alliances are also offering, as part of the EAIE conference’s programme of activities, a series of sessions covering a wide range of subjects, demonstrating their commitment to innovation in higher education and research.
On behalf of ECIU university, our colleague Noëlle Billon, Work Package Lead for community building from INSA Group, will participate and share ECIU University's good practices in a panel session "Increase universities societal engagement: innovative collaboration between regional ecosystems, students and teachers”.
Trym Holbek, Institutional Coordinator from University of Stavanger will present ECIU University’s case in the panel discussion “From top-down to bottom-up: Turning European University Alliances into engaged communities” and will participate in the poster session “European University Alliances as role models: Benefits for all of Europe ".
Check the list of sessions proposed by the European Alliances: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1_CHS43-HAJ2C-GzOJ_jWdpdOaYQ9h9bHnsxnmutYVmk/edit?gid=0#gid=0
Prior to the initiation of the EAIE Conference, there will be an opportunity to witness the Alliances in joint dialogue at a special side event hosted by the Université de Toulouse and la Région Occitanie on September 17, from 08:45 to 13:00. Titled “Internationalisation of European Universities Alliances: the new frontiers”, the event will explore why and how European Universities Alliances build strategic partnerships with institutions and stakeholders beyond the European Union. The event will be presented by Olga Wessels, Head of the ECIU Brussels Office. During the event, Wessels will also launch the Community of Practice of Alliances FOR-EU4All.
A plenary session will discuss strategies and approaches and present case studies about how alliances can forge successful international connections. Two other sessions will examine partnerships with Ukrainian institutions amidst conflict and post-war reconstruction, as well as cooperation with African partners. This gathering aims to facilitate dialogue between Alliances, Non-European higher education institutions and European, national and regional policymakers to explore which are the current state of play and the possible pathways of alliances’ internationalisation. The event will be streamed online.
The European Universities Alliances are a flagship initiative of the European strategy for universities. They encompass 64 European Universities alliances with more than 560 higher education institutions of all types, from all across Europe. Check the full list of Alliances by country: https://education.ec.europa.eu/education-levels/higher-education/european-universities-initiative/map
The EAIE Conference is the most important event dedicated to higher education in Europe and the second largest in the world. Its recent venues have been Barcelona (2022) and Rotterdam (2023), where the number of exhibitors and visitors exceeded 5000 participants each year showing that transnational cooperation is now a growing sector of influence and action in a more and more globalized and interconnected world of higher education systems. More info and full programme: https://www.eaie.org/events/toulouse/programme/schedule.html