Since 2019 when the first European Universities alliances started developing their innovative activities and campuses and following further calls by the European Commission (EC) for transnational alliances of higher education institutions (HEIs), numerous joint educational programmes and initiatives have been implemented between partner universities from across Europe. Participating countries have designed various co-funding schemes, with some adapting their legislation to facilitate the development of European Universities alliances (EUAs).
At the same time, important issues pertaining to the future and the sustainability of the European Universities Initiative have been raised. EUAs have a highly transformative ambition based on long-term perspectives but major points related to the coherence of funding and legislative/administrative adaptations at the national or regional level still need to be discussed.
Following the political orientations at the European level and the emergence of new challenges to be overcome, public bodies from several European countries and other key stakeholders, which have been actively involved in the European Universities Initiative, have decided to work together within the Future4Alliances project to exchange thoughts and shape the future of this European flagship initiative. This work will be carried out both within the current and the next Erasmus+ programme phases.
The Future4Alliances project, which brings together nine beneficiaries and 23 associated partners from 13 countries, is the first initiative targeted at public bodies at the national/regional level that aims to set up a favourable environment for the development of EUAs, as advocated in the 2021 Council Conclusions:
Bridging higher education, research, innovation, and society:
Council conclusions on the European Universities Initiative
Paving the way for a new dimension in European higher education.
To cover major transformative aspects of the EUAs’ activities, the project focuses on three key themes:
- the sustainability of funding;
- joint educational programmes and activities;
- the international dimension of EUAs and hosting policies.
By creating new discussion channels and dedicated events, Future4Alliances will act as a Europe-wide forum to bring together public authorities and major stakeholders involved in the EUI. The project’s recommendations, aiming at the EUAs as replicable transnational cooperation models, will benefit not only HEIs involved in the EUI but also the European HE sector in general.
The project’s recommendations, aiming at the EUAs as replicable transnational cooperation models, will benefit not only HEIs involved in the EUI but also the European HE sector in general.
