European University Alliances Seek Sustainable Future
Vienna workshop highlights the need for predictable, long-term funding.
Vienna, 1 October 2025 – How can Europe’s ambitious network of university alliances secure stable and predictable funding for the future? That question brought together the European Commission ministries, university leaders, national agencies, student bodies and experts at the Future4Alliance workshop on the sustainability of European University Alliances (EUAs), held in Vienna from 30 September to 1 October.
Balancing Vision and Reality
Opening the event, Elmar Pichl from Austrian Federal Ministry of Women, Science and Research, reminded participants of the ambitious 2017 Sorbonne vision: 20 European universities by 2024, fostering multilingual, cross-border education. That goal has largely been achieved—but the question now is how to sustain it.
Commission: “Investing in Europe’s Future”
Ioana Dewandeler from the European Commission confirmed that the alliances remain a strategic priority. The Commission’s proposal for the next Multiannual Financial Framework includes a 50% increase in Erasmus+ and continued support for the alliances under Erasmus+. The support for the alliances is also anchored in the Commission proposals for the next FP10 and the Competitiveness Fund.
However, she outlined that EU support has to continue be complemented at national level. “All member states already support their national higher education institutions part of an alliance as a testimony of the strategic role of the alliances for their national higher education systems,” she said, calling governments to continue to co-invest. She pointed out to the Future4Alliances project as a strategic one from the Commissions perspective.
Alliances Call for Simplicity and Predictability
Representatives from CHARM-EU, EC2U, Circle U, ECIU, E3UDRES2 and UREKA SHIFT shared experiences of building alliances that promote innovation, mobility, and democratic engagement.
Yet, their message was consistent: the current project-based model is too rigid. “We need simplification, flexibility, and predictability,” one participant said. “You can’t reach the moon if you’re given only a bicycle.” Alliances argued that funding must move beyond short-term calls to long-term structures that allow them to develop as integrated European institutions.
A Call for Co-Ownership
In a dialogue between Thomas Estermann (European University Assocation) and Hannes Raffaseder (EURASHE), speakers urged a recalibration of expectations. Raffaseder warned that universities risk becoming irrelevant if they cannot keep pace with rapid change. Estermann emphasized the need for each institution to reflect on its goals within an alliance and for policymakers to align funding with purpose.
Both agreed that sustainability requires shared responsibility between the European Commission, national governments, and universities themselves. Pichl later described this as a needed “trialogue” of co-empowerment.
According to Thomas Estermann and Elmar Pichl, the next step must be a stronger partnership between the EU, member states, and universities. “So far, the Commission has been the main driver,” Pichl said. “Now we need co-empowerment by national authorities.”
A proposed “Vienna Charter of Principles” could help define shared expectations between European and national levels and clarify what the alliances are meant to achieve.
Aligning Vision and Funding
Participants outlined four main funding sources for the alliances today: EU, national, institutional, and private, with the major bulk of funding coming from the member states as the institutional budgets are delivered through national funding. In the discussion of how to make this more sustainable several priorities emerged:
- Align Erasmus+ and Horizon Europe funding to reduce fragmentation.
- Consider granting alliances legal status to enable direct financing.
- Develop national coordination mechanisms and involve ministries more closely.
- Embed alliance strategies within institutional and national plans.
As one participant summarized, “Funding and vision must go hand in hand.” The European University Initiative has proven its transformative potential. The next challenge is ensuring that this new model of cooperation—born as a pilot—can grow into a lasting feature of Europe’s higher education landscape.
A European Experiment Worth Sustaining
As Europe faces rapid technological and social change, speakers agreed that the alliances represent a unique opportunity to renew higher education. But sustaining them will require more than goodwill and pilot projects—it will take political courage, long-term investment, and a shared belief that universities remain central to Europe’s future.
