The University of Gothenburg welcomed the EUTOPIA alliance from 28 June to 1 July for EUTOPIA Week 2026, bringing together university leaders, researchers, educators, professional staff, students and global partners for four days of collaboration and exchange.
Held under the theme “Finding Balance. Building Futures”, this year’s programme explored how universities can remain innovative, ambitious and globally connected while fostering the health and wellbeing of students, researchers and staff. The week was built around four key pillars: meetings of EUTOPIA’s governing bodies, including the Student Council, the fourth edition of the EUTOPIA Research Days, the inaugural EUTOPIA College Education Forum, and the Young Leaders Academy Symposium.
A week of collaboration begins
The week officially opened on 29 June with a ceremony bringing together participants from across the alliance. Speakers included Malin Broberg, Vice-Chancellor of the University of Gothenburg, Jan Danckaert, Rector of Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Chair of the EUTOPIA Board of Presidents, Mattia Bellotti, Secretary-General, alongside representatives from the City of Gothenburg, the Västra Götaland Region and the EUTOPIA Student Council. In his opening address, Jan Danckaert reflected on the alliance’s achievements over the past seven years and reaffirmed its commitment to academic freedom, European cooperation and international collaboration. Read Jan Danckaert’s full opening address here:
The opening day concluded with the EUTOPIA Week Welcome Reception and Dinner at Universeum, where participants explored Gothenburg’s science centre before continuing conversations in a more informal setting. The evening offered an opportunity to strengthen connections across the alliance ahead of the days of meetings and workshops that followed.
Launching the EUTOPIA College Education Forum
A major milestone of this year’s EUTOPIA Week was the launch of the EUTOPIA College Education Forum, held for the first time to strengthen educational collaboration across the alliance. Bringing together educators, academic leaders and members of the College Steering Committee, the forum moved beyond sharing experiences to focus on developing concrete initiatives that can be implemented across EUTOPIA.
The forum centred on a series of Collaboration Labs, where participants worked in interdisciplinary groups organised around different themes:
- Global Health, Sustainability & Societal Resilience
- Digital Health, Al & Educational Innovation
- Biomedical Sciences, Health Innovation & Research-linked Education
- Wellbeing, Inclusion, Healthy Ageing & Student-centred Education
- Leadership, Governance & Future Educational Partnerships
Each group explored common strengths, identified shared challenges and developed practical ideas for future cooperation.
Discussions generated proposals for new Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) activities, shared modules, student and staff mobility pathways, Blended Intensive Programmes (BIPs), micro-credentials, joint programmes and other EUTOPIA-labelled educational initiatives. By the end of the forum, participants had identified concrete next steps and the support needed to turn these ideas into reality over the coming year.
Advancing research collaboration
Research collaboration also remained central to the week through the fourth edition of the EUTOPIA Research Days, which brought together researchers and research support professionals from across the alliance to exchange expertise, build new networks and explore future interdisciplinary collaborations.
The Young Leaders Academy Symposium provided a platform for Cohort 3 participants to present their work and engage with colleagues from across EUTOPIA. The symposium highlighted the contribution of early-career researchers to the alliance while strengthening international networks and leadership development.
Shaping the alliance’s future
Throughout the week, EUTOPIA’s governing bodies—including the Board of Presidents, General Assembly, Alliance Management Board, Advisory Council, Student Council, Quality Council, College Steering Committee and Global Institute Steering Committee—met to review progress, discuss strategic priorities and shape the alliance’s future development.
The week concluded with a farewell reception and evening cruise through Gothenburg Harbour, providing participants with a final opportunity to reflect on the week’s discussions, celebrate new collaborations and strengthen the relationships built throughout EUTOPIA Week.
Together, the four pillars of EUTOPIA Week reflected the alliance’s ambition to strengthen collaboration across every aspect of university life. From advancing educational innovation and research partnerships to supporting student engagement and strategic governance, the discussions and initiatives launched in Gothenburg will continue to shape EUTOPIA’s work in the future.
