European University Alliances: Drivers Of Change And Innovation In Higher Education

• Conference
• Brussels, 29 and 30 April, 2024

Following the meetings and forums dedicated to university alliances by the rotating presidencies of the Council of the European Union, and in particular those of France (2022), Sweden (2023) and Spain (2023), Belgium includes in its presidency (January-June 2024) this highly ambitious European project aiming to integrate at different levels higher education and research institutions from all over Europe. 

On the occasion of the Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the ten Belgian universities is inviting both academic researchers and policymakers to the conference "European University Alliances: Drivers of Change and Innovation in Higher Education". 

The event will focus on the role of European university alliances as drivers of change and innovation in the European higher education landscape. More specifically, topics such as multilingualism, inclusion, student and staff mobility, super-diversity in academia and the labour market, pedagogical innovations and the European Degree label will be explored in depth. The conference will also focus on creating synergies between the European University Alliances and our partner universities in the Global South.

EUTOPIA will be represented by Vrije Universiteit Brussel in a joint session with Circle U, represented by UCLouvain, on the future of education and language learning in our connected world. Emerging trends and developments will be addressed from a systemic perspective and illustrated through the lens of multilingualism while also exploring some areas of improvement. 

The conference's Scientific Committee includes:

For more information, visit the Flemish Interuniversity Council's website.

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The European Universities alliances are a flagship initiative of the European strategy for universities. The initiative sets the ambition to expand the 50 existing to 60 European Universities alliances involving more than 500 higher education institutions by mid-2024. By developing long-term structural, strategic and sustainable cooperation between the higher education institutions in the European Universities alliances, the initiative aims to:

• improve the international competitiveness of higher education institutions in Europe  
• promote European values and identity

The initiative has the potential to bring greater benefits to higher education institutions than any previous cooperation projects. 

For more information, visit the dedicated webpage of the European Commission