EUTOPIA and 20+ Alliances are “En Route” to Toulouse’s EAIE 2024 Conference

Toulouse, France – 17th-20th September 2024 – The 34th Annual EAIE Conference and Exhibition, with the theme “En Route”, will feature more than 20 alliances representing over 200 higher education institutions for the first time.

After the success of the 2023 EIAE edition in Rotterdam, the EUTOPIA alliance actively prepared with more than 20 other European university alliances for this new event. EUTOPIA decided to go with an individual booth (B41), which will welcome all its partners to exchange ideas on future collaborations. Additionally, EUTOPIA will co-organise three sessions to share its recent experiences on the 18th, 19th, and 20th of September 2024. The EAIE conference in Toulouse provides, indeed, an opportunity to join a global network of international higher education professionals working together towards a more interconnected global educational landscape. 

The most remarkable thing about 2024 will be the massive presence of the European alliances, which had timidly shown their face in Barcelona in 2022 and were less than ten but scattered in Rotterdam in 2023. Their remarkable coordination in 2024, in liaison with the European Commission, gives them unprecedented visibility this year. 

An important side event will inaugurate the EAIE conference for the Alliances on the 17th, from 8:45 am to 3:00 pm. Titled “Internationalisation of European Universities Alliances: the new frontiers” and hosted by the University of Toulouse and the Région Occitanie, it includes three sessions which explore why and how European Universities Alliances build strategic partnerships with institutions and stakeholders beyond the European Union. 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 and cooperation with African partners. The Secretary-General of EUTOPIA, Mattia Bellotti, will be one of the speakers at the conference on Internationalisation and European Universities Alliances, with Vanessa Debiais Sainton (DGEAC, European Commission), Carle Bonnafous-Murat (Permanent representative of France Universités in Brussels), Marie Azuelos (Deputy Director for International Affairs at Sciences Po, CIVICA Alliance), John Gardiner (Project Manager, ULYSSEUS Alliance) and Romita Iucu (from the CIVIS Alliance).

Almost 20 sessions were proposed by the European Universities Alliances during the EAIE Conference, among which three are managed with EUTOPIA.

Co-organised with Arqus, the first special session on the 18th, titled “Connecting education and research: How European Universities Initiative alliances are contributing to bridging the gap,” will examine solutions to bridge education and research. Eva Martín García (Head of the Research Service- Pompeu Fabra university-Barcelona, EUTOPIA), Jo Angouri (Professor/Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor, University of Warwick, EUTOPIA), and Dorothy Kelly (professor at the University of Granada and Arqus Alliance coordinator), who will moderate this session.

The second session will take place on the 19th. It will focus on “Global Collaboration and Science Diplomacy: Universities as Catalysts for International Engagement,” diving into the crucial role of creating a new field of science diplomacy., with three speakers: Luciana Radut-Gaghi (Vice-president for International Relations and strategic partnerships at CY Cergy Paris Université, EUTOPIA), Eric Piaget (researcher, coordinator of the Science diplomacy EUTOPIA programme at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Belgium, EUTOPIA) and Brian MacCraith (Senior Advisor to the President, Arizona State University, EUTOPIA).

The third session co-organised by EUTOPIA, Una Europa and AURORA, is titled “How European Universities Alliances are Spearheading Sustainability Literacy for all,” and will highlight the importance of raising awareness of sustainable development and global well-being in universities. Jo Angouri (Professor/Deputy Pro-Vice-Chancellor, University of Warwick, UK, EUTOPIA Alliance) will participate in this co-organisation with Aleksi Vauhkonen (Professor, Education Specialist, University of Helsinki from Una Europa), Christina Raab (Deputy Head of Aurora European University Office, University of Innsbruck, AURORA Alliance).

The involvement of the alliance’s representatives and speakers highlights EUTOPIA’s efforts to reshape the academic landscape. By fostering transnational cooperation, EUTOPIA and the more than 20 Alliances present in Toulouse are paving the way for an innovative, interconnected model of European higher education.

More information on EAIE 2024

Read the press release here.

Access the "Internationalisation of European Universities Alliances: the new frontiers" event online on September 17 here.