Vincent Thomas and Grégory Wegmann represented the FORTHEM Alliance at the meeting ‘Shaping the Future: European Universities Alliances for a Competitive Europe’.
On 26 and 27 February 2025, representatives of the FORTHEM Alliance travelled to Brussels to take part in the high-level meeting on the European Universities Initiative, entitled ‘Shaping the Future: European Universities Alliances for a Competitive Europe’. They also attended the first face-to-face meeting of the FOREU4ALL Forum, which brings together the 65 European university alliances to promote and facilitate exchanges between them.
The event brought together around 450 participants from Europe’s dynamic higher education sector, and over 1,400 people followed the online discussions.
Day One : Strategic Discussions
On the first day, Vincent Thomas, President of Université Bourgogne Europe, and Massimo Midri, President of the University of Palermo, met the Rectors of the European University Alliances. They held discussions with Pia Ahrenkilde Hansen, Director-General for Education, and Roxana Mînzatu, Executive Vice-President of the European Commission. Discussions focused on aligning the European Universities Initiative with the Skills Union.
Nicole Birkle, Secretary General of FORTHEM Alliance, took part in the first physical meeting of the FOREU4ALL Forum Board. Topics discussed included board integration, the Skills Union proposal, the European Diploma, the Polish Presidency event in June and alliance funding strategies.
Day Two: Inspirational Speeches
On the second day, Gregory Wegmann and Fabio Mazzola, respectively members of Université Bourgogne Europe and University of Palermo steering committees, and Valeria Floriano, institutional coordinator at the University of Palermo, took part in the high-level discussions. Roxana Mînzatu gave an online lecture, followed by an impassioned speech by Enrico Alexander Green, a student from the EU-CONEXUS Alliance, on his experience in a joint master’s programme in marine biotechnology.
Beatrix Busse, Chair of the FOREU4ALL Forum Board, gave an inspiring TED-style talk. Enrico Letta, author of a European Council report entitled ‘More than a market: speed, security, solidarity’, warned against the lack of unification of the European knowledge and skills market, stressing the need for further integration to remain competitive with the USA and China.
Priorities and objectives
The round tables highlighted Europe’s priorities: increasing competitiveness, developing skills, attracting and retaining talent, and strengthening cooperation within innovation ecosystems. The working sessions also addressed student engagement, international cooperation and the implementation of the European Diploma.
Nicole Birkle summed up the event by underlining the enthusiasm of alliance representatives for political dialogue and the implementation of common objectives. She also expressed concern about the sustainable funding of the alliances, which is essential for long-term strategic planning.
For more information on this day, click here.