Over 300 guests, eight European universities, dozens of parallel sessions, workshops and meetings. The University of Warsaw hosted a three-day Annual Meeting of the 4EU+ Alliance, of which the UW is a member. On 26th September, Prof. Alojzy Z. Nowak, the UW Rector, took over the Alliance’s presidency from Prof. Elio Franzini, the Rector of the University of Milan. The event was attended, among others, by Dariusz Wieczorek, the Minister of Science.

The 4EU+ Alliance comprises eight research-intensive universities that work together to build one European University. 4EU+ is one of the strategic initiatives for the University of Warsaw. Through 4EU+, a common educational, research, digital and mobility infrastructure is being built. More than 300,000 students, almost 30,000 doctoral candidates and more than 50,000 employees from Warsaw, Prague, Copenhagen, Heidelberg, Paris, Milan and Geneva work together, exchange experiences, conduct joint research and innovative educational projects. In total, more than 240 inter-university projects have been launched in the Alliance to date.

Every year, 4EU+ organises a large-scale Annual Meeting at a different university. This year’s gathering was organised by the University of Warsaw with the motto “Digital 4EU+: Education – Research – Cooperation.”

In line with the established principle, the presidency of the Alliance is transitive and lasts for one year. During the meeting in Warsaw, the presidency of the 4EU+ Alliance was solemnly handed over to Prof. Alojzy Z. Nowak, the University of Warsaw Rector.

 

“All members of our communities: students, doctoral candidates, academics and administrative staff contribute to the development of the 4EU+ Alliance. We already have many joint achievements, particularly in the field of education. We have projects and intensive academic exchanges. Our world is changing. Therefore, the role of the university must also change, not only adapting to the evolving reality but also shaping it,” said Prof. Alojzy Z. Nowak, the UW Rector, during the opening ceremony in the Old Library on the UW campus at Krakowskie Przedmieście.

“This is an essential event for the development of science in Poland and Europe. I am grateful for your work. The strategy of the 4EU+ Alliance largely coincides with our science policy. We want to continue to support cooperation between European higher education institutions,” said Dariusz Wieczorek, the Minister of Science, who attended the 4EU+ Annual Meeting at the UW.

European University

Between 25th and 27th September, representatives of students, doctoral candidates, administrative staff, academics and researchers from the eight-member universities discussed the progress in the implementation of flagship programmes, issues related to educational projects, mobility, communication or digitalisation during a series of workshops, debates and meetings. In line with the main theme of the conference Digital 4EU+: Education – Research – Cooperation, participants addressed topics such as the application of digital solutions in education and science, as well as artificial intelligence.

During the General Assembly, held on 26th September in the Old Library building, the strategy and reports of the Alliance were presented by Prof. Elio Franzini, Rector of the University of Milan, Prof. Antonella Baldi, Chair of the 4EU+ Management Committee, Prof. Berni Hasenknopf, the 4EU+ Academic Council Chair, and Jan Chmielewski-Gill, the Vice-Chair of the 4EU+ Student Executive Committee. The opening lecture: “Academic, Critical, Practical and Public: the Four Roles of the University in the Age of Datafication”, was delivered by Prof. Renata Włoch from the UW’s Faculty of Sociology, the Digital Economy Lab Scientific Director.