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Equity, diversity and inclusion and belonging (EDIB) are important priorities for universities and are also reflected in their broader contribution to society.
At many institutions, EDIB has become foundation of learning and teaching, research and innovation as well as institutional cultures. They take action to enhance the participation of people from under-represented and disadvantaged backgrounds, regardless of their gender, sexual orientation, religion, and ethnical, cultural, economic and social background. This can include the implementation of gender equality plans, refugee integration, recognition of study periods and qualifications, provision of lifelong learning, inclusive assessment methods and accessible infrastructure and learning material, non-discrimination policies or core hours policies enabling participation of staff with caring responsibilities.
EUA works to ensure that universities across Europe have a platform to share their approaches and strategies on EDIB, notably as part of its new Research and Innovation Agenda 2027. The Association facilitates an ongoing European-wide discussion on the topic, fostering peer-learning activities and supporting members in understanding how EDIB can be embedded into higher education, research and innovation and university management.
Consult EUA’s R&I Agenda
EUA also provides its findings to inform relevant policy debates, for instance within the Bologna Process and contributes to policy discussions such as through the ERA Forum (cf. ERA Action 5 on promoting gender equality and fostering inclusiveness), the BFUG Working Group on the social dimension, and the European Commission’s Working Group on Equality and Values in Education and Training. Additionally, EUA is involved in raising awareness on gender disparities in universities through its yearly International Women’s Day campaign.
Watch EUA’s IWD 2023 interviews on advancing gender equality through better research assessment
For the European higher education sector, the past five years have seen many changes and transformations, some gradual, others more drastic and disruptive. ...
European higher education institutions (HEIs) are facing increasing demands for more flexible learning and flexibility in learning paths. ...
University R&I, and its synergies with education and service to society, is the premier gateway to the knowledge and skills needed for scientific progress and sustainable societal development. ...
The European University Association (EUA) presents a set of recommendations on sustaining Ukrainian universities and enabling them to continue their research and teaching activities. ...
Today, more than ever before, universities are expected to fulfil multiple and increasingly challenging roles. Invariably, university leaders are walking a tightrope, caught between long-term strategy ...
Scholars in many parts of the world are experiencing threats to their careers, liberty, and even their lives. Many of these at-risk researchers have to leave their countries in order to find refuge, s ...
The inclusion and integration of migrants is an important social and economic investment, and education and training can play a key role in it. Since 2015, higher education institutions have welcomed ...
The 2020 EUA Learning & Teaching Thematic Peer Group on “Approaches in learning and teaching to promoting equity and inclusion” explored how universities can best support inclusion and equity ...
The process to renew the European Research Area (ERA) is gathering pace and is set to continue in the coming weeks, months and years. Building on previous policy positions, this policy input further e ...
Granting refuge and academic freedom to scholars and students, who had to flee persecution and wars in their home countries and regions, is an eminent function of universities. Over the past decades, ...
EU Commissioner Mariya Gabriel, during the European Research and Innovation Days in September 2020, stated that excellence and inclusiveness are two sides of the same coin in the new European Research ...
Inclusiveness has become a strategic question for a number of higher education institutions across Europe, impacting learning and teaching, research and institutional cultures. Many have taken action ...
The comparative, cross-country study reviews the links between integration and higher education policies. It documents the conditions and circumstances for access, retention and completion of higher e ...
The present edited volume is a contribution to a European exchange on the role of higher education in promoting diversity, equity and inclusion and the responses of universities to related i ...
At its Council meeting on 23 October 2015 the European University Association (EUA) called on policy makers at both EU and Member State level and higher education institutions in Europe to enable refu ...
With a briefing published in December 2023, the Inspireurope+ project consortium recommends the establishment of national fellowship schemes across Europe and beyond to support researchers at risk. EU ...
The first female Presidents from six Irish Universities will gather together in conversation to celebrate International Women's Day 2023. ...
International Women’s Day provides an opportunity to reflect on the gender disparities in university leadership. This article, presenting the latest data and trends in female leadership in EUA membe ...
The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation opened the applications period for the 10th call of the Philipp Schwartz Initiative. ...
The Education Department of the Council of Europe launched the application period for Best Practice Programme in Promoting Academic Integrity during Covid-19, open until 20 August. ...
EUROSTUDENT organises the EUROSTUDENT VII final conference online on 18 and 19 May 2021. Registrations are now open and free of charge. ...
Sustainable learning and teaching was at the centre of the 2020 EUA Learning & Teaching Thematic Peer Groups, which have wrapped up their cycle of work. ...
International Women’s Day, celebrated on 8 March, is an opportunity that EUA has been seizing every year to further raise awareness on gender disparities in universities. In 2021, again, the Associa ...
On 14 February, Frédérique Vidal, French Minister for Higher Education, Research and Innovation, announced plans to order the French research agency (CNRS) to conduct an enquiry into French universi ...
The European University Alliance E³UDRES² (Engaged and Entrepreneurial European University as Driver for European Smart and Sustainable Regions) calls for scientific contributions, relevant concepts ...
EUA partner Scholars at Risk (SAR) organises “Free to Think 2020: Responding to Attacks on Higher Education” on 19 – 20 November 2020. ...
Coventry University’s Centre for Global Learning: Education and Attainment (GLEA) organises the online conference “Reconstructing education through a global lens” on 2 – 6 November 2020. ...
The sixth edition of the International Turkic World Tourism Symposium will take place on 9-11 April 2020 in Denizli, Turkey. Organisers invite interested participants to send their abstract congress p ...
The Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education (NOKUT) organises the final dissemination seminar of the Erasmus+ Refugees and Recognition – Toolkit 2 (REACT) project on 17 January 2020 in B ...
The Lifelong Learning Platform is organising the 9th edition of the LLLWeek on 2-6 December in Brussels. ...
The Erasmus+ Refugee Education Initiatives (REIs) consortium has launched a call for papers for a workshop on “Exploring European Experiences in Providing Higher Education for Refugees and Asylum Se ...
The Norwegian Agency for Quality Assurance in Education (NOKUT) organises a webinar on 19 November from 12:00 to 14:00 to present the results of the testing performed at higher education institutions ...
The Center for Applied European Studies (CAES) invites interested participants to attend the symposium “Racism and Antisemitism – commonplace in Europe?” on 22 November at Frankfurt University o ...
1 October 2024, 11.00 – 12.00 CEST Following the publication of EUA’s ‘Trends 2024’ report, the authors will present the main findings and share their analysis of current developments in the ...
Online courses in Open Science are ready and available for free and anytime, many upon the initiative of doctoral candidates who are engaged in advocacy and dissemination events. As Roberta Moscon fro ...
What makes a university a champion of gender equality? Gemma Irvine outlines how Maynooth University has become a leader in advancing equality, celebrating diversity, and promoting inclusion. ...
Having studied assessment practices in 5 European funding agencies, the GRANteD project research team concludes that formal policies are important to foster inclusiveness, but several limitations must ...
The UK will join the EU’s Horizon Europe programme in January 2024. Rebuilding collaboration, regulatory divergence and sensitive technologies are the next challenges, EUA’s Thomas Jørgensen writ ...
How can universities adopt more flexible and adaptive approaches to strategy development? Gert-Jan Scheurwater reports on TU Delft’s progress in introducing foresight as a tool to tackle this challe ...
Open Science and gender equality are two movements with much in common, so why is a feminist perspective on Open Science yet to emerge? Pastora Martínez Samper tackles the question. "Feminism is the ...
Ahead of International Women’s Day, Aleksandra Kanjuo Mrčela reflects on progress towards achieving gender equality in academia, yet unsolved issues such as the consequences of de-masculinising (ce ...
The growing participation of women in higher education is not yet reflected in university leadership. Here, Kerstin Mey examines barriers to reaching a critical mass of female leaders in higher educat ...
The emotional health of students in Europe is receiving increased attention. Here, Valérie Van Hees and Ronny Bruffaerts reflect on the existing European landscape and introduce a new project to supp ...
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To increase student engagement and better prepare graduates for the realities of work, universities must re-think how they use and promote teamwork to reflect real-world value. Sondre Kvam, entreprene ...
On the occasion of EUA’s 20th anniversary, Cardiff University President and Vice-Chancellor Colin Riordan analyses the role of the Association in a changing world. The piece highlights that while so ...
As we look forward towards a future of “Universities without walls”, this article by EUA President Michael Murphy points out that universities need better and coordinated communication of their wo ...
From EU funding programmes, to travel and data transfer, the pieces of the puzzle are finally falling into place for universities post-Brexit. EUA’s Thomas Jorgensen provides an update on the situat ...
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Grants are important for researchers’ careers and only the best applicants receive them. So, what is the best and how are the best selected? As Helene Schiffbänker from Joanneum Research in Vienna ...
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Brexit is a sad moment, as is always the case whenever a member of a community leaves. But for European universities, it may be felt as a particular blow. Amanda Crowfoot, EUA Secretary General, talks ...
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While more women are making their way to the highest levels of academic leadership in Europe, the numbers are still shaky and many obstacles remain in their way. Martine Rahier and Lidia Borrell Damia ...
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In 2019, we are celebrating the 20th anniversary of EU activities to advance gender equality in research. Marcela Linkova from the Czech Centre for Gender and Science and Chair of ERAC Standing Workin ...
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The European Commission’s Erasmus+ mid-term review must consider how to harness the potential of the scheme in addressing Europe’s shifting realities. Providing grants to refugee students and acad ...
The Inspireurope+ project works to coordinate and strengthen support in Europe for researchers at risk. It runs from September 2022 to August 2025, building on the work undertaken by the previous Insp ...
InSPIREurope is a Europe-wide initiative to support researchers who are at risk due to discrimination, persecution, suffering or violence. Funded under the European Commission’s Marie Skłodowska-Cu ...
The INVITED project aimed to support universities in developing and strategies towards equity, diversity and inclusion. ...
Throughout Europe, higher education institutions are supporting refugees, as showcased by EUA’s Refugees Welcome Map. Data collected in this inventory of initiatives has been the basis for inHERE: H ...