The call is now open for the European Foundations Award for Responsible Research and Innovation, an award that celebrates excellent European research practices (i.e. research projects and programmes) which incorporate elements of responsible research and innovation throughout the research process. More...

Mergers and concentration processes are on the rise in the university sector. Close to 100 cases over the past 15 years have been listed by the European University Association. They now feature in EUA’s University Merger Tool, www.university-mergers.eu, the first interactive online map of the institutions borne out of these processes.
Whether mergers/clusters are part of large-scale restructuring of the higher education and research landscape or a response to local challenges, public authorities as well as university leaders and managers need to overcome similar issues. The University Merger Tool intends to support them by helping to identify previous cases of interest, and thus foster the exchange of experiences and good practice across borders. More...

On 24-25 September 2015, Imperial College London hosted the final conference of FRINDOC, a three-year project coordinated by EUA in partnership with the University of Hong Kong, Stellenbosch University, Imperial College London, the University of Bergen and the University of Camerino with the financial support of the European Commission. More...

On 24-25 September 2015, the Expert Group on Science 2.0/Open Science met in Brussels for the first time. The Expert Group on Science 2.0/Open Science was set up by decision of the EUA Council in January 2015, in order to expand the work of EUA’s Open Access taskforce, which operated between 2012 and 2014, and to take account of the implications of the Science 2.0 tools and Open Science for universities. More...

EUA’s Annual Conference 2016 on the theme “Bricks and clicks for Europe: building a successful digital campus” will take place on 7-8 April 2016 at the National University of Ireland Galway (NUIG). In the framework of the conference, EUA has launched a Call for Presentations for three Working Group sessions.
Digitalisation is having a major impact on the ways universities conduct research, provide teaching and relate to their community. The EUA Annual Conference 2016 will explore how Europe’s universities are developing strategies to successfully integrate the development of physical and IT infrastructures (“bricks and clicks”), and how they are tackling the challenges involved in becoming more interactive and interconnected. More...

On 13 November 2015, the EUA Council for Doctoral Education (EUA-CDE) is organising a focus group on the postdoctoral stage. The event is hosted by Aarhus University, Denmark.
The focus group will attempt to identify existing or potential good practices for using postdoc positions for the benefit of institutions and researchers alike, particularly in relation to changing career patterns of early stage researchers. Places will be filled on a first-come-first-served basis. Priority will be given to EUA-CDE members, with a limit of one participant per institution.
The deadline for registration is 26 October 2015. There is no registration fee, but participants will have to cover their own travel and accommodation costs. To register for the event, please contact caroline.marissal@eua.be. More...

EUA’s work in the energy field and in particular the progress of EUA’s UNI-SET project was presented at the annual SET-Plan Conference which took place on 21-22 September in Luxembourg.
This year’s conference was entitled "Research, innovation and competitiveness for the Energy Union" and aimed to launch a European debate on the new SET-Plan communication and the next steps for its implementation in accordance with the 'Energy Union'. More...

The European Commission has launched the Science4Refugees initiative to help refugee scientists and researchers find suitable jobs that both improve their own situation and put their skills and experience to good use in Europe's research system.
Science4Refugees is accessible to refugees and institutions through the EURAXESS – Researchers in Motion portal, a pan-European initiative providing access to a complete range of information and support services to researchers wishing to find jobs and pursue their research careers in Europe. More...

Carlos Moedas, European Commissioner for Research and Innovation and the leadership team of his Directorate General gathered to listen to the views of key stakeholders on the simplification of Horizon 2020 on Friday, 25 September 2015.
On this occasion the European Commission also launched a survey to collect further contributions. More...

Participants from national and regional representations and Brussels-based stakeholders in research and education gathered on 23 September at the Representation of the Free State of Bavaria to the EU to discuss strategies for efficient funding of universities in Europe. The event was the final milestone of the three-year DEFINE project which looked at funding reforms and restructuring of university systems across Europe. More...