Belgian Presidency of the Council of the European Union: A Perspective from two Belgian Universities
31 July 2024
Professors Didier Lambert and Luc Sels, Rectors of UCLouvain and KU Leuven, respectively
From January 1 to June 30, 2024, Belgium held the rotating Presidency of the Council of the European Union, championing for better protecting European citizens, strengthening cooperation and preparing a shared future in times of political turmoil and geopolitical conflicts. It is precisely in this context that we see a crucial role for universities when it comes to equipping, supporting and preparing not only European, but truly global citizens and future leaders.
A future-proof European Education Area
The Belgian Presidency has taken further steps towards realising the European Education Area (EEA). The European Commission published its much awaited Blueprint for a European degree, building upon the experiences and input of the European Universities alliances. From the perspective of our respective alliances, Circle U. (UCLouvain) and Una Europa (KU Leuven), we welcome the recommendations and look forward to further developments under the next Council Presidencies.
However, to create an EEA without borders, we will need less red tape, fewer legal barriers and continuous support from the European Union and its Member States. We need a sustainable legal framework with sufficient funding mechanisms, allowing the creation of new joint programmes contributing to high quality education for all, and not just for a select number of students. The recommendations that resulted from the ED-Affiche project, a consortium of six European Universities alliances examining and facilitating the delivery of a joint European Degree label, can provide guidance here.
In April 2024, under the auspices of the Presidency, the ten Belgian universities, united under the Flemish Interuniversity Council (VLIR) and the Rectors’ Council of Universities of the Wallonia-Brussels Federation (CRef), jointly organised the conference ‘European University Alliances: Drivers of Change and Innovation in Higher Education’. The conference looked into the role of alliances in relation to six pivotal themes including multilingualism, inclusion, superdiversity, pedagogical innovation, the European Degree label and global cooperation, in particular with partners in the Global South.
Supporting Global Partnerships
The Brussels Statement or Multilateral dialogue on principles and values for international cooperation in research and innovation underlines important principles and values, serving as a global platform for constructive and collaborative engagement in a changing world. At the same time, geopolitical instability has reinforced the debates around research security and responsible internationalisation. In this respect, we welcomed the opportunity to exchange with policy makers and colleagues within our various university networks on these issues and to provide input to the recently adopted Council Recommendation to enhance research security.
However, the realisation of a competitive European Research Area, based on European values and at the same time open to the world by facilitating responsible cooperation, requires strong, autonomous knowledge institutions. We cannot take academic freedom for granted and therefore call for its continued protection and safeguarding.
We greatly value the importance of collaboration with non-EU partners, for instance through the association to Horizon Europe. We also appreciate the continuation of the close cooperation between the European Union and African Union. Under the Belgian presidency, this was supported in part by an expert conference on Health Equity. This is a topic close to the heart of both our institutions, illustrated by our recent joint visits to DR Congo, where we committed to building a shared academic future with our sister universities UNIKIN and Université Catholique du Congo. This includes the launch of 70 jointly awarded scholarships for doctoral projects and research residencies. Only by working together and by forging strong academic partnerships and networks across borders can we tackle today’s global challenges.
Local innovation with global impact
Innovative regions play a crucial role in the further development of a strong, resilient and competitive Europe. In our cities, the local innovation ecosystem, facilitating industry-academia co-creation, has become a hotbed for creative and innovative ideas and knowledge exchange and valorisation, often leading to unexpected synergies and multidisciplinary collaborations. In addition, such an ecosystem is the location par excellence to retain and attract talent and to introduce the current and future workforce to innovation and entrepreneurship, both in theory and in practice.
We therefore welcome the Council Conclusions on strengthening knowledge valorisation. We do, however, emphasise the need for sustainable support and funding from both the European Union as well as the Member States.
Strength through Unity
Our universities’ participation in international networks such as the Coimbra Group, LERU, The Guild, U21 and CESAER has been instrumental in analysing common challenges, exploring solutions and enhancing the voice of our academic communities to policymakers. Likewise, our partaking in European Universities alliances is propelling academic cooperation to a higher level.
The political achievements of the recent months have been made possible by consensus, unity and international cooperation. It is against this background and in the context of upcoming milestone anniversaries – 600 years of existence of our universities and 40 years since the creation of the Coimbra Group – that we reiterate that it is only by working together across continental, disciplinary and sectoral borders that we can respond to today’s global challenges. Together, we can create a future-proof Europe where knowledge serves as a source of innovative solutions and as a beacon of stability in times of uncertainty.