Rector Highlights Aurora Opportunities at EUA Conference

Silja Bára R. Ómarsdóttir, Rector of the University of Iceland, took part in a plenary session last week at the annual conference of the European University Association held in Istanbul, Turkey. There, she discussed, among other things, the benefits for the University of Iceland and its partner institutions from participating in the Aurora university network. Maximilian Conrad, professor in the Faculty of Political Science at UI, was among the keynote speakers at the conference.

Along with Silja Bára and Maximilian, Ragna Benedikta Garðarsdóttir, Pro-Rector for Education, also attended the conference, which was dedicated to the challenges facing European university alliances, looking both at alliances between universities and at those between universities, governments and the public.

Silja Bára took part in a plenary session on the European Universities Initiative (EUI). The European Union now funds 65 European university networks through the Erasmus+ education programme, aiming to strengthen European universities’ international competitiveness and promote innovation and quality in university education through strong transnational alliances. As is well known, the University of Iceland is a member of the Aurora European University Alliance, which has twice received grants from the EU’s Erasmus+ programme, as well as from other programmes for specific projects.

The plenary, entitled “European Universities alliances, leadership and the future of international cooperation” featured Silja Bára and Pedro Arezes, Rector of the University of Minho in Portugal, and was moderated by Amanda Crowfoot, Secretary General of EUA.

Among other things, Silja Bára reflected on the benefits for the University of Iceland from participating in the Aurora network, which is celebrating its 10-year anniversary this year, and on how the European Universities Initiative has impacted collaboration among Aurora partner universities. She mentioned that support from the EUI had enabled further development of collaboration among the Aurora universities, for example, in teaching and research. There were more interdisciplinary courses and international opportunities for students, too. Additionally, staff could strengthen their teaching skills and increase research collaboration.

Silja Bára also pointed out that participation in Aurora had brought international cooperation for UI to a deeper level than before. “The value created by Aurora is moving beyond traditional student and staff exchange programmes, towards deep, high-trust internationalisation of education and research. Through our participation in Aurora, we prioritise institutional transformation that embeds internationalisation into our core structures rather than treating it as an add-on,” Silja Bára said.

As mentioned before, Maximilian Conrad, professor in the Faculty of Political Science, was among the keynote speakers at the conference. He spoke about public trust in science and education in the post-truth era. Maximilian led a major European project, entitled RECLAIM, which concluded last year and focused on researching the implications of post-truth politics for democracy in Europe and beyond. Maximilian also participated in a plenary session discussing how universities can maintain trust and fulfil their societal responsibilities in contemporary democracies marked by growing distrust.