On 29 September, as Slovenia takes over the presidency of the European Union (EU), the Vilnius Gediminas Technical University (VILNIUS TECH), together with the rectors and presidents of six other European universities, solemnly signed a declaration of the Advanced Technology Higher Education Network Alliance (ATHENA).
ATHENA is one of the pilot projects currently underway in Europe to create prototypes of the universities of the future, where new models of academic activities and research, and new ways of combining and consolidating shared resources can be tested.
ATHENA partners – VILNIUS TECH (Lithuania), University of Maribor (Slovenia), Université Orléans (France), University of Siegen (Germany), Porto Polytechnic University (Portugal), Niccolò Cusano University (Italy), Hellenic Mediterranean University (Greece) – are concentrating their efforts in creating joint science and study clusters, in order to cooperate more effectively with business in the field of knowledge and technology transfer, in order to provide high quality international higher education to graduates, and to develop an attractive portfolio of study offers to attract international degree-seekers.
One of the key objectives of the European University Alliances initiative is to work together to find answers to the challenges facing the European Higher Education and Research Area, and to develop new ways of cooperating in academic, research & knowledge, and technology activities.
This would help to address the new challenges of lifelong learning, to develop effective solutions to optimise the use of resources, to transfer best practices, to introduce new forms of learning, including the micro-credentials model, to ensure mass mobility of students and teachers between the Alliance partners, to expand the range of virtual studies and research group activities.
Universities of the future
The higher education area and its development in Europe have been facing new challenges in recent years. At the Gothenburg Summit 2017, the EU leaders set out a new vision for education – to encourage universities in the EU to form long-term strategic partnerships by 2024, creating new standards and models of cooperation. The European University Alliances initiative, in which the ATHENA operates, is a corollary of the decisions taken at this EU Leaders' Meeting.
“The ATHENA and other European alliances initiatives have very ambitious goals in pursuit of the common objective of transforming the European Higher Education and Research Area, and need the support of all stakeholders. Balancing the education policies and legal frameworks at European, national and institutional levels is of paramount importance, as this is the only way to achieve the EU's expectations for European universities on a large scale. We are confident that VILNIUS TECH is a partner whose contribution is important not only for the success of the ATHENA Alliance, but also for the overall advancement of this new educational initiative. Cooperation and the opportunity to share are the key aspects on which the ATHENA Alliance network is built”, emphasises Prof. Dr. Alfonsas Daniūnas, Rector of VILNIUS TECH.
There are currently 41 European University Alliances in Europe, each involving between 4 and 12 institutions. The ATHENA Alliance aims to respond to current and future challenges through transnational, inclusive and innovative education, in tune with the needs of global societal development, addressing Europe's digital transformation, the environment and the accessibility and qualitative renewal of higher education, with a strong focus on research.
An important centerpiece of the ATHENA Alliance's activities, which is relevant both for VILNIUS TECH and the entire Lithuanian science and business ecosystem, is the development of research and studies in the fields of information technology and electronics engineering.
The next meeting of the ATHENA members will take place on 27-29 October at VILNIUS TECH. During the meeting, new breakthrough activities will be discussed and developed.
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