Una Europa welcomes Universiteit Leiden

2022 is off to a good start for Una Europa, as the alliance of leading research universities gets to welcome a new member from the Netherlands. Universiteit Leiden and the other Una Europa partners will draw on their collective strengths to shape the future of Europe through innovative education, research, and international exchange.

Professor James Smith, Chair of the Una Europa Board of Directors and Vice Principal International at the University of Edinburgh, welcomes Universiteit Leiden to the alliance: “Leiden University is an absolutely outstanding institution. It is one of Europe’s leading research universities, a sector leader in educational innovation, and deeply international in its outlook. These qualities and values align perfectly with Una Europa and our existing university partners and will further strengthen Una Europa’s position as one of Europe’s leading university alliances and push us to raise our ambitions and extend our horizons still further.”

Established in 2018, the Una Europa alliance goes beyond traditional geographical and disciplinary boundaries to work towards a virtual ‘multi-campus’ European university of the future. The alliance’s flagship project 1Europe aims to establish a Europe-wide living lab with over twenty joint innovative formats for education and mobility at its core, including the Una Europa Joint Bachelor in European Studies and Joint PhD in Cultural Heritage as well as the Micro Module in Sustainability and the Continuous Education Certificate in Data Science and AI and the Continuous Education Certificate in Data Science and AI. In the Una.Resin project, the alliance is taking the first steps towards developing an Una Europa ecosystem for research and innovation by building a common research and innovation agenda, developing joint strategies for sharing infrastructures, and strengthening human capital.

As a new member of the Una Europa alliance, Universiteit Leiden joins Freie Universität Berlin, KU Leuven, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne, and the universities of Bologna, Edinburgh, Helsinki, and Kraków.

Professor Hester Bijl, Rector Magnificus of Universiteit Leiden, outlines how the addition of Leiden to Una Europa will present new opportunities on both sides: “The goals, thematic focus, and partners of Una Europa closely align with our ambitions for international engagement. Synergy in our international portfolio, our research, and our teaching agendas is of great importance to us, because this makes it possible to create significant impact and will open up new horizons for our students and staff. We sincerely believe that joining this alliance will help us achieve this goal and that is why we have decided to accept this invitation with great pleasure.”

Universiteit Leiden encompasses seven faculties in two major Dutch cities: Leiden and the Hague. The campus in Leiden is home to the Leiden Law School, archaeology, and humanities. For natural sciences, medicine and social and behavioural sciences, the Leiden Bio Science Park is the place to be, and it’s where Universiteit Leiden joins forces with the business community and the Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC). The focus in The Hague is on engaging with international organisations and the public sector, and the city is also home to Leiden University College. The Campus in The Hague is home to the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs.

With over 33,800 students and 7,100 staff members, Universiteit Leiden is a large, research-intensive institution with global reach that will make a strong contribution to the Una Europa community and further enhance the future strategy of the alliance.

Professor Peter Lievens, Vice Rector for International Policy at KU Leuven and coordinator of 1Europe, describes how Universiteit Leiden and Una Europa compliment one another: “There are strong links between the priority research themes of Leiden University – including sustainability, citizenship in times of global transformation, and public health – and the current focus areas of Una Europa. The research expertise that Leiden University brings to the table strengthens our application for new Erasmus+ calls and creates exciting new opportunities for our students.”