Universities team up in push for power

Six European universities have formed an alliance as part of the European Commission’s initiative to strengthen higher education cooperation.

The Vrije Universiteit Brussel, the University of Warwick, the University of Paris-Seine, the University of Gothenburg, Pompeu Fabra University Barcelona and the University of Ljubljana have joined together to form the EUTOPIA alliance. The move is part of a €30-million initiative by the European Commission to set up more university networks and increase the power of higher education. The six signed a memorandum of understanding on 12 December in Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Following the agreement, Caroline Pauwels, rector of the Vrije Universiteit Brussel, said that the group had chosen the name EUTOPIA in reference to its ambition to realise “the European dream”.