Skip to main content

Further Development – University Alliance EDUC Receives EUR 2 Million from EU Program Horizon 2020

The European Digital UniverCity (EDUC) – the alliance of six universities under the aegis of the University of Potsdam – has obtained additional funding: The consortium will receive a total of EUR 2 million over the next three years for its EDUC-SHARE project from the EU program Horizon 2020. The funding is to be used to expand and further develop the research infrastructures of the participating universities in order to facilitate an improved transfer of knowledge and involve social stakeholders in the entire research and innovation process.

“We are delighted that our alliance has succeeded in raising additional funds that will help us build a network in the area of research among the alliance partners. This brings us a considerable step closer to our goal of a truly integrated European university,” says Prof. Dr. Florian J. Schweigert, Vice President for International Affairs, Alumni and Fundraising at the University of Potsdam and head of the consortium of the European alliance EDUC.
Each of the EDUC partner universities will be in charge of specific sub-tasks in the EDUC-SHARE project. Potsdam’s focus will be on the so-called “citizen engagement” – for science and research. Over the next three years, the objective will be to find effective ways to engage citizens for science and thereby raise public awareness of the role of science, research and the public in policy-making. The questions to be answered include: What are the structures that need to be created in politics, administration and science in order for this to succeed? Which target groups can be convinced to participate? And what formats are particularly well-suited? EDUC-SHARE will complement the activities of the Innovative University project’s Society Campus (Gesellschaftscampus).  
The “European Digital UniverCity” (EDUC) is one of 17 pilot higher education alliances that have been funded by the EU in the first funding round since 2016. Six universities from five countries are part of the EDUC alliance: the Université de Paris-Nanterre (France), University of Pécs (Hungary), Université de Rennes 1 (France), Università Cagliari (Italy), Masaryk University (Czech Republic) and the University of Potsdam, which is the head of the consortium. The aim of the project is to further promote the Bologna Process and to create a common space where students, teaching and administrative staff can work together without administrative, cultural and social obstacles.

Contact:
Nadine Shovakar, Project Manager EDUC
E-Mail: nadine.shovakaruni-potsdamde, Phone: +49 331 977-15 30 21

Media information: 03-08-2020 / Nr. 076