The university alliance STARS EU is celebrating from today, Thursday, March 30, its annual conference at the University of La Laguna. For two days, the institutions participating in this initiative, which aims to achieve the European Commission's "European University" label, will work together in their different areas of interest: research, student exchange, joint degrees, and local development. The opening ceremony was held in the Paraninfo (Great Hall), with the Vice-Rector for Teaching Innovation and Quality, Néstor Torres, acting as interim rector.
Nestor Torres
Torres welcomed all the invited guests on behalf of the institution. After reviewing the session's agenda, he noted that the objective of this conference was to assess the current status of the STARS EU alliance, which, if it were to receive the European Commission's label, would allow the nine member institutions to enhance their international standing. He therefore wished the audience a very productive meeting, especially during the working sessions scheduled for this afternoon and Friday morning, March 31, at the Guajara Campus.
Dick Pouwels
Next, Dick Pouwels, president of the institution leading the alliance, Hanze University of Applied Sciences (Netherlands), took the floor. His remarks began with a touch of irony, recalling that his country had been invaded at different times in history by Spain, France, and Germany, and that now all of them are members of the alliance, thus exemplifying the spirit of collaboration behind STARS EU. He expressed his hope that this conference would generate the necessary collective energy to move forward.
Orlando Rodrigues
The president of the Polytechnic Institute of Braganza (Portugal), Orlando Rodrigues, explained that his university, located in the north of the country, is especially involved with regional development and, at this time, is in a process of change and transformation within which the STARS EU alliance will be of great help for its development.
Daniel Engelbrecht
The fourth intervention was that of the president of Financial Affairs, Human Resources and Infrastructure of the Bremen University of Applied Sciences (Germany), Daniel Engelbrecht, who highlighted the fact that the partner universities are relatively close to each other (or a flight away, in the case of the Tenerife center), and was very optimistic about the possibility of “building something very big together”.
Michaela Weiss
Michaela Weiss, Vice-Rector for Studies and Social Affairs at the University of Silesia in Opava, Czech Republic, emphasized the benefits of meeting in person rather than through screens, as close interaction improves communication, which is crucial in any process. Her university is also undergoing a re-evaluation process to improve its regional standing and "bring the university to the people," thereby eliminating the rigidity sometimes associated with academia. To achieve this, collaborative work and networking are essential.
Jan Theliander
Jan Theliander, Vice-Rector of the University of the West (Sweden), explained that his institution was relatively young, founded in 1990, and from the outset has focused on collaboration with the community. He expressed his delight at being able to participate in such an ambitious project as the alliance and his confidence that they would be able to develop it successfully. In his opinion, the work should focus on four values: diversity, inclusion, generosity, and freedom.
Katarzyna Matras-Postołek
Katarzyna Matras-Postołek attended the meeting representing the Kraków University of Technology, still reeling from the sudden death of Andrzej Bialkiewicz, the university's rector, who was scheduled to be present. The audience in the auditorium observed a minute of silence for him. Despite the difficult circumstances, she expressed her joy at being part of the consortium and noted that in a recent national evaluation, her center was ranked among the best in Poland.
Kseanela Sotirofski
One of the latest additions to the alliance is the Albanian Aleksander Moisiu University in Durrës, whose rector, Kseanela Sotirofski, highlighted the great opportunity that joining STARS EU represents. “We are a small country but a great university,” she noted before expressing her willingness to offer her best collaboration, as well as her interest in learning from the experience of the other institutions. She placed particular emphasis on her interest in promoting cooperative research projects, student exchanges, and the establishment of joint degree programs.
Samir Jemel
The University of Franche-Comté (France) has also recently joined the alliance. Its Vice-Rector for Internationalization, Samir Jemel, demonstrated his institution's commitment to quality through several quality certifications obtained in recent years. He embraced the ambitious nature of the project promoted by the alliance and expressed interest in focusing on objectives such as improving student training; engaging local stakeholders; and raising the profile of his university, something that will undoubtedly be aided by the fact that his university will host the alliance's next conference on March 21 and 22, 2024.
María Aránzazu Artal Díez
Following the speeches by representatives of the partner universities, the Island Director of Innovation for the Tenerife Island Council, María Aránzazu Artal Díez, summarized the island's great potential for hosting research activities, as outlined in the Island Government's Innovation Master Plan. This plan is designed to make Tenerife a benchmark in R&D&I, thanks to infrastructure such as the Teide and Anaga supercomputers, the Science and Technology Park, and several research centers located throughout the territory. These centers aim to promote areas such as smart tourism, creative arts, the blue economy, sustainability, mobility, and energy, among others.
Ernesto Pereda
The last formal intervention of the opening ceremony was by the coordinator of STARS EU at the University of La Laguna, the Vice-Rector for Research and Transfer Ernesto Pereda, who gave a more informal presentation in which he wanted to express the aspirations of the alliance: thus, he used as an example Mount Teide, an imposing and powerful, but solitary mountain, and comparing it to the Alps mountain range helped him to reflect on the need to join forces, which he summarized with the famous saying: “alone you go faster, but together we go further.”.
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