Estelle Iacona leads the participation of Université Paris-Saclay at the EUGLOH Annual Summit in Lund (Sweden)

From Monday 12 to Wednesday 14 June, a delegation of 26 members from Université Paris-Saclay, led by Estelle Iacona, President of the University, participated in the 3rd EUGLOH Annual Summit. Hosted by the University of Lund in Sweden, this was the first summit since enlargement of the European University Alliance for Global Health (EUGLOH) to nine full university partners.

With over 300 representatives from the Alliance’s full and associated partners convening under the theme “Building Bridges between Education and Research”, this Annual Summit made its own significant contribution to the shared long-term aim of EUGLOH to become a world-class higher education, research and innovation alliance.

The EUGLOH Annual Summit is a unique opportunity to foster exchanges between students, academics, researchers and administrators leading to new collaborative projects. Together, they work to expand the Alliance’s capacity, unique expertise and impact on campus but also externally at the local, national, European and International level.

Launched in 2019 and coordinated by Université Paris-Saclay, the European University Alliance EUGLOH welcomed, in January 2023, for its second phase with the EUGLOH 2.0 project, four new full-fledged partner universities (1), whose integration was fully marked by this Annual Summit. The strong socioeconomic and research ecosystems of each partner university offer EUGLOH a unique set of complementary strengths, and broaden geographic and cultural diversity, enhancing expertise, and mission-oriented multidisciplinary approach.

Université Paris-Saclay has been the coordinator of EUGLOH since its inception in 2019. As such, it also serves as the main headquarters for the EUGLOH Secretariat.

Among the 26 members of the Université Paris-Saclay delegation who participated in and actively contributed to the panel discussions, were the Campus Life Vice-President, Anne Guiochon-Mantel, the Deputy Vice-President for European affairs, Eric Cassan, the Deputy Vice-President for Research, Michel Guidal, the Director of cultural and sciences-society activities, Olivier Kahn, the Director and the Deputy Director of International and European affairs, Guillaume Garreta and Pedro Santiago, as well as academics, administrative staff, and five student board members. This participation and composition of the delegation led by the President Estelle Iacona reinforces the position of Université Paris-Saclay as a driving force to achieve the Alliance’s goals.

The official opening of the summit took place on June 13 in the grand hall of the 141-year-old main building of Lund University. Welcome speeches were given by Sandrine Lacombe, EUGLOH Scientific coordinator and Vice-President for International and European Affairs at Université Paris-Saclay, and alongside Erik Renström, Lund University Vice-Chancellor, Alva Söderbäck, Vice President of Lund University Student Union, Mats Helmfrid, Mayor and Chairman of the Lund City Council.

Mats Persson, Minister for Education at the Ministry of Education and Research in Sweden, also welcomed the guests and emphasised the importance of University Alliances, saying that “[he] firmly [believes] that interconnected institutions are very important for tackling the challenges related to the green and digital transition and the global health challenges that we all face.”

The over 60 students, who attended the Annual Summit as part of their engagement in EUGLOH Local Student Boards on their respective campuses, appreciated the opportunity to connect with each other. For Killian Laguerre, EUGLOH International Student Board Coordinator, “the atmosphere among the students is simply incredible.” Killian, who is a PhD candidate at Université Paris-Saclay remarked that during the summit: “[he] realised just how important EUGLOH can be. As a PhD candidate, there's a lot of pressure on you during your thesis about your professional future. EUGLOH is a great opportunity to meet researchers, professors and, of course, lots of students.”

The various sessions, study visits and working meetings that followed the opening ceremony focused on three key themes deeply related with societal issues and challenges: Art and Health, the UN Sustainable Development Agenda 2030, and EU – a vision of an integrated education, research and innovation area.

Steve Brown, a Professor at CentraleSupélec and guest speaker for Université Paris-Saclay, gave a talk during the Agenda 2030 Education and Society session, presenting the outcomes of his "Ecoclubs" project. This project aims to facilitate links between society and education through a mentoring programme between high school and higher education students around sustainable development projects. As it empowers underprivileged populations by giving them a voice, this project aligns perfectly with the Alliance’s aim of building an inclusive and intercultural European campus, where sustainability and well-being are cultivated, (and) where one feels well and at home regardless of the location.

The EUGLOH Annual Summit is held every year at a different member university. It offers the chance to establish new projects for education, research, innovation, and start-ups, to identify new professional opportunities, and to increase the visibility and impact of the Alliance and its partner institutions more generally. In 2024, the Annual Summit will be held at the University of Szeged, Hungary.

Full program