Nine leading European research universities have come together to create a unique alliance – Una Europa. Our universities have been educating Europe for over 1,000 years. Together, we teach almost 450,000 students. Our combined student and staff community surpasses half a million people and our digital learners number in the millions. Una Europa aims to draw on our collective strengths to create a truly European inter-university environment, a University of the Future.
Our partner universities
Freie Universität Berlin
Freie Universität Berlin was founded in 1948 by students and professors as a response to reprisals faced by critical students at the traditional Berlin university, at that time called Universität unter den Linden, which was located in the Soviet sector of the divided city. The US Allies and Berlin politicians approved of the plans for founding a free university. This paved the way for Freie Universität to become an internationally recognized university. The academic ethos of Freie Universität Berlin, based in its founding history, encompasses the three values: Veritas, Justitia, Libertas – truth, justice, freedom.
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Una Europa contact person at Freie Universität Berlin:
Dr. Sonja Yeh
Project Manager Una Europa, Freie Universität Berlin
Email: sonja.yeh@fu-berlin.de
Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna
Established in 1088, the Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna is the oldest university in the western world. The University of Bologna has a Multicampus structure, with campuses in Bologna and the Romagna region - Cesena, Forlì, Ravenna and Rimini, and permanent headquarters in Buenos Aires since 1998. With a current community of more than 85,000 students, the university is among the largest in Italy. Alma Mater occupies the first place among Italian universities in terms of number of students abroad and is among the top 5 universities in Europe in terms of number of exchange students.
It is the first Italian university for funds received from the Erasmus+ programme and the second in terms of funds received from the European Commission due to the participation of the Horizon2020 research and innovation programme. The University of Bologna is among the top 5 Italian universities in the main international rankings (QS, Shanghai, Times Higher Education, Censis Guide and the Sole 24Ore rankings).
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Una Europa contact person at Alma Mater Studiorum Università di Bologna:
Giovanna Filippini
Director of International Relations Division, UNIBO
Email: giovanna.filippini@unibo.it
University of Edinburgh
Founded in 1583, the University of Edinburgh is one of the world’s top universities, consistently ranked in the world top 50, in the Times Higher Education World Rankings, and placed 18th in the 2019 QS World University Rankings. The University’s entrepreneurial and cross-disciplinary culture attracts students and staff from across the globe, creating a unique Edinburgh experience. The University is currently host to 40,000 students from 156 counties. We provide a stimulating working, learning and teaching environment with access to excellent facilities. Previous students include Nobel Prize winning laureates, pioneers and inventors. The University offers a range of ways to study and is the largest provider of online learning in the Russell Group of UK research-intensive universities.
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Una Europa contact person at University of Edinburgh:
Helen McMillan
Regional Director for Europe
Email: Helen.McMillan@ed.ac.uk
Helsingin yliopisto/ Helsingfors universitet
Helsingin yliopisto/ Helsingfors universitet is the oldest and largest institution of academic education in Finland, an international scientific community of 40,000 students and researchers. In international university rankings, Helsingin yliopisto typically ranks among the top 100. Helsingin yliopisto seeks solutions for global challenges and creates new ways of thinking to better humanity.
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Una Europa contact person at Helsingin yliopisto/ Helsingfors universitet:
Maija Urponen
Una Europa Operational Lead
Email: maija.urponen@helsinki.fi
Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie
Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie is a leading Polish higher education institution. It is a comprehensive university, where excellence in research is combined with the highest quality education, innovation and responsible social engagement. It is a place where the rich and creative history of one of the oldest universities in Europe blends with state-of-the-art research infrastructure, innovative technology and future-oriented thinking.
The legacy of the Uniwersytet Jagielloński as epitomized by its most famous alumni – Nicolaus Copernicus, Pope John Paul II or the Nobel Prize winner Wisława Szymborska – is best captured by its motto plus ratio quam vis (reason before force). This attitude, immersed in rationality, tolerance and creativity, has formed the history of the Uniwersytet Jagielloński, and continues to shape its future.
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Una Europa contact person at Uniwersytet Jagielloński w Krakowie:
Hanna Gemza
Una Europa Operational Lead, International Relations Office
Email: hanna.gemza@uj.edu.pl
KU Leuven
KU Leuven is an autonomous university which was founded in 1425. It was born of and has grown within the Catholic tradition. KU Leuven endeavours to be a place for open discussion of social, philosophical and ethical issues and a critical centre of reflection in and for the Catholic community. The University is research-intensive, internationally oriented, and carries out both fundamental and applied research. It is strongly inter- and multidisciplinary in focus and strives for international excellence. KU Leuven aims to actively participate in public and cultural debate and in the advancement of a knowledge-based society. KU Leuven carries out its academic activities at various campuses, research parks and hospital facilities in close cooperation with the members of the KU Leuven Association and with its hospital partners.
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Una Europa contact person at KU Leuven:
Mariet Vriens
Una Europa Operational Lead
Email: mariet.vriens@kuleuven.be
Universidad Complutense de Madrid
Universidad Complutense de Madrid dates back to the 13th century. The original Ciudad Universitaria campus was founded in 1927 with the goal of merging education, science and culture. The University is home to over 86,000 students and also has institutions in the city of Pozuelo de Alarcón. The University offers summer courses in the world heritage site of San Lorenzo del Escorial and boasts a number of study abroad programmes with universities located in Europe and the US. The University’s alumni include many famous historians, philosophers, poets and Prime Ministers. Its graduates are given ‘lifelong training’ that furnishes them with professional skills allied to their chosen fields of work and alongside their academic studies.
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Una Europa contact person at Universidad Complutense de Madrid:
Jacinto de Castro
Operational Lead / Coordinador Técnico
Email: una-europa@ucm.es
Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne
Founded in 1253, Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne is one of the oldest universities in the world. The policy of Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne is to conduct excellent interdisciplinary research and learning. It is organised around 3 main scientific areas: Economics and Management, Humanities, and Law and Political Sciences. Research performed at the University is renowned on both a national and international level. The University is currently host to 43,000 students and offers degrees partially taught in English, double degrees with international partners and off-campus training sessions. It has close and long-standing ties with 400 universities around the world and is a member of international networks. The overall goal is to provide researchers and students with a unique opportunity to interact with a broad and global network.
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Una Europa contact person at Université Paris 1 Panthéon-Sorbonne:
Maxime Morvan
1Europe Project Officer
Email: maxime.morvan@univ-paris1.fr
Universiteit Leiden
Universiteit Leiden was founded in 1575 and is one of the leading international research universities in Europe. Universiteit Leiden encompasses seven faculties in Leiden and The Hague. The campus in Leiden is home to the Leiden Law School, Archaeology and Humanities. Sciences, Medicine and Social and Behavioural Sciences are at the Leiden Bio Science Park where they join 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 campus is home to the Faculty of Governance and Global Affairs and Leiden University College.
The motto of Universiteit Leiden is ‘Praesidium Libertatis’, or ‘Bastion of Freedom’. The university has over 7, 100 staff members and 32, 800 students. Universiteit Leiden is ranked amongst the top 100 universities and part of a number of international networks of universities, including the League of European Research Universities (LERU).
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Una Europa contact person at Universiteit Leiden:
Melissa Koops
Head of International Affairs, Universiteit Leiden
Email: m.koops@bb.leidenuniv.nl
Manifesto
We believe in a university that is...
- not a place, but a body of knowledge, ideas, and values, evolving freely beyond borders, mediums and time.
- the home, therefore the responsibility of its community, namely all the people who share and contribute to its ideals.
- created by and for society and as such driven to be of relevance, impact and high quality.
- an open tradition, using the lessons of the past as a fertile ground to grow solutions for the future.
- a mirror of humanity in all its diversity, reflecting cultures and languages, conventions and disruptions.
- resolutely independent, shaping its own standards away from the fleeting trends and the impulses of a hasty world.
- ready to embrace the challenges of this hasty world, whose fate relies on educated citizens.
- a laboratory of the here and now, where creativity and experimentation unlock the hidden potentials of tomorrow.
- an intellectual playground, where critical minds can expand to their full aspiration.
- a driving influence, transforming education on a wider scale, shaping Europe’s shared future for the better.
Focus Areas
On the basis of their mission and values, the Una Europa partners have selected five Focus Areas to launch their collaboration. Each fosters multi-disciplinarity and includes most of the studies offered at our universities. The Focus Areas act as initial thematic “glue” that ties our universities together in our mission to create a virtual campus.
We focus our research on:
- Cultural Heritage
The rich and diverse Cultural Heritage across the EU shines evidence on the role that universities have played in the creation and cohesion of European identities.
- Data Science and Artificial Intelligence
Data Science and Artificial Intelligence have a pervasive impact on society in all its dimensions, from the way we live our lives and earn our livelihoods to the way we communicate and make decisions.
- European Studies
The study of today’s complex European landscape in a world in flux requires an innovative and cross-cutting approach through which to observe Europe, its challenges, but also its opportunities.
- One Health
One Health is a recent movement promoting networked thinking about health to improve disease detection, prevention and treatment.
- Sustainability
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development presents 17 ambitious goals, which integrate economic, social and environmental dimensions.
Projects
Projects are the catalysts that transform our joint ambition into concrete actions. The projects showcased here are central to Una Europa, aligning with our mission, involving many of our partners and providing numerous opportunities for involvement.
Our projects:
- Una.Resin
Selected for funding under the European Union's Horizon2020 Framework Programme, Una.Resin will enable Una Europa to develop joint new strategies and transformative collaboration in research and innovation.
Learn more about this project. - 1Europe
Funded among the first European University pilots selected by the European Commission in June 2019, our 1Europe project will establish a Europe-wide living lab for testing Joint Innovative Formats for education and mobility (JIFs).
Learn more about this project.