When EMERGE was created in 2019, the Rennes 2-led consortium was composed of 7 partner universities from different areas of Europe, all seeking to create, build and strengthen new opportunities for our students, faculties and larger communities within the European Higher Education Area. The European University Initiative (EUI) is now being fully rolled out and scaled up under the Erasmus+ programme 2021-2027. A 2022 call was officially opened on November 30th, 2021, with a record total budget of €272 million. The hard work that was accomplished by each EMERGE partner during the first call process is now being built upon to construct a new application for EUI funding.
The EMERGE consortium has consequently regrouped and the application is being redeveloped under the coordination of the University of Limerick. The key themes of the EMERGE offer, being drafted in the form of Work Packages, will include the framework for: common educational paths/curriculums, research, community and sustainable development initiatives and outreach and communication and more.
More inclusion through partners and students
At a November, 2021 plenary meeting held in Norway amongst partners, and after extensive prospective discussions with university management teams throughout Europe, EMERGE members voted to add partners from new previously untapped corners of Europe. Today, the consortium is an 11-member group, including 8 partners and 3 associated partners:
Main Partners:
- Université Rennes 2
- University of Limerick, Ireland (Coordinator)
- Europa-Universität Flensburg, Germany
- Université Bretagne Sud, France
- Inland Norway University of Applied Sciences, Norway
- Universidad de Burgos, Spain
- Univerzita Mateja Bela, Slovakia
- Neapolis University Pafos, Cyprus
And Associate Partners:
- Universitatea ,,Dunărea de Jos” din Galați, Romania
- the University of Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Democritus Uni of Thrace, Greece
At the same Norway meeting, the consortium also held its first EMERGE Student Forum (ESF) in-person meeting. Created in January 2021, the ESF seeks to engage students from our many communities and generate ideas that will create tangible benefits for our combined student bodies. Many of the ESF members hold key roles at their universities in their student unions and organizations. From Rennes 2, two students - César D'Armas and Nathan Servignat - were able to attend the Norway meeting and continue to be a part of this important initiative.
Increased Cooperation and Promotion of European projects
The EMERGE collaboration is also offering Rennes 2 the opportunity to strengthen the number and scale of our European projects. With consortium members already regularly exchanging ideas for new possible projects and frameworks, our institution has been able to develop and reinforce a number of strategic European projects with other eMERGE members.
TELME is an example of one such new project. Being led by Rennes 2 Professor Christine Evain, TELME is an Erasmus Mundus Project, a response to a call for the design of high-level study programs at the Masters level, jointly delivered by an international consortium of higher education institutions from different countries. Out of 148 submitted applications from around Europe, TELME was one of the 8 projects selected from France, providing them with funding of EUR 55,000. Partners on the project from eMERGE include: the University of Limerick (Ireland), Matej Bel University (Slovakia) and Universidad de Burgos, (Spain). Also participating in TELME is: Åbo Akademi University (Finland) and Adam Mickiewicz University (Poland).
In order to promote this and other types of joint projects, the consortium is in the beginning stages of creating a common EMERGE website, the details of which will be made available soon.
University Presidents to Meet in early March
As we edge closer to the final EUI submission date, the EMERGE teams are busy finalizing the content of each Work Package. In early March, once this stage draws to a close, Presidents and other senior members of EMERGE university management teams have planned a meeting in Brussels. Rennes 2 President, Christine Rivalan-Guégo, has planned to attend, accompanied by Dr. Lelsey Lelourec, Vice President for Internationalisation.
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For more information or questions, please contact:
Dr. Lesley Lelourec
Rennes 2 Vice President for Internationalisation
lesley.lelourec [at] univ-rennes2.fr
