200 participants at ICTU 2024 in Timisoara: the education through UNITA is growing and international
On the 5th and 6th of June, Universitatea de Vest din Timișoara hosted the second edition of the Internationalization of Curricula Through UNITA 2024 matching event on education. 200 academics from all 12 partner and associated universities in the UNITA alliance, volunteers, facilitators and members of the organization team animated the second edition of Internationalization of Curricula Through UNITA hosted in Timisoara. Following the first edition held at Universita di Torino in 2023 – allowing the creation of 3 double degree programmes and 5 BIPs among partner institutions, as well as paving the way to discussion of 3 more BIPs and 6 more double degree programmes -, the increase in participation from year to year demonstrate that within UNITA the community of academics interested in innovation in education through international collaborations is becoming more and more consolidated. During the event teachers had the chance to familiarize themselves with the main models for internationalization of curricula within UNITA, by attending several talks about the implementation of BIPs (Blended Intensive Programmes), COILs (Collaborative Online International Learning), UCIL (UNITA Collaborative International Learning), mobilities, double and joint degrees. Each participant was then assigned to work in a specific group, based on the study programme they are coordinating: the 28 working groups created in Timisoara had the chance to build up cooperative activities, courses, and curricula aiming at widening the international education offer available for UNITA students. The organizing team ensured that the groups would contain as much cultural and linguistic diversity as possible. Guest speakers from outside UNITA – Romiță Iucu and Alexandru Carțiș, from the University of Bucharest (which is part of the CIVIS European Universities alliance) – joined the event and discussed the broader picture about the policies of the European Alliances towards education. Partcipants also joined a workshop on intercomprehension and sustainability, which are two of the pillars that UNITA is based on. This event is not concluded: in November 2024 a follow-up event will take place in Timișoara and will involve the working groups engaged in implementing the internationalisation projects planned in June. The follow-up event will be of great significance for the final implementation of the projects.
The former President of the French Republic answers questions from the UNITA Student Assembly
On Friday, May 31, the former President of the French Republic, François Hollande, visited the University of Pau and Pays de l’Adour (UPPA). About a hundred students from the College of European and International Studies and the CDRE – Center for European Documentation and Research were present for this exceptional event. Three students from the UNITA student assembly had the opportunity to question the former head of state about Europe: Charline Dos Beira, Clément Combier, and Nicolas Evain. Nicolas Evain notably asked Mr. Hollande about the concept of a European university and a European degree with the following question: “How could the EU encourage the creation of European universities or flexible training programs, built through teaching units offered by European partners? And if we wanted to go even further, how could we, as students, access a common European degree, co-created by several European universities?” Mr. Hollande praised the ambitious nature of these projects while acknowledging that this endeavor would be complex. He recognized the commitment of all students working towards its realization. The topics of youth involvement in elections, the Green Deal, and cross-border cooperation were also discussed.
UniTO hosted the UNITA Green contest for outgoing students
UniTO hosted on June 12th the event “Study abroad: good practices for informed and sustainable mobility” for outgoing students in Erasmus and UNITA mobilities. Students were involved in a green contest where two teams collected litter abandoned in the surroundings of the University campus, to stimulate environmentally responsible behaviour among the academic community. 70 students departing in the next few months for Erasmus and UNITA mobilities joined the event “Studiare all’estero: buone pratiche per una mobilità consapevole e sostenibile“, organised at the University of Turin with the support of local Ibnstitutions such as the UNITO Green Office, AMIAT Gruppo Iren, Transiti Psicologia d’Espatrio SCS and Erasmus Student Network (ESN) of Turin. The event was organised as a plenary meeting for outgoing students, providing information on administrative requirements for mobiltiy, a psichological guide for expats, an insight on the policies of management of waste in urban areas at national and European level. After the information phase, a green contest was launched for students, engaged in collecting litter in the surroundings of the Campus Luigi Einaudi of UniTO: in 45 minutes 25 students divided in two teams collected 16 kilos of litter. The event was designed in the framework of UNITA task 5.3 Green sustainability, devoted to promote the green transition of UNITA by incorporating sustainability in education and research and by stimulating environmentally responsible behaviour among the academic community. Follow UNITA on IG and watch the reel of the event.
BIP in IPG “Comprends tú a minha limba romanza?”
Between May 20 and 31, the Polytechnic of Guarda hosted around 30 students from European universities of the UNITA Alliance in a BIP ERASMUS+. This BIP has the collaboration of lecturers from the Université de Pau et Pays de L’Adour (UPPA), the Université de Savoie-Mont Blanc (USMB), the Universitatea de Vest din Timisoara (UVT) and the Universidade da Beira Interior (UBI). During these two weeks, the students from France, Romania, and Italy continued the work they had already started in the online sessions they had attended, which prepared them for the topic of intercomprehension. They had the opportunity to put some of the tools they had acquired into practice and use them in the classroom. For this, the openness and collaboration of teachers from some of the city’s primary schools was essential.