From 22-23 May 2024, many higher education professionals gathered at St. Pölten UAS, Austria, as the 33rd Annual EURASHE Conference was held at the University of Applied Sciences leading the E³UDRES² Alliance. EURASHE, an organization dedicated to representing professional higher education institutions and their interests in Europe, has been an associated partner of the E³UDRES² alliance for many years, collaborating closely with the membering institutions.

The conference featured various speakers and panelists from the E³UDRES² Alliance, underscoring the collaborative spirit between these institutions. Hannes Raffaseder, President of E³UDRES², delivered an opening address, welcoming the numerous participants to the largest edition of the event ever held. Karīna Anna Lapiņa, Chair of the E³UDRES² Board of Student Representatives, travelled all the way from Latvia to share insights on student engagement and the role of students in shaping the future of higher education. On another panel, participants had the opportunity to listen to Anka Mulder, President of Saxion UAS, when she spoke about research collaboration in European University Alliances. As the first day of the event drew to a close, participants of the conference enjoyed the showcase of the winning video of the EU Matters Video Competition, which was initiated earlier this year by E³UDRES² to highlight the importance of European values.

Karina Anna Lapina (center) discussing the topic of student participation in European University Alliances on a panel. Picture: (c) Sandra Lagler

Stronger Together

Next to the great variety of talks, panels and workshops, the event also offered a "Dissemination Open Space" - a wide range of booths offering insights into the activities of EURASHE partners. Among the booths, also E³UDRES² was present, offering a variety of informative materials about the alliance as well as the opportunity to ask questions first-hand. The event also served as a great opportunity to connect across European University Alliances - many representatives of alliances such as U!REKA, RUN-EU or the INVEST Alliance were attending and enjoyed the great opportunity to share their experiences with each other.

Hosted almost at the same time, also the IAFeS NETTIES Conference took place at St. Pölten UAS. The event, themed "Shaping Higher Education, Research and Innovation with and for Artificial Intelligence", discussed the implications of AI for higher education. Speakers at the event included many representatives of E³UDRES² member Politehnica University Timisoara.

As the conferences concluded, participants had the opportunity to already mark their calendars for at least one upcoming event next year: The 34th EURASHE Annual Conference will take place in Portugal in 2025, promising to continue the dialogue and collaboration that are essential for the advancement of applied higher education in Europe.