European University status granted to UPWr

EU GREEN, i.e. the European Network of Universities for Sustainable Growth, Inclusive Education and the Environment, is a consortium which, apart from the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences includes: Universidad de Extremadura from Spain (consortium leader), Université d'Angers from France, Universidade de Évora from Portugal, Swedish Högskolan i Gävle, South East Technological University from Ireland, Otto von Guericke Universität Magdeburg in Germany, Università degli Studi di Parma in Italy and University of Oradea in Romania.

– The European University status is a huge prestige and an opportunity for UPWr to strengthen its international presence in the field of education and science – says prof. Jarosław Bosy, rector of the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences. - It’s also a big commitment to implement the strategy adopted by the EU GREEN consortium. The strategy relates to the sustainable development of universities, which for the nine members of the consortium represents a key role for education. Through the knowledge and experience of its students, scientists and graduates, the UPWr will be an ambassador of the idea of ​​sustainable development, especially in agricultural and veterinary sciences.

– I hope that this demanding project will make different languages more often heard in the corridors of our university. I also hope we’ll be gladly visited by our foreign partners, and our students and scientists will have a chance to increase their knowledge in other European universities – says the Vice-Rector for internationalization prof. Anna Chełmońska-Soyta. 

As mentioned by the Vice-Rector, the consortium is institutional, which on the one hand will improve the internationalization of courses at the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences, on the other hand, it will support other academic activities, including the area of ​​student life, scientific partnerships and R&D through joint projects, sharing good practices and mutual cooperation. 

In the future, in line with the idea of ​​European Universities, the consortium may deepen institutional ties by creating, for example, common units, mutual sharing of infrastructure or building a common campus. 

European Universities are a network of universities in the territory of the European Union that enable students to obtain degrees by combining studies in several EU countries and contribute to the development of international competitiveness of European Universities. The first consortia were selected in 2019. There were 17 of them, a year later another 24 joined the network.

Last week, the European Commission announced the results of this year's recruitment. 13 Polish universities have joined the network of European Universities. Six of them have already been in international 'alliances' since 2019, four have joined alliances continuing from 2019, and three are in new consortia. 

It is among these new alliances that the Wrocław University of Environmental and Life Sciences has found itself. – The competition was huge, since 31 applications were submitted. Therefore, I would like to thank everyone involved once again for their substantive participation in preparing the application. Thanks to their great work and experience, the UPWr is the leader of the educational pillar (one of the most important application pillars) and the co-leader of the mobility pillar – says prof. Anna Chełmońska-Soyta.