On 24, 25 and 26 November 2021, more than 200 participants came together from across Europe for the second edition of Global CIVIS Days. The event, hosted by the Université libre de Bruxelles, took place in Brussels, Belgium, the capital of Europe.
Participants included CIVIS students, academics, researchers and university staff, as well as partners from civil society, innovators, policymakers and local representatives from across Europe. The aim? To discuss and cooperate to build the future of the CIVIS Alliance, and to find innovative solutions to societal challenges. The focus of the second edition of CIVIS’ annual event was The University in the City and the symbiotic relationship between the two. The three days featured numerous workshops, conferences and meetings.
A Creathon to find innovative ways to build the CIVIS University campus of tomorrow
Around 40 CIVIS students, academics and university staff gathered in Brussels for a Creative Marathon Marathon to solve the challenge of the University in the City. The Global CIVIS Days 2021 were a perfect opportunity to meet people from all CIVIS member universities and bring ideas to life. Participants were organised into 7 teams and competed for first place on the podium.
The winning team, The Synapses, stood out to the jury with their proposal of a CIVIS social media platform, streamlining CIVIS internal information flows. Each member of the team won a mobility stipend for a CIVIS course of their choice.
A public conference about the future of higher education in Europe
CIVIS gathered exceptional speakers to (re)think together about the future of higher education in Europe. The guest of honour was Paul Magnette, Mayor of Charleroi, President of Parti Socialiste and Professor of Political Science.
Paul Magnette’s presentation about his vision of the European University of tomorrow gave rise to a debate and enriching interactions with the public and the other guests :
- Amaya Mendikoetxea, Rector of the Univerdidad Autosome de Madrid
- Anton Muscatelli, Principal and Vice-Chancellor of the University of Glasgow
- Lucas Portugaels and Julia Chiloeches Torrecuadrada, members of the CIVIS Student Council
The event was live-streamed. Click here to watch the recording.
Private workshops and meetings for the CIVIS community
A lot of people are involved in the development and efficient functioning of CIVIS, which represents a community of more than 470,000 students and 68,000 staff members.
During the Global CIVIS Days, the CIVIS community reunited to share good practices and discuss strategic matters for the future of CIVIS. The event brought together nearly 100 people from the CIVIS community: Rectors and Vice-Rectors from our member universities, academics and researchers, members of the Global Student Council, CIVIS Ambassadors and other university staff.
A CIVIS photo contest and online exhibition
For the Global CIVIS Days 2021, the Université libre de Bruxelles invited members of the CIVIS community, namely the students, academics and administrative staff, to share their unique and renewed perspective on their home University.
A jury of 6 representatives from Université libre de Bruxelles, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid and the University of Glasgow selected a series of photos that can now be discovered through our online photo exhibition.
The grand prize was awarded to Stelios Theodorou, a student from the National and Kapodistrian University of Athens, for his photo entitled "Ιστός Φωτός" (Web of Light).
Two special mentions were awarded to entries from Aix-Marseille Université and Sapienza Università di Roma. Learn more about the contest or explore the exhibition here.
A showcase of the CIVIS Open Labs
The CIVIS Open Labs are open spaces to allow the meeting and the collaboration of the civil society stakeholders (citizens, collective, organisation...) who wish to undertake research ands action around a question or a problem in their region. The Global CIVIS Days were a perfect opportunity for the CIVIS Open Labs to share their projects and how they connect the research, education, and innovation of CIVIS member universities with the knowledge and experience of local partners, creating new ways of approaching and addressing local needs. In this session, the CIVIS Open Labs showed how these flourishing partnerships are bringing transformative solutions for social issues.
