Universitatea Babeș-Bolyai
EUTOPIA
Eutopia | Universitatea Babeș-Bolyai, Cluj-Napoca

About the Alliance

EUTOPIA

EUTOPIA is an ambitious alliance of 10 like-minded universities ready to reinvent themselves: the Babeș-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca (Romania), the Vrije Universiteit Brussels (Belgium), the Ca’Foscari University of Venice (Italy), CY Cergy Paris Université (France), the Technische Universität Dresden (Germany), the University of Gothenburg (Sweden), the University of Ljubljana (Slovenia), the NOVA University Lisbon (Portugal), the University of Pompeu Fabra (Spain) and the University of Warwick (United Kingdom).  Together, these 10 pioneers have joined forces to build the European university of the future.

Each university holds several campuses deeply related to its territories. They have built solid ties with their communities, institutional structures, and local companies. EUTOPIA students, researchers, and staff work together to build a new academic model, reflecting an open and united Europe, respectful of the citizens and the environment.

Alliance Values

In the context of both the Anthropocene and the expansion of knowledge society, we live in a time of pressing planetary and democratic challenges that require massive and novel coordinated scientific and societal efforts on an unprecedented scale. The EUTOPIA Alliance takes the opportunity and responsibility to assume a leading role in an era when the destiny of the planet is precisely in the hands of human beings. EUTOPIA engages in this role at both regional and international level and the members of the alliance take the responsibility to respect, protect and realise these values in the building of the European University, with the surrounding territory and at a global scale. In coherence with the European values of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union, the following set of values-principles is meant to become part of the alliance’s common culture and points of reference for the joint activities, the co-construction processes and all our deliverables, as well as our outreach to the entire society.

EXCELLENCE AS A PURPOSE OF OUR TEACHING, RESEARCH AND INNOVATION MODELS

The universities of the EUTOPIA Alliance commit to always improving the standards of teaching, research, managing and innovation and to seek excellence in their local environments and in their relationship and partnership with one another. In a non-competitive but collaborative way, supporting innovative teaching methods, novel educational frameworks, bold research ideas, the universities of the alliance will pursue together in a confident way the highest quality for their students, faculty staff and stakeholders.

INCLUSION

Inclusion at the academic level means that both the pursuit of knowledge and the generation of knowledge should be accessible to all participants in the academic life of the university – students and staff.  A culture of inclusion is one where diversity is recognised, understood and valued; cross-cultural dialogue and cross-cultural sensitivity are encouraged; leaders are role models for inclusive behaviours; there is an environment which is flexible and adaptable and facilitates meaningful interactions; there is transparency of and accountability for our actions.

SUSTAINABLE, RESPONSIBLE AND ETHICAL ATTITUDES TOWARDS THE PLANET

EUTOPIA is to play an active leading role in the pursuit of sustainability as reflected in UN’s SDGs goals. Accordingly, the academic endeavour of the alliance is to be responsible and ethical toward mankind and the planet, within the general framework of the challenge driven approach defined by the European Commission.

COOPERATION AND OPENNESS

In the context of academic, financial, organizational and staffing autonomy in relation to their founders and other organisations, EUTOPIA encourages the establishment of sincere partnerships with these organisations based on equality of partners which enables universities to render high-quality services to the society.

ACADEMIC FREEDOM IN SEARCH FOR TRUTH

Building on the principle of university autonomy from the Magna Charta Universitatum, the members of the alliance acknowledge and defend intellectual and ethical freedom. While some threats seem to appear in local environments, EUTOPIA members engage to protect and cherish academic freedom both in their universities and all around the globe.

Four Key Principles

EUTOPIA is a challenge-led, student-centered, inclusive alliance of entrepreneurial, change-focused universities. In conjunction with our partners and collaborators, EUTOPIA is characterized by these four key principles:

  • (1) Geared towards the challenges of the future: Challenge-led Our alliance is challenge-driven to prepare students and staff as European citizens and lifelong learners, who care and act for the future of the planet and humanity.
  • (2) Student-centred and student-empowering:Our alliance provides transformative and open learning opportunities, and extended horizons of expectation and ability, both across Europe and throughout the world.
  • (3) Committed to the principles of openness and inclusion:Our alliance fosters and supports knowledge co-creation, by building open resources and collaborative platforms, endorsing open science agendas, and sponsoring the access, mobility, and inclusivity mechanisms that liberate our intellectual and social potential (see inclusion link).
  • (4) Service to society: Our alliance builds on its place-making strengths, connecting cultures and contexts in order to enhance European capability and creativity, and support the international preeminence of European innovation and influence.