In particular, plans relating to the mobility of students and staff, research and administration teams, and eventual teaching activities, have had to be reconceived. Taking account of this, while seeking to preserve initiatives and opportunities arising from circumstances, the Presidents, Rectors and Vice-Chancellors of the EUTOPIA alliance of universities re-affirm the ideals of free movement for all students and staff, which will be supported by practical collaborative measures designed to champion the social, academic and economic benefits of both physical and digital mobility.

The EUTOPIA alliance therefore:

• Reaffirms the core principle of free movement, and the value of mobility as a practice, in the European Union 

• Champions international mobility as a transformative learning activity for globally active universities

• Affirms that EUTOPIA was founded on the very principle of mobility and remains committed to its energetic continuation

• Recognizes that current challenges also suggest new conceptualisations for mobility

• Embraces the task of investigating multiple modalities of mobility, including the virtual and digital, for the purposes of knowledge acquisition and dissemination, career and skills development, and social engagement

• Grasps the opportunity of becoming a leading and influential international alliance in blended forms of learning and knowledge dissemination, and smart mobility

• Undertakes to pursue collaborative actions relating to blended mobility potential.

July 2020

Igor Papič, Rector, Univerza v Ljubljani

Jaume Casals, Rector, Universitat Pompeu Fabra

Stuart Croft, Vice-Chancellor and President, University of Warwick

François Germinet, President, CY Cergy Paris Université

Caroline Pauwels, Rector, Vrije Universiteit Brussel

Eva Wiberg, Vice-Chancellor, Göteborgs Universitet

You can access the statement here