I would like to extend my warm greetings to you in my new role as UNICA President and invite you to discover the first edition of "News from UNICA", the new UNICA newsletter that will come out about every month and will contain news from the Steering Committee (SC), the Secretariat, the Working Groups (WG) as well as from Member Universities themselves.
News from the Steering Committee and the Secretariat. As I proposed during the presentation of my candidacy for the Presidency of UNICA and following the discussion on this issue at the first SC meeting in February, I would like to intensify the communication between the SC and the Secretariat and all of you and to inform you more frequently about the activities of the President and the SC as well as about existing opportunities and projects.
News from Working Groups. As we know, UNICA is an extremely active network with several WGs that meet at least once per year and discuss topics which are interesting and important to all of us. “News from UNICA" will allow you to be informed regularly about the main activities of all WGs and the related upcoming events, facilitating the participation of Representatives from all UNICA Member Universities.
News from Member Universities. "UNICA" projects and activities are not only the ones promoted by the UNICA Secretariat, but also those in which a significant number of UNICA Members is involved. With this in mind, I encourage you to inform the Secretariat, if you wish to do so, about projects, initiatives or events carried out by your institution in cooperation with other UNICA Members so that we can help you disseminate the information and increase the visibility of your activities. I believe that will be very beneficial and will strengthen to relationships within the UNICA “family”.
I really hope you will like the new format and you will find it useful. In the near future we will ask your feedback in order to adjust it again until the highest possible satisfaction of all Member Universities is reached.
I take this opportunity to thank you very much for the great support I received on the occasion of my election. The new SC already started its mandate with great enthusiasm and commitment supported by the Secretariat which is extremely active and efficient as always.
This week the bus accident in Spain struck the European Higher Education community, taking the lives of 13 young people of 6 nationalities, among them students of UNICA Member Universities. In these difficult moments, we mourn the loss of all the victims and wish for the quick recovery of the injured. We extend our deepest condolences to the victims' families and friends.
I would like to end my message by wishing you all a nice and peaceful spring break. I look forward to meeting you soon at upcoming UNICA meetings.
Warm regards,
Luciano Saso
UNICA President
Message following the Brussels attacks
On 22 March 2016, the city of Brussels was struck by atrocious terrorist attacks at Brussels airport and Maalbeek metro station. UNICA President Prof. Luciano Saso, Members of the Steering Committee, and the staff of the UNICA Secretariat in Brussels are shocked and deeply saddened by these cruel assaults and extend heartfelt condolences to the families, relatives and friends of the victims. Read more
News from the Steering Committee
During the first meeting of the new Board on Brussels, 17 February 2016, the UNICA Steering Committee discussed the UNICA Work Plan for the year 2016-2017, internal communication within the Network, and involvement of UNICA in European projects. Read more
Upcoming Activities
UNICA - SGroup - Compostela Group Joint Workshop
Don't miss the 6th UNICA-SGroup-Compostela Group Joint Workshop "Rethinking competence development for students' employability: practical solutions for Europe", Vrije Universiteit Brussel, 14 April 2016.
Efficiency in internationalisation and innovative projects that support the work of IROs will be discussed at the IRO meeting hosted by the Centre for Advanced Academic Studies (CAAS) of the U. of Zagreb in Dubrovnik, 26-27 April 2016.
UNICA GREEN
Workshop
The 6th edition of the UNICA GREEN Workshop: Towards Carbon-Neutral Universities will be hosted by the University of Rome "Tor Vergata" in cooperation with Sapienza University and Roma Tre University, 2-4 May 2016.
Rectors Conference at Charles University
Organised in framework of the 700th birthday anniversary celebrations of Charles IV,the Rectors Conference: "Legacy of Charles IV, Education and Academic Freedoms, Innovation and Open Society” will take place at Charles University in Prague, 13 May 2016.
"University, Culture and the City" Conference
The first "University Culture and the City" Conference (U. NOVA de Lisboa, 16-17 May 2016) will aim to collect practices and experiences in embedding Culture inside universities and showcase examples of successful cooperation between Universities and Cities' cultural Institutions.
DEA Mission to the Netherlands
Diplomatic, Economic and Academic Mission to the Netherlands is organised by the International Diplomatic and Consular Society (CIDIC) in cooperation with UNICA on 10-12 May 2016.
PR & Communications Workshop
The 6th PR & Communications Workshop (University of Iceland, Reykjavik 6-7 June 2016) will focus on the complex process of shaping and implementing university PR & Communication strategy.
Pencil in These Dates!
7th UNICA PhD MASTER CLASS & PRIDE project training 29 August - 1 September
@ Centre for Advanced Academic Studies, University of Zagreb, Dubrovnik, Croatia Read moreUNICA GENERAL ASSEMBLY & SEMINAR in the framework of 200th founding anniversary of the University of Warsaw 17-19 November @ University of Warsaw, Poland
MAGICapp - New Technology for Medical Science from the University of Oslo
Prof. Per Olav Vandvik and his colleagues at the University of Oslo's Institute of Health and Society developed a new application to make quality-controlled medical knowledge available to awider audience. Read More
Boris Uspensky made Honorary Doctor at Tallinn University
Prof. Boris Uspensky is one of the last living founders of the Tartu-Moscow Semiotic School, well-known for his works in Slavonic
studies and semiotics of history. He is currently
Professor at the National Research University Higher School of Economics. Read More
Higher School of Economics and Strelka Institute to launch a joint Master's programme in Advanced Urban Design
The collaborative international Master's
programme is designed for graduates of
Bachelor programmes, researchers and young professionals and will be conducted in English. Read More
European Commission Projects
LEAD: The project kicks off with a conference and workshops for academic leaders of European and Chinese universities Read More
UZDOC: UNICA and Embassy of Uzbekistan to the Kingdom of Belgium hold a joint event on Higher Education and Culture cooperation with Uzbekistan Read More
News from the UNICA Secretariat
At the beginning of 2016 two interns joined the UNICA Brussels-based office: Kertu Kuuskaru (Tallinn University/Vrije Universiteit Brussel) and Audrė Chudinskaitė (Lithuanian University of Educational Sciences) will support the UNICA Secretariat until 15 July 2016.
Kertu and Audrė, welcome to the team!
