Watch online the Aurora International Scientific Conference on The Role of Higher Education in Peacebuilding

Written by Michal Zych on . Posted in CDS-Network, Events.

The First Aurora International Scientific Conference on “The Role of Higher Education in Peacebuilding” (17–21 February, 2025) braves the current war-mongering times by bringing together 150 scientists researching our prospects for peace all over the globe. On this occasion, Palacký University Rector and Aurora President Martin Procházka held talks with the Rector of the University of Innsbruck, Veronika Sexl, who will take over the leadership of Aurora at the end of his presidential term.

During the meeting, they discussed preparations for the handover of the agenda and at the same time ensuring the continuity of Palacký University’s participation in the leadership of Aurora both at the level of the global network and the closer alliance. “To my great pleasure, we agreed on the importance of Palacký University for the alliance and also on the importance of the University of Olomouc to continue to be represented in the highest leadership of Aurora,” said Martin Procházka.

The conference is organised by Task Team 7.4, ‘Creation of Karazin University Peace Education Hub’, led by Palacky University and Dr. Selma Porobić, to support ongoing Aurora peace-building efforts at Karazin University in Kharkiv, Ukraine. However, given the turbulent times we live in, the conference programme is a witness to the global efforts to preserve peace in very violent times that surround us.

Out of 180 submissions from around the world, 144 were accepted, including scholarly contributions from 9 Aurora universities and its 4 associate partners. Palacky University alone contributes 8 papers addressing various issues of the university’s roles and responsibilities in preventing war outbreaks and preserving peace in our societies, as well as addressing the consequences of conflict-affected populations and supporting the educational institutions in the war zones and in the post-conflict societies. 

With 10 keynote speakers, 3 high-level panels, 22 academic panels, 17 workshops and various artistic interventions on the side, the 5-day programme (read more in PDF) will provide a great discussion and networking forum on the most pressing issues of peacebuilding and the role of universities as peacemakers driving the SDG agenda forward.

Check out the upcoming conference programme on the conference’s main website with the live streaming links for the keynote speeches and high-level panels.

 

UP hosts the Aurora Student Conference 2025

Written by Michal Zych on . Posted in Events, Students.

For the next two days, close to 50 Aurora Student Council members and Aurora Student Ambassadors from Aurora universities gather on the campus in Olomouc for an intensive programme focused on:

🔎 Getting to know Aurora from the students’ perspective
🌍 Understanding students’ role in a European university alliance through an open Q&A session with the Aurora Student Council
🎓 Integrating the Aurora Student Ambassadors programme, expectations, challenges and the way forward
📚 Comprehending students’ beliefs and values via the BEVI (Beliefs, Events and Values Index) workshop
🗣️ Learning how to Speak Up! during the public speaking and presentation workshop
🌈 Experiencing intercultural exchange, thanks to cultural activities over the two days.

The Aurora Student Conference is a unique opportunity for students to meet and exchange on student-centered topics, address challenges facing students from our different European universities, and identify clear solutions for the future. It empowers our youth to stand up for causes close to their hearts and gives strength to their collective voice in Aurora.

Follow the conference on instagram!

 

Aurora Peace Conference received over 180 academic paper submissions!

Written by Michal Zych on . Posted in CDS-Network, Events.

The First Aurora International Scientific Conference on “The Role of Higher Education in Peacebuilding” (17-21 February, 2025) braves the current war-mongering times by bringing together 150 scientists researching our prospects for peace all over the globe. 

The conference is organised by Task Team 7.4, ‘Creation of Karazin University Peace Education Hub’, led by Palacky University and Dr. Selma Porobic, to support ongoing Aurora peace-building efforts at Karazin University in Kharkiv, Ukraine. However, given the turbulent times we live in, the conference programme is a witness to the global efforts to preserve peace in very violent times that surround us.

Out of 180 submissions from around the world, 144 were accepted, including scholarly contributions from 9 Aurora universities and its 4 associate partners. Palacky University alone contributes 8 papers addressing various issues of the university’s roles and responsibilities in preventing war outbreaks and preserving peace in our societies, as well as addressing the consequences of conflict-affected populations and supporting the educational institutions in the war zones and in the post-conflict societies. 

With 10 keynote speakers, 3 high-level panels, 22 academic panels, 17 workshops and various artistic interventions on the side, the 5-day programme (read more in PDF) will provide a great discussion and networking forum on the most pressing issues of peacebuilding and the role of universities as peacemakers driving the SDG agenda forward.

▶ Check out the upcoming conference programme on the conference’s main website where the live streaming links for the keynote speeches and high-level panels will be featured.

aurora_international_peace_conference_program_FINAL

UP organises Aurora BIP on How to increase the Social impact of Teaching by using LOUIS Competencies

Written by Michal Zych on . Posted in Academics, Events.

UP is organising its first Aurora Blended Intensive Programme entitled How to Increase the Social Impact of Your Teaching: Using the LOUIS Competence Framework to Improve Your Course. This BIP is organised by Maxim Tomoszek at the Faculty of Law with the support of the Aurora education developer, Markéta Šemberová. Maxim Tomoszek leads the Aurora 2030 programme’s LOUIS component.

LOUIS is a tool that supports academic teachers in articulating learning outcomes for general academic and personal competencies. You can read more about the LOUIS tool by clicking here.

This BIP aims not only to strengthen the pedagogical competencies of the participants but also to create a community of trained professionals who can disseminate the knowledge from the workshop at their home institutions. It will consist of two virtual components (October 18 and November 18) and physical participation (November 4–8, 2024).

A maximum of 20 participants have been enrolled for the BIP, coming from 6 countries (Netherlands, Iceland, Austria, Spain, Italy, Ukraine) joining together Aurora educational developers, academics and Lifelong learning experts, and Euridice project educational staff and Microcredential board members. There will be also participants from Portugal and the USA (Minnesota) connected to the BIP online for the whole duration.

International scientific meeting in Innsbruck combines natural sciences and humanities

Written by Michal Zych on . Posted in Academics, Events, Students.

Under the auspices of the European universities united in the Aurora Alliance, the University of Innsbruck organised a completely unique Erasmus double BIP (Blended Intensive Programme) from 20 to 25 October 2024. More than 40 educators, scientists and administrative staff from Palacký University, the University of Innsbruck, the University of Duisburg-Essen, the Université Paris-Est Créteil, the University of Iceland and, last but not least, the Universitat Rovira i Virgili combined the two areas of the project. It became clear that the natural sciences, mainly represented in the Sustainable Development and Climate Change working group, and the humanities and social sciences, represented in the Culture: Diversity and Identity working group, have many common topics. Although it might seem that organic farming and manure management are not of interest to literary scholars, the opposite was the case. The point of contact in this case was ecocriticism and natural resources, both from the point of view of conservation and their embedding in literature and culture.

During the first four days, the scholars worked on multidisciplinary research projects and joint teaching activities (such as COIL – cooperative international learning), distance learning programmes or bilateral cooperation. As Dean Janette Walde noted, ‘It’s incredible how many ideas and possibilities for implementation can arise in such a short time!’ Added one of the main organisers, Prof. Barbara Buchenau from the University of Duisburg: ‘The beautiful backdrop of the Austrian mountains and the seclusion of the venue are balm for the soul, which uses the power of nature to fully develop scientific ideas.’

During the first part, students from various fields of study, from chemistry to medicine to literary history, had the opportunity to learn about the methodology of scientific work. The main focus, however, was on getting to know the so-called 3MT presentations. This is a format that was originally developed at the University of Queensland in Australia and enables a very compact presentation of scientific work, including the results. Handouts are not allowed. The authors can only modulate their voices and have only one static PowerPoint slide. Ask yourself if you could present your research in this limited space in three minutes. Isn’t that impossible? No. After a few hours of proper coaching by Suzanne Whitby and Toby Wikström, tentative first attempts turned out to be top performances in scientific mini-stories.

The absolute highlight of the entire week of events was the competition on Friday, in which the international jury evaluated the already outstanding performances of all the finalists. The evaluation was not easy, because all the participants showed enormous courage in performing in front of a multidisciplinary audience that was eagerly awaiting their presentations. In the end, the competition had three winners! The first, Marharyta Hodeieva, represented Palacky University with her lecture ‘How to heal with stories’. Another colleague, Stéphanie Chedid from the Université Paris-Est Créteil, won the audience award and impressed the jury with her lecture ‘Travel: from plants to airplanes’. The third gold medal went to Juliette Direur from the University of Paris, who talked about ‘The dangers of breathing’.

The organisation of the meeting, led by Christina Raab and Katerina Hochstaffl-Nazarova, ran like a well-oiled machine, for which they deserve a big thank you, because without their enthusiasm and patience, this successful double BIP would not have been possible. See you next year at another Aurora University.

Aurora Virtual Autumn Summit – Inspiring talks

Written by Michal Zych on . Posted in Events.

As part of the Aurora Virtual Autumn Summit, you are cordially invited to attend the lecture “Inspiring talks – The Legacy of Aurora R&I program: Reflecting on the Past, Empowering the Present, Shaping the Future” on Thursday, November 7 from 11:15–13:00. Learn how the Aurora RI project has fostered university collaboration in support of Science and Research, and what the vision is for the future. Speakers will include Aurora Secretary General Ramon Puras, a representative from the newly formed Aurora Scientific Council and others.

Martin Procházka, President of the Aurora Network and Rector of Palacký University, will open the programme with an introductory speech.

Watch online on Zoom:

https://vu-live.zoom.us/j/98720464755?pwd=Js8TDrVqQuVQFdnqwmLbU474aynHsU.1&from=addon

Meeting ID: 987 2046 4755

Passcode: 898378

Aurora Virtual Autumn Summit Plenary Programme

Join the First Series of Aurora Peace Talks

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, CDS-Network, Events.

Join us from September for the first series of Aurora Peace Talks. This lecture series will feature talks by our colleagues from Kharkiv and beyond, and allows them to share their experiences and expertise.

Kharkiv city is one of Ukraine’s most important economic and industrial centres and the second biggest educational center in Ukraine,  known as the city of students and youth.  About 300 000 students (12 000 foreign ones)  found their home in one of the Kharkiv’s 11 universities and 38 higher educational institutions, including both public and private universitas, academies and specialized institutes.

The city and the region have since 2022 come under heavy attacks as one of initial targets of Russia’s invasion. The city and the region have been bravely fighting off the aggression.

 In the last month the town has been experiencing yet another wave of  heavy attacks with random bombardments of civilian object causing civilian casualties, evacuations and displacements of several thousand of its residents.  

Given the location of the city and Khakriv region, the situation for its citizens will remain precarious for long time ahead and we have in Aurora been working dedicatedly to provide the needed support, especially to our partners at Karazin Khakriv National university.

The speakers in this lecture series come from Karazin university but also other universities in Khakriv as we  want  to provide platform for their voices to be heard in these most challenging times for them. This first series in particularly features talks from Kharkiv Scholars at Risk at Copenhagen Business School.

The Peace Talks lecture series allows our colleagues to speak out, share their experiences but also their expertise as academics in addressing the devastation and future post-war recovery and peace building needs.

Support them by joining the following inspiring Talks, starting form September this year:

  • Between Copenhagen and Kharkiv researching resilience
    • 26th of September 2024, 15.00 CET | Serhii Prokopenko, MSc
    • Zoom Link
  • Energy communities as the key for Ukraine’s energy security
    • 17th of October 2024, 15.00 CET | Albina Dioba, Ph.D.
    • Zoom Link
  • Becoming Part of a Community: The Process of Ukraine’s Accession to the European Union
    • 4th of November 2024, 15.00 CET | Assoc. Prof. Manuele Citi
    • Zoom Link
  • Public Discourse and Academic Research in Representing People Under Occupation: Are war-caused conflicts transformable?
    • 16th of December 2024, 15.00 CET | Prof. Yuliia Soroka, Ph.D.
    • Zoom Link

For more information on the Aurora Peace Talks lecture series, contact Selma Porobic.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aurora Staff Training in Ohrid Equips Academics for International Teaching

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, CDS-Network, Events.

On the 18th of April, the first Aurora Capacity Development Staff Training took place in Ohrid, North Macedonia. In a bid to enhance global learning opportunities, the COIL Staff Training, the event aimed to empower educators with the necessary tools and knowledge to implement Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL).

This event the first in a series of trainings, organised in the framework of Aurora’s Capacity Development Programme. These are organized by Palacky University Olomouc and VU Amsterdam, together with the associate partners. The aim of these training events is twofold. Firstly, we aim to strengthen the capacity of the Aurora associate partner universities for academic excellence and societal relevance. Secondly, we support them in establishing themselves as regional hubs for sharing best practices.

Bringing together a group of 30 participants, mainly from the University of Tetova and South-West University “Neofit Rilski”, the Aurora Ohrid Staff Training marks a significant step towards fostering cross-cultural educational collaboration. Led by COIL-expert Marina Vives from the Universitat Rovira i Virgili, the workshop provided the participating academics deep dive into the utilization of COIL, opening the doors to internationalize their curriculum together with other Aurora universities.

The training started with an icebreaker exercise, an important best practice when setting up a COIL. Then, Marina introduced the participants to the concept of COIL, and shared more best practices. The participants where then divided in groups and encouraged to start working on a COIL-course themselves. In a short time, the participants made promising, interdisciplinary COIL course concepts. The participants were excited to develop these concepts further and put them into practice.

Preceded by meetings between Aurora representatives and the management of the University of Tetova, the event set the stage for future collaborations. The staff training event empowered our associate partners to unlock their international potential through COIL. Through that, they will be able to further develop the internationalization of their institutions.

Save the date: International Conference on ‘The Role of Higher Education in Peacebuilding’

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, CDS-Network, Events, Featured.

The Aurora Karazin University Peace Education Hub invites you to a 5-day International Conference on ‘The Role of Higher Education in Peacebuilding’ hosted by the Unit for Peace and Conflict Studies at the University of Innsbruck, from the 17th to 21st of February 2025.

This conference aims to bring together international experts – both academics and practitioners in the peacebuilding sector – with higher education policymakers from the Aurora Universities Alliance and its partners, to discuss how the higher education institutions in Ukraine and elsewhere can become a driver of peace and sustainable development.

More information, including the call for papers will be announced soon! 

 

 

Looking back at the Aurora Fall Biannual 2023

Written by Niels Hexspoor on . Posted in Academics, CDS-Network, Events, Featured, Students.

Last month, Palacký University Olomouc hosted the Aurora Fall Biannual 2023 on October 17th and 18th for in Olomouc, Czechia. The event brought together over 200 participants hailing from 18 universities from within the Aurora community and beyond.

Watch the Aurora Fall Biannual aftermovie

The Aurora Fall Biannual focused on taking stock of Aurora’s achievements as part of the European Universities initiative.

These European developments took center stage in the plenary sessions and panels:

  1. Aurora Pilot Phase: Aurora Model Alliance?
  2. The impact and role of European Universities on future of Higher Education in Europe
  3. Alliance Exchange – Balancing Education, Research Innovation and Social Responsibility
  4. Toward student-centered European University Alliances

Aurora’s commitment to sustainability was also highlighted during the event, with an opening presentation and plenary session dedicated to Aurora’s work on making our community greener and more sustainable.

Collaboration within Aurora was further strengthened by the momentous singing of a Memorandum of understanding on the sharing of research infrastructure, as well as the signing of the second version of the Multilateral Aurora Mobility Agreement (MAMA).

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next to the retrospective of Aurora’s remarkable accomplishments, the Aurora community came together to look forward to the exciting prospects that lie ahead.Participants also engaged in thought-provoking Thematic sessions on prominent Aurora topics suchs as COIL, the Aurora Competence Framework, and Technology Transfer.  

Want to relive the biannual or catch up on any sessions you missed? You can watch back the recordings of the plenary sessions below:

🎥 17/10/2023 –  Day 1

🎥 18/10/2023 –  Day 2

You can find a selection of photos below, the full photo gallery of the biannual can be downloaded here.