“It is a model project that is unique in the European research area. We will create common structures everywhere where we see the opportunity to derive an additional benefit. Our researchers, students, and employees will have unique possibilities for cooperation at their disposal. Our international visibility will be significantly enhanced.” says Prof. Dr. Hans-Jochen Schiewer, president of Eucor – The European Campus and rector of the University of Freiburg.
The goal is to enable the member universities to use the “European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation” (EGTC) as a central instrument for European Campus projects. The European Campus concentrates the research and teaching potential of the Upper Rhine universities. The alliance is the first EGTC to be supported entirely by universities and the second to be based in Germany – namely in Freiburg. A full 15,000 researchers profit from cross-border innovation and knowledge transfer, and 115,000 students can study in a trinational environment. As a university alliance with its own legal status, the universities can submit funding proposals as a single entity and draft a common plan for strategic development while retaining their autonomy. Also planned are joint professorships, joint administrative personnel, and joint service departments.
The European Campus was created against the backdrop of longstanding cooperation between the universities on the Upper Rhine. In 1989 they teamed up to form an international network called Eucor (European Confederation of Universities on the Upper Rhine). By establishing the European Campus, the five universities aim to take this cross-border cooperation in research and teaching to a new level in order to gain a key advantage in the international competition for the best minds and ideas.
The founding documents will now be submitted to the Freiburg Regional Administrative Authority. The EGTC can take up its work officially upon the ratification of the documents by the responsible authorities in Germany, French, and Switzerland. The universities plan to hold a central opening ceremony in spring 2016.
Contact
For Eucor – The European Campus in general:
Janosch Nieden
Central Coordinator of Eucor – The European Campus
Phone: +33 (0)3 68 85 82 93
E-Mail: janosch.nieden(at)eucor-uni.org
For the University of Freiburg:
Florence Dancoisne
Local Coordinator of Eucor – The European Campus
Phone: +49 (0)761/203-9655
E-Mail: florence.dancoisne(at)io.uni-freiburg.de
