Through its Open Session on the European Universities Alliances (EUAs), regularly organised in the frame of its Annual Conferences and General Assemblies, the Coimbra Group offers Alliances the possibility to promote best practices, foster exchanges between them, and reach a wider public. This 6th edition of the Open Session aims at showcasing how the Alliances of which CG Universities are part are addressing their role of actors for societal change in their communities.
The social impact generated by universities is a highly cross-cutting issue that goes beyond the missions of teaching, research, and societal outreach, and includes impacts generated on the economic, entrepreneurial, institutional and political systems around them, and the local development that they can bring. The link between the university and its territory, the way universities pursue their missions, how they interpret their role for sustainable development, and the mechanisms of communication and accountability between university and the territory are only some of the elements to analyse the social impact that HEIs generate.
Representatives from the EUAs will be invited to present one concrete initiative illustrating:
A representative of the European Commission will conclude the first part of the Session by reacting to the presentations and bringing the discussion back to the EU level, clarifying the ambitions of the EU institutions in terms of social impact and social engagement.