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The SEA-EU alliance aims to strengthen the field of coastal research and education and promote other key areas of collaboration such as internationalisation, sustainability, digital transformation, transparency and democracy. Another aim is to become an international role model for interaction within the EU, and increasing research activity is an important focus for the alliance.
Six of the universities have already worked together for three years. In January 2022, Nord University was invited to join the SEA-EU alliance as one of three new partners. Together, the alliance partners have more than 150,000 students and 18,000 employees who will benefit from the objectives that the alliance has set itself.
Secured funding for the next four years
On Wednesday 27 July, the SEA-EU alliance's funding application was approved by the EU for the coming four years. The funding amounts to approximately EUR 14.4 million in total, and Nord University's share of this is approximately EUR 1.7 million. The alliance has therefore secured the funding that is needed to reach the goals that are set.
Levi Gårseth-Nesbakk, who is Pro-rector for Academic and Student Affairs at Nord University, has played a key role in the alliance's work to prepare the EU application. He is very pleased that the application has now been approved.
“This is an important day for SEA-EU and for Nord University. University alliances are part of the EU's flagship initiative regarding a joint educational community and focus on Europe. The fact that the EU has now allocated funding for a project period of four years allows us to move from a planning stage to realising the alliance's planned initiatives", says Gårseth-Nesbakk.
This is what the SEA-EU alliance will work on
During the next four-year period, the university alliance will prioritise development in six main areas: 1) Leadership and management, 2) education and skills development, 3) research and innovation, 4) European student life, 5) strengthening links with society, and 6) dissemination and impact.
Rector Hanne Solheim Hansen believes collaboration in SEA-EU will help strengthen research and develop Nord University into a recognised international university.
“I am very pleased that our work in the alliance has received funding. We are joining an alliance that has some very skilled people and good universities, and this will both raise our quality and increase our international work. Students will notice that we are becoming more international and they will experience a connection with several other universities in the EU. In challenging times, good collaboration and strengthening education and research both at home and across borders is very important", says Solheim Hansen.
SEA-EU partners
There are many competent universities involved in the alliance; some with several Nobel prizes and high levels of research activity. The collaborative parties view SEA-EU as being strategically important to their universities, and they have committed themselves to ensuring that the objectives of the alliance are reached.
In the previous three years, six partners formed the university alliance:
- University of Cadiz (Spain)
- University of Western Brittany (Brest, France)
- Kiel University (Germany)
- University of Gdansk (Poland)
- University of Split (Croatia)
- University of Malta (Malta)
These are the three new universities joining the SEA-EU alliance from autumn 2022:
- Parthenope University of Naples (Italy)
- University of Algarve (Portugal)
- Nord University (Norway)
