Community across Europe

On 2-3 June, SDU hosted an international conference in Odense, where researchers, lecturers and partners from across Europe met to discuss how universities can work together to promote a sustainable transformation of society – which was also this year's theme: sustainable transformation.

The forum, which is organised every year under the auspices of EPICUR – the European University Alliance of which SDU is a partner – serves as a central meeting place in the alliance's work to develop research and learning activities across national borders, institutions and disciplines.

For many, the conference is a concrete opportunity to establish or continue collaborations with European partners in education and research.

Collaboration in practice

This is the case for Steffen Kjær Johansen, Associate Professor at the Department of Technology and Innovation at The Faculty of Engineering. In 2024, the EPICUR Forum was held at the Université de Haute Alsace in Mulhouse.

– Here I got a course collaboration up and running. The great thing about a forum like this is that you meet people who are just as keen to create collaboration across European universities. The forum is an incubator for good ideas for collaboration, he says.

As part of the course collaboration, Steffen Kjær Johansen participated in a teaching programme in Mulhouse, where students from SDU and Université de Haute-Alsace together solved a challenge set by the French clothing company 4F.

The Danish students designed an experiment, while the French students analysed the target group and developed communication and material that helped understand French work culture and working conditions.

Differences create development

International collaboration differs from national collaboration by challenging habitual thinking and sharpening reflection through cultural differences, different workflows and the need for mutual understanding across languages and practices.

– Collaborating across borders requires a broader view to make ends meet, and that's healthy. It gives you the opportunity to think twice about what you're doing and what you want to get out of the work, says Steffen Kjær Johansen.

– The differences contribute to the creative process. Cultural differences and different ways of working mean that your own habits and premises are challenged – and when you don't share the same starting point, new ideas and solutions can arise that you would not have come up with alone.

– Students learn to navigate situations that can feel chaotic. They learn to accommodate many inputs at once – from many different people and cultures – and the international and interdisciplinary approach is meant to support creativity and innovation. Students build resilience by dealing with uncertainties, misunderstandings and different preconceptions – and still get things done.

A stronger European community

– International collaborations open new perspectives for universities. They start or maintain a discussion about what role universities in Europe should play – and this is important in times of geopolitical uncertainty. We must pursue everything that can cement European cultures together better, and that's exactly what we can do in EPICUR, explains Steffen Kjær Johansen.

So, what does he hope to get out of this year's forum in Odense?

– I have a few contacts I need to talk to. I hope that we can implement two projects like the project in Mulhouse last year. I hope to find two other EPICUR universities that want to participate and find relevant companies in those countries so that two times 30 students can participate this time.

Want to know more about EPICUR and SDU's role in the alliance?

See epicur.education/our-alliance og mitsdu.dk/epicur

Read about the conference at SDU here: event.sdu.dk/epicurforum .

Do you have any questions? Contact: epicur@sdu.dk

Image caption top:

The conference opened on 2 June with a welcome by Rector Jens Ringsmose and Pro-rector Helle Waagepetersen.