The 6th EC2U Forum, hosted by the University of Jena under the theme of “Community of Action”, came to an end a few days ago. It brought together academics, researchers, stakeholders and students who had the chance to connect in the form of meetings, collaborative projects, workshops and conferences on different topics.

This packed programme culminated in the Voice of Students: a session dedicated to students, allowing them to present a subject that matters to them. Indeed, EC2U is forging a new future for European students by putting their concerns, suggestions and creativity at the forefront of Alliance initiatives. Through collaboration, intercultural discussion and critical thinking, EC2U students from delegations attending the Forum were able to reflect and articulate their ideas on diverse topics related to the higher education system.

What are the challenges and what are we doing (or not doing) to meet them? What could be creative ways of approaching change?

With well-being at the heart of the debates, the students divided in several groups to work on the following themes: Green mobility, Inclusion and diversity, Ecological sustainability, Quality education and Mental health. Experts on the subjects also discussed with the students to give them a general introduction and answer their questions. Each group chose which medium they used : audio, video, writing or presentation.

See what the students have achieved

• The ecological sustainability group prepared a flyer to highlight the various positive and negative practices of each partner university and find solutions to improve them in a collaborative way.

• The group working on the topic of inclusion and diversity created a video with each student taking the floor and proposing solutions to achieve greater uniformity in universities, such as “encourage the creation of student organisations”, “embrace diversity with fair opportunities”, “understand before judging”, etc.

• The green mobility group, for its part, has opted for the creation of an Instagram page offering relevant information on alternative ways of travelling around Europe.

The Instagram page is here!

• Solutions to improve and protect mental health were also presented in a video which you can watch below:

• Finally, the group of students who worked on quality education has prepared a multilingual video in which they explain what this theme is in 1 word, the challenges it may face and the possible solutions.