INU was delighted to re-group for 34th INU Council meeting, which took place from 17th-18th September 2022. The meeting was hosted by European University Viadrina in Frankfurt (Oder), a German city beautifully situated on the border with Poland.
INU Council meetings had been taking place online since the 2020 COVID pandemic prevented overseas travel, and it felt good to be back to in-person council meeting once more. Many members joined having attended the EAIE conference the week prior.
In addition to reviewing our core activities, such as Staff Knowledge Exchange, Researcher Mobility Program and International Student Seminar, INU Council members dedicated their time to developing initiatives to celebrate INU’s 25th anniversary in 2023. This includes INU Leadership Summit, planned for August 2023 and INU’s Global Engagement Conference, scheduled for October 2023.
As well as productive meetings, the INU Council also enjoyed the culinary delights of Germany, took a boat ride on the River Oder, and even spent one evening having dinner in Poland, after a leisurely stroll over the bridge crossing the border.
The occasion also marked a heavy hearted farewell to two valued Council members. Prof. Dr Julia von Blumenthal, has been elected as President of Humboldt-Universität from October 2022 and subsequently stands down as INU President. As Julia leaves for her new role, we warmly welcome Prof. Dr. Martin Eisend, Vice-President for Research, Graduate Education, Entrepreneurship and Transfer at European University Viadrina as our new INU President.
We also said our fond farewells to Dr Cecilia Christersson who is standing down from her role Pro-Vice-Chancellor in Global Engagement and Challenge Based Learning at Malmö University, and welcome Dr Rebecka Letteval who will take over the role on the INU Council, as Pro-vice-chancellor of Global Engagement and Human Rights at Malmö University.
We wish Cecilia and Julia all the very best and thank them for their huge contribution to INU. A very warm welcome to both Rebecka and Martin to INU Council.
Intercultural Learning for Global Engagement Group (ILGE) working group
Following the INU Council meeting, on Monday 19th September, the Intercultural Learning for Global Engagement Group (ILGE) group held a hybrid working group meeting, to share initiatives and best practice, as well as gathering ideas for the ILGE conference in March 2023. Details will be announced soon.
INU would like to thank all members for travelling to the INU Council meeting, either directly from EAIE or from further afield and to colleagues at European University Viadrina for being such excellent hosts! We’re looking forward to our next INU Council meeting which is scheduled in March 2023, hosted by Stellenbosch University, South Africa.