EUA launches roadmap for European universities in energy

The European University Association (EUA) is pleased to present the “Roadmap for European Universities in Energy,” which outlines a path forward for universities to coordinate their contributions to energy and climate challenges. It is being presented today at the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan) Conference in Bratislava, Slovakia. More than 300 university leaders contributed to the vision, objectives and actions outlined in the document.

The Roadmap was developed in the context of the UNI-SET project by EUA through its European Platform of Universities in Energy Research & Education (EUA-EPUE), and KU Leuven, which represents the universities in KIC InnoEnergy.

Universities are core stakeholders in Europe’s energy transition towards a low carbon society, most notably due to their strong and well-established capacities in research and education in the field of energy. However, their crucial contribution needs to be enhanced through active policy measures from universities themselves, and from political authorities both at the national and European level. With this Roadmap, the European university community seeks to deepen its engagement and to lay out its vision for a strategic agenda for universities and stakeholders in order to maximise their impact in the field of energy.

“We envisage an energy research, innovation and education system that is integrated and embedded in a political framework that facilitates solutions for Europe’s energy challenge,” explains Torbjørn Digernes, Chair of EUA-EPUE and the UNI-SET Project Steering Committee.

Lidia Borrell-Damian, Director of EUA’s Research and Innovation Unit, said, “The goal is to make sure that activities in the sector aim at moving towards a low-carbon society and that university-based research contributes to the development of a sustainable and affordable energy system.”

“Importantly, the Roadmap lays out this vision along with a plan for a platform where universities can share their knowledge and make their voices heard at the European level,” said Johan Driesen, Education Director of InnoEnergy, a UNI-SET project partner. “It also outlines concrete actions to be implemented over the next six years in the areas of research and education, collaboration and outreach.”

While this Roadmap sets the overall framework for the mobilisation of the university community in energy, a set of thematic roadmaps will also be developed that address the challenges and opportunities of selected areas of the European Commission’s SET-Plan.

To see the “Roadmap for European Universities in Energy,” please click here.

To learn more about the UNI-SET project, please click here.

For more information please contact:
Jessica Carter, tel: +32 2 743 11 59; mobile: +32 473 74 87 85; email: [email protected]