Project EU Erasmus+ “Universities-Communities: strengthening cooperation” (UNICOM) (2023-2027)

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International workshop «THIRD MISSION OF UNIVERSITIES» will be held online on October 08, 2024, organised by Institute of Higher Education NAES of Ukraine and University of Genoa in cooperation with Sumy National Agrarian University and Volodymyr Dahl East-Ukrainian National University within the framework of the realization of the Erasmus+ project UNICOM.
The workshop gathered 80 participants from 37 HEIs and NGOs of different regions of Ukraine.
Diana Spulber, coordinator of the UNICOM Project from the University of Genoa, addressed the audience with a welcoming speech and wished the Ukrainian higher education institutions to boldly go towards the goal of realizing their third mission according to their own development scenario using a creative approach and critical thinking.
The workshop aims to pilot the course “Third mission of universities” developed on the experiences and good practices of European and universities. The discipline is aimed at developing and strengthening the ability of academic and managerial personnel to define, implement and evaluate the third mission of universities to increase the role and influence of higher education institutions on the socio-economic development of the community, city, region, and country.
The speakers presented the theoretical origins and practical cases of the implementation of the third mission of European and Ukrainian universities; discussed the further cohesion of Ukrainian society around the modern vision of the development of higher education institutions – social service, which is seen as the responsibility of universities to society, cooperation with business, various social groups and representatives of local communities.
The workshop included the presentation of three modules of the course: “The third mission of universities: sustainability and social cohesion of society”; “The third mission of universities: innovation and socio-economic development”; “The third mission of universities: greening and digitalization.” Each of the presented modules took place in active discussions and debates, outlined the prospects of cooperation and the Ukrainian war and the post-war reconstruction of Ukraine.
Programme
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Study visit to Czech University of Life Sciences Prague
From October 1 to 4, 2024, a meeting of UNICOM project partners was held at the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague, devoted to the exchange of experience and the development of new strategies for cooperation between universities and communities. Representatives of leading EU and Ukrainian universities gathered together to discuss how to make universities more oriented to the needs of society and contribute to solving global problems.
Institute of Higher Education NAES of Ukraine represented by Lesia Chervona and Kateryna Tryma.
The key point of the meeting was the presentation by associate professor Hynek Roubík about the experience of the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague in the implementation of the third mission. He emphasized the importance of partnership with local communities and businesses to solve current problems.
The participants had the opportunity to see the successful practices of the Czech University of Natural Sciences and discuss ways to strengthen the influence of higher education institutions on the development of society. Special attention was paid to issues of sustainable development, food security and active communication with the community. Representatives from Ukraine actively participated in the discussion and shared the experience of implementing the third mission in the conditions of today’s challenges. In particular, the importance of developing partnerships between universities and communities for the reconstruction of Ukraine and overcoming the consequences of the war was emphasized.
Programme
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On September 23, 2024, academician of Institute of Higher education NAES of Ukraine participated in online International Workshop “Third Mission of Universities: Assessment Methodologies and Approaches”. The event, which held with the participation of experts from the Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, National Agency for Quality Assurance of Higher Education, the academic community and municipalities, showed the importance of the vector of development and evaluation of the University Third Mission.
The main speaker of the workshop – Professor Thorsten Kliewe, head of the Accreditation Council of Entrepreneurial and Involved Universities (Germany), spoke about modern approaches to the assessment of the third mission of the European Universities, German in particular.
More information on the project website: https://unicom.community/en/news-and-events/
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On May 27-30, 2024, a study visit “Third Mission, What Steps and What Responsibilities: University of Genoa” was held at the University of Genoa. The visit was dedicated to the study of the University of Genoa experience in the third mission implementation, discussion of the concept of setting up Centers for cooperation with the community based on member universities of the consortium, development of policy and methodology for evaluating its further functioning; the university’s activities regarding the implementation and strengthening of the third mission.On May 30- 31, 2024, a coordination meeting of the project was held, where the participants reported on the completed work and outlined the directions of work for the next period.
Agenda
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On May 24, 2024, Round Table «Challenges for Universities and Communities: Role and Response of the Third Mission Offices at Ukrainian Universities» within the UICOM project was held. The round table was held in a blended format with the participation of Ukrainian universities and non-academic project partners: Ministry of Education and Science of Ukraine, Ministry for Communities, Territories and Infrastructure Development of Ukraine and Association of Invincible Communities.
The round table summarized the results of the first year of the project, outlined the directions for next year activity, in particular, the preparation of the draft policy paper for third mission regulation of the Ukrainian universities. The participation of representatives of non-academic partners, who expressed their vision regarding the third mission, universities contribution in post-war reconstruction and to the development of communities, was important.
Agenda of the Round table
More information about UNICOM project https://unicom.community/

International Conference “University and inclusion”
­The international conference “University and Inclusion”, organized by the Fondazione Sicurezza e Liberta in Rome (Italy) on December 14 and 15, 2023, became the summarizing dissemination event of the 1st year of the UNICOM project.All participants presented the results of their research on the role of the Universities and associations in European cooperation, the specifics of their interaction with communities and stakeholders, as well as the implementation of foreign experience in the work of Universities with communities.Felice Romano and Alessandro Figus, along with their welcoming speeches to the conference participants, emphasized the need to ensure the safety of communities, the role of research and the scientific community in responsible informing communities about changes and international cooperation trends, in case of studying public needs and its redress, etc.
Due to the blended format of the conference, online participants had the opportunity to join a lively discussion and share their own experience of project implementation throughout the year and participate in the discussion of pressing issues. Expert experience from European and Ukrainian partners regarding the third mission of universities, activities of universities in an inclusive space, mutual integration of displaced students, teachers and the host community, prospects for cooperation in the European space of higher education is a significant development of the project for the socio-economic development of Ukraine.
Institute of Higher Education NAES of Ukraine represented by the presentations:
Olena Orzhel (Third mission through the eyes of internal and external stakeholders: Unicom project implementation results)
Nataliia Shofolova (Financial inclusion in higher education: Approaches and Steps to Implementation)
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Materials of the Conference and more information about Project: https://unicom.community/en/unicom-home/

Study visit to Lund University (Sweden), 6-9 November 2023
The study visit to Lund University (Sweden) on November 6-9, 2023 will be remembered by the participants of the Ukrainian project teams of the UNICOM project as a significant contribution to the understanding of the universities role in the community and society development.
The participants of the visit from the Institute of Higher Education NAES of Ukraine, Olga Petroye and Nataliia Shofolova, got acquainted with the most interesting cases and projects of interaction between the university and the community, initiated by the University of Lund as part of the third mission, not only for the Lund community, but for the whole country.
Project managers from Lund University Anamaria Dutceac Segesten and Niklas Bernsand, welcomed the partner teams and introduced them Lund universities scientific research, noting the important role of the University in the socio-economic development of the country. All speakers emphasized the importance of cooperation between the university and the community.
Thanks to the achievements of HumTank, which gathered together 14 universities in Sweden and was created to research humanistic topics, community development at the national level reached new heights and, according to HumTank chair Lovisa Brännstedt, made the voice of universities powerful in decision-making for communities.
Noteworthy is all the speakers emphasized the need for cooperation between the university and the community. Thus, Patrik Rydén – the project manager of the cooperation office, – spoke about the fruitful cooperation work and noted the need to involve external stakeholders to improve the effectiveness of the third mission and its compliance with the community’s request. In the course of the topic, Michael Bossetta, a media and communications researcher, talked about the advantages of the university podcast as one of the modern communication tools with the community and conveying the latest knowledge. Michael’s lively speech inspired the Ukrainian participants to the idea of creating a project podcast to disseminate their own experience and best European practices. The rationality of this idea was confirmed during the workshop with the press officer Ulrika Oredsson, who talked about the existing communication networks of the University, their role in attracting investments to support research, and their promotion up to the nomination of candidates for the Nobel Prize.
2023 was the year of recognition of Anne L’Hillier’s fruitful 30-year work in the field of physics, which brought her the Nobel Prize and confirmed Lund University’s status as a powerful research university.
Since the year of foundation – 1666, the University has produced a Fields Medal laureate, prime ministers, dozens of business leaders, as well as numerous innovators and researchers who brought lots of benefits to society. The existence of an ancient tradition of innovations and their combination with art and science is confirmed by the museums existing at the University, which were also visited by Ukrainian delegates.
Cultural impressions and new knowledge of the university’s experience were creatively summarized by Anamaria Dutceac Segesten, the coordinator of the UNICOM project at Lund University and associate professor of the Department of European Studies and Strategic Communications. Working in teams, the Ukrainian project participants put forward Anamaria’s topics for further processing, which she agreed upon for the further processing.
Therefore, the next visit to Sweden should open not only new pages of the history and culture of the Scandinavian country but also help in the development of strategies of cooperation between the university and communities in Ukraine.
Study Visit Programme
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From German national policy to Fachhochschule des Mittelstands experience in implementing the third mission of universities
The study visit to the Fachhochschule des Mittelstands in Bielefeld (Germany) was organized in a blended format, which gave an opportunity for the larger part of representatives of the project teams to learn about the innovative experience of implementing the third mission of German universities for four days (October 16-19, 2023).
The program was full of visits to innovative locations and attendance in interactive workshops with inspired discussions between project team members.
Lemgo Campus impressed the visiting participants with a combination of vocational colleges, universities, manufacturing companies, and inventors. The modern buildings of the campus contain spaces for cooperation, innovation, acquisition of skills and abilities, tests, piloting of technologies, creativity, and self-realization.
The presented information on the concept of an open innovative city and initiatives of digital interaction of universities with civil society will be useful during the reconstruction of the industrial complex of Ukraine and now for the development of the country’s human capital and social cohesion.
As part of the workshop “City of Open Innovations” with the mentoring of Professor Rulf Treidel and Dr. Mirko Petersen, teams of Ukrainian universities, including online participants, received new ideas and insights for further developing the third mission of universities.
Upon return, the project teams will conduct a series of meetings with focus groups to determine how Ukrainian universities and their main stakeholders understand and are ready to develop the third mission of universities.
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Experience Sharing – Third mission of universities & University- Community cooperation
On October 2-6, 2023, the UNICOM project partners had the opportunity to familiarize themselves with and learn from the experience of implementing the third mission by the Czech University of Natural Sciences in Prague.
The study visit was organized by the Faculty of Tropical Agricultural Sciences and coordinated by associate professor and leader of the Biogas research group Hynek Roubík, who highlighted the main provisions of the National Strategy for the Development of the Third Mission of Higher Education Institutions and introduced the best practices of the interaction of European institutions of higher education in the development of the third mission on the example of the Czech University of Natural Sciences in Prague.
Thanks to researcher Stacy Denise Hammond, participants had the opportunity to work out ways to strengthen the third mission of universities based on active communication with the community.
As a result of the fruitful work during the practical sessions for the purposes of sustainable development in the fields of energy, economy, and ecology, the participants had the opportunity to work out the current challenges and opportunities for ensuring food security in Ukraine in the current and forecasted period.
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On September 18, researchers of the Institute of Higher Education of the NAES of Ukraine gathered to discuss the state of implementation of the third – social – mission. The event was held within the framework of the project Project EU Erasmus+ “Universities-Communities: strengthening cooperation” (UNICOM) (https://ihed.org.ua/en/internationalization/project-unicom/ ), in particular, the implementation of Work Package 1, which involved filling out a questionnaire on the implementation of the third mission of Ukrainian higher education institutions.
The discussion demonstrated interest to the topic, the presence of achievements in the implementation of the social mission of the Institute, as well as certain specificities inherent in the Institute as a research institution.
The UNICOM project team had the opportunity to tell more about the project and to learn the opinion of their colleagues about how they see the social responsibility and social mission of the Institute of Higher Education of the National Academy of Educational Sciences of Ukraine.
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