UNINOVIS Alliance invites to celebrate its first anniversary
On March 18, 2026, the European University Alliance UNINOVIS will mark a significant milestone – the first year of its joint activities. Although the project officially launched at the beginning of 2025, within just one year it has grown into a vibrant international network where academic communities, students, and researchers from across Europe collaborate to develop an innovative and socially engaged vision of higher education.
UNINOVIS is a European University Alliance bringing together eight public higher education institutions: Sorbonne Paris Nord University (France), Technical University of Applied Sciences Würzburg-Schweinfurt (Germany), University of Campania Luigi Vanvitelli (Italy), Tampere University of Applied Sciences (Finland), Kauno kolegija Higher Education Institution (Lithuania), University of Málaga (Spain), University of Tirana (Albania), and The Hague University of Applied Sciences (Netherlands).
The alliance’s vision is to create a next-generation European university where learning and research are closely linked to real societal challenges and the development of innovations. Special emphasis is placed on applied data science, competency development, and the strengthening of digital skills to ensure that current and future professionals acquire knowledge aligned with the rapidly evolving European labour market and societal needs.
The Kaunas kolegija community actively participates in UNINOVIS, contributing to the alliance’s strategic objectives through five key work packages: WP1 – Management and Coordination; WP2 – Lifelong Learning; WP3 – Innovation and Integration; WP4 – Green and Digital Transition Promotion; WP5 – Scientific Competence, Impact, Dissemination, and Exploitation. During the first year, participation in these work packages laid the groundwork for the further development of joint activities, including lifelong learning, mobility programs, research, and innovation initiatives. Agreed-upon guidelines and regulatory documents ensure the consistent organization of these activities within the alliance. This framework provides Kaunas kolegija students and staff with opportunities to expand international networks, engage in academic and research projects and events, strengthen professional connections, and deepen knowledge aligned with European-level competency and innovation priorities.
In its first year, UNINOVIS has become a space for tangible action. It has hosted Erasmus+ exchanges and projects, joint international seminars, Blended Intensive Programmes (BIP), and other events focused on innovation, pedagogy, and academic development. These initiatives allow students not only to study in an international academic environment but also to create new knowledge and skills alongside peers from across Europe. In 2025, more than 50 students from Kauno kolegija participated in mobility programmes at UNINOVIS partner institutions in Finland, Germany, and France. Meanwhile, 70 lecturers and other staff members from the Kauno kolegija deepened their knowledge and shared their experience by participating in traineeships, creative workshops, international weeks, and by teaching in virtually all UNINOVIS partner institutions.
Jolanta Valiaugienė, Project Manager for UNINOVIS at Kaunas kolegija, emphasises the broader significance of this partnership: ‘UNINOVIS is more than an international network – it is a platform that allows us to collaborate with partners to create a learning environment where students acquire essential 21st-century competencies, from data analysis to digital solutions and understanding global challenges. It is not just a network – it is a platform nurturing a new generation of creators, innovators, and responsible societal actors.’
This anniversary is not only an opportunity to mark the passage of one year but also to recognise the trajectory of transformative change. UNINOVIS has become a space where ideas turn into initiatives, and where collaboration among students, lecturers, and researchers creates new experiences and knowledge that matter both to the European academic community and to society at large.
To celebrate the UNINOVIS alliance’s first anniversary, Kaunas kolegija invites the entire community to a short birthday event on March 18 at 12:00 in the Green Hall at Pramonės Av. 20. Students will enjoy games, prizes, cake, and an opportunity to learn more about the alliance’s activities, goals, and opportunities.