Charm-EU 2025 Annual Conference: Strengthening European Competitiveness

European competitiveness is the main theme of the 2025 edition of the annual Charm-EU conference. Entitled "Strengthening European competitiveness: European university alliances as catalysts for innovation and sustainability," the event is being organized on November 12 by Utrecht University (Netherlands), one of the nine member universities of the prestigious European University Alliance. The program includes inspiring plenary sessions (also available on the Charm-EU YouTube channel) and impactful workshops.

What concrete actions can European university alliances take to support competitiveness at the European level? This is the central question of the 2025 edition of the annual Charm-EU conference.

A pioneering model

In just a few years, European university alliances, now numbering 65 (more than 560 universities), have played a key role at the heart of the higher education ecosystem. For the past six years, Charm-EU has been demonstrating their transformative potential in concrete terms, notably by awarding one of the very first joint master's degrees in Europe, implementing a pioneering challenge-based learning model, and contributing fully to the European Council's deliberations through the European Degree ED-Affiche pilot project.

Bringing together staff involved in the alliance, representatives of partner universities, policy makers, and national and international civil society actors, this 2025 annual conference, "Strengthening European competitiveness: European university alliances as catalysts for innovation and sustainability" aims to enrich the debate on competitiveness and translate it into effective and impactful action. It is an opportunity to show how alliances are an essential support for the European Union's Competitiveness Compass.

Strategic challenges

Through inspiring high-level keynotes, the morning plenary sessions will address the strategic challenges facing alliances in terms of their contribution to European competitiveness and sustainable transition. They will also examine their role as a driving force for the implementation of a Skills Union based on inclusion, diversity, and sustainability. Before taking an unflinching look at the practical challenges and opportunities shaping competitiveness in Europe, we will not forget to highlight the essential and structuring role of cross-sectoral and transnational alliances in promoting innovation and agility in a constantly changing global environment.

Focusing more closely on professional development, mobility, inclusion, interoperability, internationalization, and transdisciplinarity, the afternoon workshops (on-site only) will provide an opportunity to continue the discussions and reflect together on concrete and sustainable initiatives for the future of European higher education.

Please note: real-time subtitles will be available during the broadcast of the morning plenary sessions (in English) on the Charm-EU YouTube channel.

For more information, see the article on the 2024 edition of the annual CHARM-EU conference.