‘Una Europa is like a sweet shop for our researchers’
A European bachelor’s degree, an enormous web of collaborations and masses of fantastic opportunities for researchers and support professionals: in two years, we as a university have come far within the Una Europa alliance, says Professor Joanne van der Leun. She rejoined the Una Europa Board of Directors at the start of this year.
Hi Joanne, as you rejoin the Board of Directors, what are you most excited to start working on?
‘I am delighted to be involved in Una Europa again and am excited to see how active we now are in the alliance. I am committed to seeing how we can get students and young researchers more involved – European collaboration is also a promise for the future, after all. We’ll have the greatest impact if we get students and young researchers on board now, so they become active in Una Europa at an early stage. ’
‘Many of our researchers have been successful in the Una Europa seed funding calls’
You were also involved in Una Europa when we joined the alliance in 2022. How have you seen it develop at our university since then?
‘My year-and-a-half hiatus makes me well-placed to compare. What I’ve noticed is how it has become easier for people to find each other and how an enormous web of collaborations has developed over the past two years. We are also much closer to collaborating on the Bachelor of Arts in European Studies and the interdisciplinary Self Steering Committees are hard at work. Then there are the many researchers from our university who have been successful in the Una Europa seed funding calls. The ambition now reaches further than Europe because as an alliance we are also seeking wider connections in fantastic collaborations with partners in Africa and Latin America. There are also clear priorities that align with our strategy, which helps a lot. One-and-a-half years ago we were discussing how joining Una Europa sometimes felt like jumping on a fast-riding train. Now we’re on board that train and definitely not hanging on the back.’
We’ve come a long way! Where do you see Una Europa headed from here?
‘European alliances are part of a vision – you could even call it a dream. Ensuring that higher education systems across Europe are compatible in the future is a far stretch but it is the only way to make it easier for students, academics and support staff in Europe to collaborate and study or work abroad. The only way to achieve that is by trying things out, experimenting, and by lobbying for better harmonisation with national legislation. As far as we are concerned, Una Europa is also an innovation model. I truly believe that European alliances are networks in which we can lead the way.’
‘Our support professionals can go on an exchange with a European counterpart who does the same work’
One last question: how can Una Europa help Leiden University staff have an impact?
‘Being part of such a strong network of universities can be very helpful when writing proposals or seeking collaborations and change. In that respect, Una Europa is like a sweet shop for our researchers. The alliance also offers great opportunities for support professionals, such as an exchange with a European counterpart who does the same work – it’s a great way to gain inspiration and share experiences. Our Una Europa team at Leiden University is keen to link colleagues with Una Europa partners, so I would definitely advise everyone to reach out to our team with ideas, sign up for the newsletter and follow Una Europa on LinkedIn or Instagram.’
Banner photo: Danique ter Horst