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Programme & Meetings
Introduction
In its address to the Heads of States and Governments, meeting in Barcelona
in March 2002, the EUA underlined the key role of the European universities
in its endeavours to build a Europe of knowledge. The strength and originality
of the university is its double responsibility of teaching and research,
thereby promoting innovation and ensuring continuity. The EUA encouraged
Heads of States and Governments to “make more systematic use of
this resource in the important process of consolidating and strengthening
Europe’s position in the perspective of a global competitive world,
and in the creation of a European Area of Knowledge”.
The EUA Conference in Bristol on 28-29 March 2003 will focus on one
important aspect of this double responsibility, that of research and research-based
training, i.e. “The Role of the Universities in the European Research
Area”. The first decade of the 21st century presents universities
with several challenges, internal as well as external: demographic changes,
new demands for the training of researchers, competition to obtain funds
for basic research to supply new knowledge, the need to develop inter-disciplinary
master’s and PhD programmes, networking of researchers and clustering
of universities, demands to enhance the cultural influence and to serve
as an example of the European social model, coupled with national specific
demands and constraints. The Bristol conference plans to look at these
structural questions as well as the questions relating to the training
of researchers, in a European context, and to ensure that the link between
the European Higher Education Area and European Research Area is developed
through European Universities.
Day I: Setting the Scene
The structural issues will be on the agenda on the first conference
day. A speaker from the European Commision will outline views on the changes
needed in Europe. The second key note speaker will be Professor Sir David
King, Chief Scientific Adviser to HM Government and Head of the Office
of Science and Technology, who will present the UK approach to research
in the higher education sector. A second plenary session, prior to the
discussion groups, will set the scene, based on the experiences of the
UK, and of a university in Finland and one in Italy, thus demonstrating
different national settings and different regional/local traditions and
conditions. They will provide concrete examples of the interplay between
national/regional priorities, research and research-training priorities.
The topics of the discussion groups are all central to the European debate:
the geographical concentration of excellence; the true cost of university
research; intellectual property rights; division of research capacity;
and the structure of research in the social sciences and the humanities.
Day 2: Links between Teaching and Research
The links between teaching and research, the questions of specialization
and divergence, of priorities and universitas, have become increasingly
important with the introduction of the Bologna process and the European
Research Area. The key note speaker in the plenary session of the second
conference day will be Prof José Mariano GAGO who will look at
these questions under the heading of “The Humboldt Model Revisited”.
The discussion groups will examine crucial issues such as whether universities
should specialise more in teaching or research and whether there are possible
divergences between teaching and research priorities; research at BA and
MA levels, the links between the two levels and the impact on research;
and the optimal duration and structure of PhD studies and co-operation
among universities at doctorate level.
Outcome
Reports and ideas from the Bristol conference will provide important
contributions to the continued development of EUA policies towards a European
Area of Knowledge. At the same time the conference will provide input
to the Convention of Higher Education Institutions, to take place just
two months later in Graz, where the next steps in the process towards
a European Higher Education Area will be debated from the institutional
point of view before the Ministers of Education meet in Berlin in September
2003.
NB English will be the working language of
the conference. No interpretation will be provided.
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Conference organisers
HOST:
Eric Thomas
Vice-Chancellor, University of Bristol
ACADEMIC CO-ORDINATORS:
Luc Weber
EUA Board Member
Inge Knudsen
Senior Programme Manager
EUA ORGANISATION:
Lesley Wilson
EUA Secretary General
Joanne Dee
EUA Conference Organiser
LOCAL ORGANISATION:
Lisa Hudnott
University of Bristol, Conference Officer
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Pre-conference meetings
Wednesday 26 March and Thursday 27 March
COUNCIL MEETING: Merchant Venturers Building (MVB), Woodland
Road, Bristol
BOARD MEETING: Royal Fort House, Royal Fort Gardens,
Tyndall Avenue, Bristol
SECRETARY GENERAL'S MEETING: Wills Memorial Building
(WMB), Queens Road, Bristol
(restricted to Board and Council members and to Secretaries General of
National Rectors Conferences, invitation only)
Thursday 27 March
| 9.00-10.30 |
EUA Board - I
Royal Fort House |
| 10.30-10.45 |
Coffee Break |
| 10.45-12.30 |
EUA Board - II |
| 9.00-10.30 |
Meeting of the Secretaries
General of National Rectors' Conferences - I
Old Council Chamber, Wills Memorial Building |
| 10.30-11.00 |
Coffee break |
| 11.00-12.30 |
Meeting of the Secretaries General
of National Rectors' Conferences - II |
| 12.30-14.00 |
Lunch |
| 14.30-16.00 |
EUA Council I
1.11/1.11a, Merchant Venturers Building |
| 16.00-16.30 |
Coffee break |
| 16.30-18.00 |
EUA Council II |
| 18.00-18.30 |
Secretaries General debriefing
session
Old Council Chamber,Wills Memorial Building |
For all conference participants:
| 19.00-21.00 |
Welcome buffet reception
hosted by Lord Mayor of Bristol
Atrium, Merchant Venturers Building |
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Conference programme
THE REGISTRATION DESK FOR CONFERENCE PARTICIPANTS WILL BE OPEN
AS FOLLOWS:
Thursday 27 March - 8.00-19.00
Friday 28 March - 8.00-19.00
Saturday 29 March - 8.30-17.00 |
University of Bristol
- Wills Memorial Building,
Park Row, Ground Floor
phone: +44 (0) 117 954 5392 |
NB All sessions on Friday and Saturday will be held
at the Wills Memorial Building
Friday 28 March
For EUA members only (observers can sit in the
gallery):
| 9.00-11.00 |
EUA GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
| 11.00-11.30 |
Coffee Break |
For all conference participants:
11.30-13.00 |
CONFERENCE
(1st day)
Opening Ceremony
Chair: Prof. Eric Froment, EUA President
1st Keynote speech: (Speaker to be confirmed): The
role of universities in the ERA
2nd Keynote speech: Professor Sir David King, Chief
Scientific Adviser to HM Government and Head of the Office of Science
and Technology:The UK approach to research in the higher education
sector
Panel discussion |
| 13.00-14.00 |
Lunch |
| 14.00-15.30 |
Plenary Session 2 - Setting
the scene
Chair: to be confirmed
3rd Keynote speech:
Prof. Eric Thomas, Vice-Chancellor University of Bristol, introducing:
Structural issues impacting upon the development of university
research, the UK experience
1st case study:
Finland – Prof. Lauri Lajunen, Rector of the University of Oulu
2nd case study: Italy – Prof. Massimo Egidi,
Rector of Trento University |
| 15.30-16.00 |
Coffee break |
| 16.00-17.30 |
Group work – 1st session
Discussion groups on the structural issues affecting European universities’
research capacity and potential:
- The true cost of university research
- Geographical concentration of excellence, including the place
of small universities in a world of networks and centres of excellence
- Division of research capacity between universities, research
institutes, academies – impact on the universities
- Universities and innovation - Intellectual property rights:
one or several solutions?
- Structure of research in the social sciences and humanities
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| 19.00 |
Gala dinner "@Bristol" |
Saturday 29 March
9.00-10.00 |
CONFERENCE
(2nd day)
Plenary Session 3
Chair:
Prof. Luc Weber, chairman of the EUA Research working group
4th Keynote speech: Prof José Mariano
Gago: Teaching, Research and the Bologna process - the Humboldt
model revisited
Panel discussion |
| 10.00-10.30 |
Coffee break |
| 10.30-12.00 |
Group work – 2nd session
Discussion groups on the links between teaching and research
- Possible divergences between research and teaching priorities
- Research at BA/MA level, links between the two levels and the
impact on research
- Optimal duration and structure of PhD studies
- Working together at graduate/doctoral level
- A European Research Council
|
| 12.00-13.00 |
Closing Ceremony
Chair: Prof. Georg Winckler, EUA Board Member &
Rector of University of Vienna: Conclusions and recommendations
for the future/input to Graz |
| 13.00-13.30 |
Welcome for newcomers |
| 13.00-14.00 |
Lunch |
| 17.00 |
Buffet Dinner at Teohs |
| 19.30 |
Theatre, Tobacco Factory |
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Post-conference meetings
Saturday 29 March
| 14.00-15.30 |
QA Meeting – meeting
of all the institutions that have been evaluated by the QA programme
Great Hall, Wills Memorial Building |
| 14.00-17.00 |
EUA Board – III
Royal Fort House |
Sunday 30 March
| 9.30-13.00 |
Optional excursion, Newport,
Wales |
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Social programme
These conference events are for all participants and partners and are
included in the conference fee.
Welcome Reception & Buffet, Thursday 27 March (19.00)
Hosted by The Lord Mayor of Bristol, at the University of Bristol, Merchant
Venturers Building.
Gala Dinner, Friday 28th March (19.00)
http://www.at-bristol.org.uk/Education
The venue for the Conference Gala Dinner for participants and partners
is "@Bristol" (Science Centre for the 21st Century),
at the heart of Bristol's historic Harbourside.
Buffet Dinner at Teohs, Saturday 29th March (17.00)
At The Tobacco Factory, Southville, Bristol.
Teohs offers dishes, which aim to reflect the diverse cultures and traditions
of the far East.
Shakespeare's 'As You Like It', Saturday 29th March (19.30)
http://www.tobaccofactory.com
At The Tobacco Factory, Southville, Bristol.
Cleverly converted from a former tobacco factory, this interesting setting
is an ideal venue for intimate theatre productions: "Shakespeare
at the Tobacco Factory - a company set up three years ago to mount large-scale
Shakespeare productions in a converted tobacco factory in downtown Bristol,
has a hallmark style that is as clear and unadorned as its name."
(Daily Telegraph, 16th February 2002)
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Programme for companions
Friday 28th March
Day coach trip to the beautiful Cotswolds
See the English Countryside at its best, the Cotswolds is an area full
of variety; beautiful landscapes, picturesque villages, historic manor
houses and glorious gardens. Lunch will be taken at a local pub or restaurant
the cost of which is not included.
Saturday 29th March
Morning boat trip around the harbour and walking tour of the City centre
Discover some of the interesting and fascinating places in the historic
City of Bristol and explore the newly developed Harbour side. Lunch is
not included.
(both these excursions are included in the partners' conference fee)
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Post-conference tour
Sunday 30th March, 9.30 – 13.00
Morning coach trip and guided tour of Tredegar House and Park, Newport,
Wales
Tredegar House is one of the finest examples of a Restoration house in
Britain. The stunning staterooms are adorned with fine paintings, carvings
and elaborate ceilings. (Light refreshments will be provided)
Price of tour: €32 (£21)
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Last updated on
21/03/03
© University of Bristol 2003
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