VUB students tackle local and global challenges (virtually) with peers from Spain, France, England, Sweden and Slovenia
During the weDISCOVER.brussels week from 29 March until 1 April, some 70 students from all six EUTOPIA universities will join forces virtually. With local partners, they will tackle local and global societal challenges in Brussels. As an urban engaged university, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel is the virtual host and the facilitator of the event, but the true commitment comes from the students.
Connecting, even during the Covid-19 crisis
Students in Brussels already know this: at the end of March, Brussels will be the centre of attention for a week, as a living lab during the weKONEKT.brussels week. As an urban engaged university, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel wants to offer a socially engaged alternative to lectures and an introduction to Brussels. And more. Today in particular, the week is also a way to connect students during the Covid-19 lockdown. The students themselves are driving the projects: they organise projects together and all the activities are open for participation. They will share and collate their expertise, insights and knowledge in workshops and teamwork sessions.
The Brussels partner organisations with which VUB is working are the link between the student and the city. This year, the students work with organisations such as P&V Foundation, Innoviris, the Municipality of Ixelles, Capital vzw, the Flemish Parliament and Avansa Citizenne.
Hassan Al Hilou of Capital vzw: “It’s crucial for us to work with young people. After all, they are the future. That is why we will investigate together what the challenges of the SDGs [the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals] are. One of those SDGs is decent work and economic growth. But what is decent work and how do you achieve economic growth? The cooperation will certainly improve our own operations as well. I am therefore very much looking forward to meeting the EUTOPIAn students.”
EUTOPIAn students
There are similar challenges in other European cities and everyone benefits from a broader view. For some of the projects, therefore, the VUB students are joining forces with students from five other urban universities: Warwick, Ljubljana, Gothenburg, Paris and Barcelona. The five universities are the partners with which VUB has formed an alliance and is building the European university of the future: the EUTOPIA university. This will be a university where education is based on local and regional partnerships. Its committed students will help to shape the curriculum and will work with these organisations to find solutions for the future.
For example, on 30 March, under the guidance of Nobel Prize winner Prof LuÄŤka KajfeĹľ Bogataj and with researchers from the University of Ljubljana and VUB, EUTOPIA students will participate in an expert session on the P of Planet, one of the five Ps defined by the UN.
CY Cergy Paris Université students Emil Raducanu, Lucie-Anne Soubelet and Paul-Adrien Viala on the weDISCOVER.brussels week: “We think this European cooperation is essential. Giving students the opportunity to make their voices heard through the weDISCOVER.brussels week is the right way to go. We are convinced that students have an important role to play in decisions about our future world. With our project, we want to try to change the transport habits of CYU students and staff. Our work will focus on the commute between the campus and the homes of students and staff from the Île de France area. We look forward to exchanging with other students!”
Introduction to the European capital and Belgian hiphop
For these international students, it is often a first acquaintance with the European capital and with VUB. The programme therefore also offers a virtual tour of Brussels with a focus on citizens’ initiatives and urban development, as well as an online dance party organised by VUB student groups, the Ancienne Belgique and Pilar.
Wout Vanhelden of VUB student society Limburgia: “It’s important to connect people. And what better way is there than through music? We would like to invite all international students to the digital party on 1 April. Through this project, you too can discover the Brussels hip-hop scene! Lefto and Supafly Collective will provide an awesome night with the best hip hop records from the 70s, 80s and 90s. See you there!”
The icing on the cake is the masterclass on citizen journalism with Waad el-Kateab, the Syrian journalist and filmmaker who won an Oscar nomination with For Sama, her haunting documentary about the Syrian civil war.
VUB rector Caroline Pauwels: “Without cooperation, we will get nowhere. This is no different in our current high-tech and globalised society. That is why VUB is strongly committed to partnerships. With other universities. With organisations. With the city. With its academics and students. The challenges are too big for one person, one single entity. How do we tackle climate change? The poverty in deprived neighbourhoods? How do we keep our cities liveable and provide quality education for all? Our EUTOPIA students are now putting this into practice. We are particularly proud of their social commitment.”
More information and full programme at weDISCOVER.brussels