idw – Informationsdienst Wissenschaft
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
Nachrichten, Termine, Experten
All nine SEA-EU partners sign new legal entity ensuring long-term stability of Alliance beyond EU funding phase. Timeline and agenda for 3rd Erasmus + funding phase also discussed during Alliance Governing Week in Naples.
During the latest European University of the Seas “SEA-EU” Governing Week held in Naples from 25-27 November 2025, the legal entity framework was signed by all nine partners. This laid the groundwork for the founding of the SEA-EU Association. The new legal entity gives the Alliance long-term security and increased operational capacity, as well as creating a more unified European profile. The SEA-EU Association will provide the management structure and strategic direction of the Alliance beyond current EU funding.
Governing Board representative for Kiel University, Vice President for International Affairs and Early Career Researchers at Kiel University, Prof. Ralph Schneider, is satisfied with the developments. “The establishment of the new legal entity for SEA-EU gives us long-term stability and continuity for the Alliance” he says. “SEA-EU has come a long way in the past five years. Established with six partners in 2019, we have grown to a truly collaborative network of nine partners. SEA-EU not only connects students and staff across Europe, but allows us all to grow beyond our limits. I am delighted that we have now secured the longevity of this important Alliance so that we can continue to work towards our shared goal of creating an interconnected, interdisciplinary European campus for a future orientated Europe.”
The second phase of SEA-EU, funded with a total of 14.4 million Euros by the European Commission began in January 2023 and runs until the beginning of 2027. With the current funding phase, a key topic of discussion within the Alliance management during the last twelve months has been how to ensure the stability and sustainability of the Alliance long-term, irrespective of additional short-term funding opportunities. During the first half of 2025, Kiel University coordinated the presidency of SEA-EU, overseeing discussions to draw up a Memorandum of Understanding. This was signed by all partners during the governing week in Kiel in June, affirming a commitment to the Alliance and the decision to explore the feasibility of establishing SEA-EU as a formal legal entity.
Now during the Governing Week in Naples, this next key milestone has also been achieved. During the Rectors Council the representatives of all nine universities finalised the framework, paving the way for the creation of the new SEA-EU Association. As part of the Governing Board meeting on Thursday 27 November, the statutes of the association was then officially signed. Preparations are now underway to establish the SEA-EU Association under Maltese Law. The SEA-EU Association is expected to be operational from the first quarter of 2026.
Mid-November the European Commission published a call, which would provide the Alliance with an additional two years of project funding. During the Governing Week in Naples the time-plan and agenda for applying for third funding phase was laid out. The objectives for the Erasmus + call for proposals focus on further progress in developing an integrated European campus, upscaling joint educational activities and teaching opportunities, and deepening institutional cooperation. The deadline for submission is the 4 March 2026.
Other highlights from the governing week included the first meeting of deans from SEA-EU universities, concluding in the increased commitment to co-creating joint study programmes and research cooperations. The Student Council also signed off the SEA-EU Student Council Bylaws laying out a clear organisational structure and ensuring the long-term development of student participation in the Alliance.
The next SEA-EU Governing Week takes place in Brest in June 2026.
The SEA-EU Alliance: collaborative and interdisciplinary
The SEA-EU Alliance, coordinated by the University of Cádiz in Spain, was founded in 2019 by six universities: the University of Cádiz, the University of Brest (France), Kiel University (Germany), the University of Gdańsk (Poland), the University of Split (Croatia) and the University of Malta. For the second project phase, which commenced at the beginning of 2023 and funded with a total of 14.4 million Euros, three more partners joined the network: the University of Naples Parthenope (Italy), the University of Algarve (Faro, Portugal) and Nord University (Bodø, Norway). Altogether, the alliance comprises of about 150,000 students and 18,000 employees, all of whom can benefit from the increased collaboration the alliance fosters. The funding from the EU Commission covers 80 percent of the total costs of SEA-EU. The remaining 20 percent is financed by the nine members.
Together the nine partners, all located along European coastlines, form an interdisciplinary, inter-university, multi-ethnic and multilingual university campus. Close cooperation with European partners makes it possible for the universities to push ahead with the international development of technologies, strategies and models. In this way, important contributions can be made to finding solutions to major social and global challenges of our time. The UN Sustainable Development Goals, which the alliance regards as being in line with its values, are an important guide in this respect.
SEA-EU is one of 65 European Universities Alliances currently funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Commission.
Merkmale dieser Pressemitteilung:
Journalisten
fachunabhängig
überregional
Kooperationen
Englisch
Sie können Suchbegriffe mit und, oder und / oder nicht verknüpfen, z. B. Philo nicht logie.
Verknüpfungen können Sie mit Klammern voneinander trennen, z. B. (Philo nicht logie) oder (Psycho und logie).
Zusammenhängende Worte werden als Wortgruppe gesucht, wenn Sie sie in Anführungsstriche setzen, z. B. „Bundesrepublik Deutschland“.
Die Erweiterte Suche können Sie auch nutzen, ohne Suchbegriffe einzugeben. Sie orientiert sich dann an den Kriterien, die Sie ausgewählt haben (z. B. nach dem Land oder dem Sachgebiet).
Haben Sie in einer Kategorie kein Kriterium ausgewählt, wird die gesamte Kategorie durchsucht (z.B. alle Sachgebiete oder alle Länder).
