Report 2023International Cooperation and Conferences
ARQUS
In the ARQUS network, cooperation between student representatives took place. Two representatives of VU SR, Dominyka Goldbergaitė and Lukas Krasauskas, participated in the activities and meetings of the ARQUS Student Council.
Representatives delegated by VU SR participated in the ARQUS annual conference held at the University of Graz in Austria. During it, the representative delegated by VU SR, together with a student representative of Wroclaw University in Poland, gave a speech about the involvement of students in the activities of ARQUS, the paths of the Alliance's development visible to the eyes of students. During the conference, the student council adopted a resolution on the offsetting of competences acquired in an informal way.
On May 3^rd^, the representatives of VU SR met with Manuel João Costa, Vice-Rector for Student Affairs and Pedagogical Innovations at the University of Minho in Portugal, during the meeting, the students, together with the Vice-Rector, discussed about the involvement of students in the university's governing bodies, the improvement of the pedagogical competencies of teachers and the integration of first-year students. In the activities of ARQUS WP4 (Student agora), representatives delegated by VU SR were engaged in discussions about the networks of mentors, students - ambassadors, the writing of the introductory package for first-year students, which will operate between universities.
Conferences
This year, during the visit of the King and Queen of Belgium to Lithuania and Vilnius University, VU SR together with the President of the Republic of Lithuania Gitanas Nausėda and the First Lady Diana Nausėdienė contributed to the implementation of their visit to Vilnius University and the meeting with VU students. During the meeting with the Kings of Belgium and the First Couple of Lithuania, students from different departments of the University discussed biodiversity and climate change, women's economic empowerment, mental health problems in education and the role of universities in shaping a sustainable society.
Last spring, we were one of the 13 delegates who had the opportunity to observe the UNESCO World Higher Education Conference held in Barcelona on an official platform, where representatives of universities, organizations assessing the quality of studies, the private sector, youth, NGOs and other fields from all over the world met to discuss the trends, challenges and futures of higher education: from the role of universities in the society of the future, academic mobility to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and access to science for all.
In celebration of the European Year of Youth, at the invitation of the European Commission Representation in Lithuania, we had the opportunity to participate in the Brussels Economic Forum, which focused on the economy for future generations. To identify the main challenges of the European economy and discuss priorities. This year, they have provided flexible working conditions and social guarantees for all young people and lifelong learning – without which social and economic progress cannot be imagined.
The celebration of the European Year of Youth also organized youth meetings with Eurocommissioners from different fields on the initiative of the EC. In one of them - "Measuring what matters: looking beyond GDP" with P. Gentiloni, representatives of VU SR were also invited to participate. The meeting focused on challenges such as climate change, poverty and inequality, health care and well-being, and how, from a young person's perspective, we would see opportunities to promote further economic progress in states in sustainable and responsive ways to today's challenges.
The Social Inclusion & Engagement in Mobility (SiEM) conference is another international conference, where representatives of VU SR participated in the aim of delving into the inclusion of more vulnerable groups in mobility. The conference discussed the more vulnerable groups in mobility, the barriers they face, and the tools developed during the workshop that could better respond to the emerging financial, accommodation, accessibility, disability-adaptability, and openness to different student groups.