Pol Bracke 
U!REKA Connects 2026 took place in Lisbon from 23 to 25 June. This flagship moment brought together 348 colleagues and students from all U!REKA partner institutions to reinforce existing collaborations, spark new joint initiatives, and exchange expertise through 21 interactive workshops, 69 presentations 28 working group meetings, showcasing posters and other collaborative formats.
During U!REKA Connects 2026 in Lisbon (23-25 June), the people and projects that bring the alliance to life were honoured with the U!REKA Awards. These awards recognise exceptional contributions in the areas of co-creation, boldness and inclusion, which are the core values of U!REKA. The award money linked to each prize does not go to the winners but is donated to a social project. An overview.
During U!REKA Connects in Lisbon, the Steering Committee agreed to further strengthen the collaboration with the U!REKA Student Council. This opens up new prospects for the Student Council and its new elected president, Lari Koskinen (Metropolia UASA), and it addresses the concerns raised by the departing student council president, Sukh Preet Singh (HOGENT UASA), who paved the way towards more student participation, together with the other members of the Student Council.
At the recent U!REKA Connects event in Lisbon (23–25 June), Bjorn De Rouck (lecturer on the real estate programme at HOGENT) and Florian Mähl (professor on the architecture programme at Frankfurt University of Applied Sciences) received the ‘Boldness Award’ for their successful collaboration. What started two years ago as a leap into the unknown has turned into an initiative that is having a positive impact on the curricula of both Frankfurt UAS and HOGENT.
Riitta Konkola, president and CEO of Metropolia, and Geleyn Meijer, rector of Amsterdam University of Applied Sciences, are retiring. Both have been involved in the U!REKA partnership since its launch in 2016 and played a key role in securing its recognition as a European University Alliance in 2023. A retrospective and a forward look from two of the key players in the U!REKA story.
U!REKA Connects in Lisbon was a moment of connection, but also a moment of saying goodbye. Mark Van Wees (AUAS) is retiring and handing over the coordination of research activities within U!REKA to Esther Parigger (AUAS). An interview about how research within U!REKA adds value to education and vice versa.
The first two years of the U!REKA project are now behind us. A lot has already been achieved, but there is more to come by the end of the first 4-years funding. The achievements so far and those in the pipeline were, of course, a topic of discussion at the recent Rector’s Meeting.
An event like U!REKA Connects implies hundreds of participants traveling by air. To compensate their share of the greenhouse gas emissions caused by the travel to/from Helsinki U!REKA Connects in 2025, U!REKA partners have each taken steps, either through a certified off-set organization, or as a direct donation to a project that promotes emission reduction or carbon capture. An overview.
U!REKA Connects, the yearly ‘flagship moment’ of the U!REKA European University will take place in Lisbon from 23 to 25 June. It allows the alliance to reinforce existing collaborations, spark new joint initiatives, and exchange expertise through interactive workshops, presentations and other collaborative formats. IPL (Instituto Politécnico de Lisboa), the hosting partner is finalizing the programme. Meanwhile, don’t forget to register (see below).
The European project U!Innovate brings together a consortium of European universities and innovation partners, many of which are members of the U!REKA European University Alliance. Together they work on one shared goal: strengthening entrepreneurial capacity within higher education and supporting the creation of new startups emerging from universities. U!Innovate recently entered a new phase which focuses on the development of the U!Innovate hybrid interregional incubator.