Six years after its launch, how would you explain, to someone who has never heard of it, what ENLIGHT is in simple terms?

Joanne Pagèze: ENLIGHT embodies, above all, a long-term commitment between ten leading European universities that have chosen to work together. We collaborate on all aspects of university life: teaching, research, innovation and student life.

The aim is to respond more effectively, collectively, to the major challenges of our time: the ecological transition, digitalisation, health, inequalities, culture and creativity within an innovative Europe. We want to educate students who are capable of thriving in a European environment and help them become engaged citizens.

I would add that this approach is fully in line with the University of Bordeaux’s strategic plan and values: to strengthen our European outlook in order to increase our scientific, educational and societal impact.

From small-scale collaborations to major projects, ENLIGHT has been part of all the university’s activities for the past six years. 

What distinguishes the ENLIGHT alliance from a traditional international partnership? 

J.P.: The difference lies in a strong institutional commitment. It is not simply a matter of cooperating on a few projects or organising student exchanges. The ENLIGHT alliance has established a long-term vision, a shared approach that supports the development of our degree programmes, opens up opportunities for our researchers, and promotes and strengthens the work of our universities.

ENLIGHT enables us to explore new forms of cooperation: innovative courses, joint degrees, all types of exchange programmes (hybrid, virtual) and research networks. It is a powerful driver of interdisciplinarity and pedagogical innovation. Together, we are stronger and more ambitious, bolstered by the shared trust we have built up over the years.

ENLIGHT also serves as a fantastic testing ground for internationalisation. Every initiative represents a step forward in building this European academic community. For Bordeaux, being part of this alliance of ten renowned universities enhances our visibility, our international appeal and our capacity for innovation.

What are the most noticeable effects for students and staff?

J.P.: Thanks to ENLIGHT, our students have access to a wider range of mobility schemes, training opportunities across Europe, interdisciplinary projects and international experiences, whether these take place in person, in a hybrid format or entirely online. New formats for short-term and hybrid mobility programmes, lasting one week, have also been introduced to make the international classroom experience accessible to a wider audience. We have observed that ENLIGHT mobility schemes have continued to progress in recent years. At the same time, dual and joint degrees are being developed, whilst our international programmes are gradually opening up to partners within the ENLIGHT alliance.

Teachers and PhD students, for their part, benefit from new training opportunities, European conferences, academic leadership programmes and opportunities to design degree programmes or develop research projects with their European counterparts, within an environment that strongly supports pedagogical innovation.

Furthermore, a significant milestone was reached on June 3^rd with the signing of the joint PhD supervision agreement by the ten vice-chancellors and presidents of the partner universities. This agreement now enables PhD students to obtain a dual ENLIGHT PhD degree. Administrative staff are also benefiting from the alliance by developing new skills through their participation in European professional networks and joint training initiatives.

ENLIGHT places great emphasis on cooperation in tackling major societal challenges. How is this approach reflected at the University of Bordeaux?

J.P.: This is undoubtedly one of the most striking aspects of ENLIGHT and one of the key added values of an alliance bringing together ten multidisciplinary research universities. To fully realise this potential, it was essential to engage our academic communities, provide them with opportunities to meet, and enable them to develop and bring their ideas to fruition. To drive this momentum, in 2024 ENLIGHT launched several calls for proposals aimed at supporting the creation of interdisciplinary cooperation networks, the development of innovative training programmes, and the implementation of initiatives related to campus transitions as part of the ENLIGHT+ programme.

Today, Bordeaux is involved in eight of the 25 ENLIGHT Thematic Networks: on the themes of cancer (NETCARE), neurosciences (PAINNET, BRAIN 24/7), plastic pollution (PLASTIMPACT), identity and democracy (IDENTI-T), gender in health (IMPULSE), AI in research and education (NAI2TURE) and digital twins (DISRUPT). ENLIGHT courses are designed around practical challenges, enabling teams of students to work together on real-world issues such as: urban mining, AI in forest analysis, critical thinking…

And through the ENLIGHT+ programme, we have been able to fund more than 15 "campus transition" projects: summer schools, hybrid programmes, hackathons, seminars and so on, covering a wide variety of themes, from sustainable practices in pharmacy and intercultural skills in science to regional languages. ENLIGHT initiatives cover a wide range of themes and approaches to current challenges. It is still too early to fully gauge their impact, which will develop over the long term, but the commitment shown by colleagues and the diversity of the projects are very encouraging.

You will soon be leaving your role as Vice-President for European affairs. How do you view the progress made so far? And what do you think are the main challenges for ENLIGHT to deliver on its promise by 2030?

J.P.: Above all, what stands out for me is the strong sense of trust that has been built up between the ten partner universities. I feel proud and privileged to have been part of this venture. In just a few years, we have created a genuine European working community, capable of developing courses, research projects, shared tools and new opportunities for both students and staff.

More broadly speaking, I recognise – even more so today, against the backdrop of a turbulent geopolitical landscape – the potential of European alliances to make a significant contribution to building an autonomous and innovative Europe, and to promoting shared democratic and academic values. This dynamic directly benefits the University of Bordeaux, but also our region, as ENLIGHT has extended Bordeaux’s influence across Europe, connecting our cities and universities around shared challenges. Indeed, I very much look forward to returning as a guest to the EUROPEAN DIALOGUES event in May 2027, which will highlight the pioneering work being carried out by European cities and universities on transition-related issues.

Looking ahead, the main challenge is scaling up. We have demonstrated that these new forms of cooperation are effective. We must now embed them sustainably within the way our universities operate so that they benefit as many people as possible. In Bordeaux, a structured scaling-up process is essential to systematise internationalisation practices, to engage our wider teaching community, and to create more opportunities for more students throughout their academic journey. This is a project we have been planning with Pascal Lecroart, Vice-President for education, which is fully in line with the development of our educational provision.

I will now leave it to Jörg Schäfer, my successor as Vice-President for European affairs, to take on this challenge.