Challenge EU
Cultivating Holistic Sustainable Collaborations: Engaging Excellence in European Universities
The European Commission has taken a significant step towards transforming higher education in Europe by announcing the CHALLENGE-EU alliance, one of the 14 new alliances under the 2024 Erasmus+ European Universities call. This brings the total to 64 alliances, and now includes over 560 higher education institutions from across Europe. This achievement meets the European strategy for universities; goal of establishing at least 60 alliances involving over 500 universities by mid-2024.
ChallengeEU Alliance is introducing a new regional innovation approach that goes beyond a traditional one-way transfer of knowledge towards a more collaborative and interactive methodology. In this model, universities address and invite all elements of the Quadruple Helix 11 , actively engaging with regional stakeholders, including those from the public administration, the business sector and civil society.
The European Universities alliances enable a new generation of Europeans to study and work across different countries, languages, and academic disciplines, enhancing the international appeal and competitiveness of Europes higher education. They also foster regional innovation through collaboration between students, academics, researchers, enterprises, and civil society organizations. The European Universities aim to enhance the international competitiveness of European universities and foster European values and identity. This initiative will facilitate long-term, strategic cooperation among higher education institutions, promoting innovative research and education strategies to address societal challenges.
Start: January 2025
End: December 2028
Project Reference:
EU Grant: 8.639.357 €
Programme: European University Alliances
Key Action: ERASMUS-EDU-2024-EUR-UNIV
Action Type:
Coordinator: Offenburg University of Applied Sciences (Germany)
SEEU contact person: Afrim Tresi (WP1), Mennan Selimi (WP2), Veli Kreci (WP4)
Project webpage: https://challenge-eu.eu/
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In a groundbreaking effort to foster sustainable development and tackle critical challenges, the ChallengeEU Alliance has identified three Smart Specialization Areas of both regional and global significance. These areas, chosen through internal reflections of academic profiles and goals and consultations with regional policymakers and development agencies, will serve as testbeds for innovation:
- Health and Well-being (SDG 3)
- Smart Digitalization (SDG 9)
- Sustainable Futures (SDG 13)
Within these Smart Specialization Areas, our innovative concept of Multi-Actor Research & Knowledge Exchange Teams, or “M.A.R.K.E.T.s”, will emerge. These dynamic platforms will foster transdisciplinary collaboration, innovation, and the co-creation of solutions across digital, green, social, and sustainable dimensions. Unlike traditional, one-dimensional models of knowledge transfer, M.A.R.K.E.T.s will promote more responsive research and knowledge exchange practices.
- Offenburg University of Applied Sciences (Germany ),
- South East European University (North Macedonia),
- Ecam La Salle (France),
- European University of Lisbon (Portugal),
- Mid Sweden University (Sweden),
- University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (Switzerland),
- European University of Valencia (Spain),
- University of Warmia and Mazury (Poland),
- Latvia University of Life Sciences and Technologies (Latvia)
M.A.R.K.E.T.s will serve as vibrant hubs where students, researchers, and diverse stakeholders converge to collectively tackle challenges, share expertise, and drive transformative advancements within their respective domains. These hubs are designed to remain active beyond the initial funding period, ensuring the sustainability of the ecosystems beyond the four-year timeline.
The M.A.R.K.E.T.s will be established and tested in all regions through a series of participatory events:
- M.A.R.K.E.T. MEETUPs: These strategic co-creation phases are designed to tackle challenges within the defined Smart Specialization Areas in a participatory and inclusive way. These preparatory processes will generate roadmaps for future work within each region’s Smart Specialization Area, known as M.A.R.K.E.T. MISSIONS.
- M.A.R.K.E.T. MISSIONs: Embracing an ethos of openness, these missions will: reflect targeted regional challenges, cultivate future scenarios or solutions, formulate strategies for implementing these scenarios within each region.
M.A.R.K.E.T. Activities will be conducted in regional M.A.R.K.E.T. SQUARES — existing infrastructures either within universities or associated partners’ facilities. These hubs will bridge research, education, and innovation with region-specific challenges and specialization strategies. Students, educators, researchers, regional policymakers, public institutions, civil society organizations, NGOs, and companies will collaborate on designated thematic issues within these infrastructures.
Expanding the Open Innovation Model
By integrating M.A.R.K.E.T.s into regional innovation ecosystems, the established Open Innovation model will be expanded and embedded into Smart Specialization Approaches, addressing the needs of the Triple Transition: Green, Digital, and Social. The ChallengeEU Alliance will demonstrate how universities can successfully engage with stakeholders, address key challenges jointly, and promote bottom-up experimentation for system-wide innovation in European regions.
Practical and Transferable Guidelines
To increase the impact of the M.A.R.K.E.T. approach, the Alliance will develop practical, transferable, and openly accessible guidelines. These guidelines will enable regions across and beyond Europe to foster inclusive innovation processes within their Smart Specialization Strategies. Targeted recommendations for different stakeholder groups of the Quadruple Helix innovation model will be included, facilitating their participation in challenge- and impact-driven inclusive innovation processes across Europe. The guidelines will be accessible via the ChallengeEU Repository and disseminated through conferences, policy briefs, and outlined dissemination activities.
Through these initiatives, the ChallengeEU Alliance aims to transform how universities engage with stakeholders, driving significant advancements in addressing regional and global challenges and promoting sustainable development.
Newsletter I
Published in September 2024
Newsletter 2
Published in October 2024
Newsletter 3
Published in November 2024
Newsletter 4
Published in December 2024
Newsletter 5
Published in January 2025
Newsletter 6
Published in February 2025
Challenge Eu Interactive Map
Showcasing Collaboration Between Universities
