On October 21–22, a high-level international conference “Universities Shaping the Future: Building Resilient Societies through Innovation and Global Impact” was held in Kaunas, Lithuania. The event was jointly organized by Vytautas Magnus University (VMU) and the European University Alliance Transform4Europe (T4EU).
The conference was officially opened by the President of the Republic of Lithuania, Gitanas Nausėda, followed by a keynote address delivered by Sauli Niinistö, former President of Finland and currently Special Adviser to the President of the European Commission.
Irena Melua, Vice President for Internationalization at Caucasus University, participated in the conference representing Caucasus University.
As part of the Global Partner Forum, Ms. Melua signed the agreement officially confirming Caucasus University’s accession to the Transform4Europe Alliance. The Alliance Agreement was signed on behalf of the consortium by Prof. Ineta Dabašinskienė, Rector of Vytautas Magnus University.
Ms. Melua also took part in a panel discussion titled “From Local Roots to Global Reach: Higher Education and Societal Renewal”, alongside:
- Rūgilė Valutytė, Vice-Minister of Education, Science and Sport of Lithuania
- Zofia Sawicka, Deputy Director, National Agency for Academic Exchange, Poland
- Darius von Spreitzen, Head of Canberra Campus, Australian Catholic University
- Francisco Mendes-Palma, Director of the Transform4Europe Office, Catholic University of Portugal
In her remarks, Ms. Melua highlighted the pivotal role of Caucasus University in advancing international cooperation, shared insights on CU’s strategic priorities, and outlined how the university aims to contribute to the Transform4Europe network through joint academic programs, collaborative research projects, and institutional partnerships.
Throughout the event, Ms. Melua held meetings with alliance partners, participated in the Global Outreach Session, and exchanged ideas on strengthening transnational collaboration and building resilient higher education ecosystems.
Alongside Caucasus University, member universities of the Transform4Europe Alliance include:
- Saarland University, Germany
- University of Alicante, Spain
- Estonian Academy of Arts, Estonia
- University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland
- Sofia University “St. Kliment Ohridski”, Bulgaria
- University of Trieste, Italy
- Vytautas Magnus University, Lithuania
- Catholic University of Portugal, Portugal
- University of Primorska, Slovenia
- Jean Monnet University, France
- Mariupol State University, Ukraine (Associated Partner)
