Brussels Office
The Brussels office of the Berlin University Alliance existed from September 1st, 2020 to December 31, 2022. The Liaison Officer and representative for the Alliance in Brussels was Ms. Angelika Wilhelm-Rechmann, PhD. The office followed up on some of the work of the previously existing Brussels offices at Freie Universität Berlin and Technische Universität Berlin. The BUA Brussels office worked together closely with the administrative personnel responsible for European research funding of the four partners of the BUA in Berlin.
During its existence, the Brussels office has introduced the Berlin University Alliance to the science and higher education community in Brussels, including the European institutions responsible for research and innovation. It highlighted the commitment of the Alliance partners to the goals and values of the EU. The Liaison Officer worked with a number of key partners, targeting the European institutions, especially the European Commission and the European Parliament. UnILioN (Universities Informal Liaison Offices Network), an association of 54 Brussels-based university offices, was a particularly strong cooperation partner, where Ms. Wilhelm-Rechmann served as co-chair of the “Horizon Europe & future policy” working group. Interaction with CESAER, the Brussels association of the “Universities of Science and Technology” was also intensive, the Liaison Officer was active in two working groups. “Science|Business – the network of universities, companies, and research and policy organisations”, probably the most prominent institution for communication on science and research in Brussels was another highly valued partner, and published several articles on the BUA. The Liaison Officer also worked with representatives of the German science-related community like KoWI or Helmholz-Gesellschaft.
She took part in over 100 working group meetings and represented the Alliance at various other Brussels interest groups meetings. This contributed to raising awareness of the Berlin University Alliance in Brussels, to the exchange of knowledge and also to political developments.
The office organised more than 10 public events, some in cooperation with the above-mentioned partners. In particular, two events are worth highlighting: the BUA opening conference “Which role for society in Europe's research future? Open science in research evaluation and assessment” on June 30, 2022 in Brussels and the event “The transformative effect of science” with the President of the ERC, Maria Leptin, and the BUA spokesperson Sabine Kunst as part of the Berlin Science Week 2021.
The Brussels office also carried out a wide range of activities in Berlin to strengthen the connection between the BUA, the Alliance partners and the European Union and to bolster the European identity of the Alliance. The Liaison Officer worked in close cooperation with the departments responsible for European research funding of the four partners of the Berlin University Alliance. She provided these administrators with first-hand information on novelties and developments regarding research funding and policy, sometimes on a daily basis. The administrative staff took part in a total of over 30 training courses, both in Berlin and in Brussels.
Over 750 researchers from the Alliance took part in the general training courses offered by the Brussels office, a further 750 participated in the ERC training courses organized by the administrative staff. In November 2022, after the pandemic had subsided, 60 enthusiastic young scientists visited Brussels for a 2-days-training event to explore the institutions and possibilities of European research funding (see the report below).
Within the Alliance's emerging coordination platform, Ms. Angelika Wilhelm-Rechmann gave several talks, that overall reached around 175 viewers. She initiated and supported various opportunities for cooperation between the BUA and the coordination platform's initiatives, e.g. the initiative on reform research assessment CoARA (Objective 3), the Bauhaus Initiative (Objective 2), or ESFRI (Objective 5) and others.
Ms. Angelika Wilhelm-Rechmann, PhD is now working for the BUA’s “Berlin Centre for Global Engagement” and its connection to the European Union, with a special focus on cooperation with Africa.
Find out more about the BUA's Brussels office
BUA makes her first public appearance in Brussels – Conference on stakeholders and reforming research assessment
On June 30, 2022 the Berlin University Alliance made its debut in Brussels as a young organisation with its four long-standing actors joining forces. The subject for this launch event brought together the idiosyncrasies of each of the partners with topical developments at the European Level, under the joint heading “Which role for society in Europe's research future? Open science in research evaluation and assessment”
Articles and video recordings of the event
The Brussels office of the Berlin University Alliance is offering a two-day training trip for postdoctoral and doctoral students
The Brussels office is organizing a two-day training trip for postdoctoral and doctoral students from the four partners of the Berlin University Alliance (BUA). On November 14 and 15, 2022, participants can expect two days full of lectures, discussions, practical exercises and information sessions, as well as a visit to the European Parliament. The training focuses on European research funding, European research policy and science communication. The number of places for participants is limited. Funding is provided by the BUA; each of the four partners will award 10 places.
Programme training trip to Brussels
Contact
Dr. Angelika Wilhelm-Rechmann, EU Policy and Liaison Officer
Tel. (Current): +49 151-15.07.41.63
Email: angelika.wilhelm@berlin-university-alliance.de
Dr. Silke Köster-Riemann, Head of Unit EU-Office Technische Universität Berlin
Project manager
Tel.: +49 30 / 314-21370 / +49 151 15074164
Email: silke.koester-riemann@tu-berlin.de