Apply! 7th ASEF Rectors’ Conference and Students’ Forum (ARC7) in Romania

Are you a student engaged in student life and managing student associations? Do you care about a better future for all? Apply to become a part of the ARC7 journey on sustainability and reform the way your institution thinks about the future! Watch out for the Students’ Forum Open Call to be launched in October 2018!

The 7th ASEF Rectors’ Conference and Student’s Forum (ARC7) is co-organised by the Asia-Europe Foundation (ASEF) and the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration (SNSPA), between 11-14 May 2019 in Bucharest, Romania. ARC7 will be held for the first time in conjunction with the 7th Asia-Europe Meeting of Ministers for Education (15-16 May 2019, Bucharest, Romania) and participants will have the chance to meet senior officials and education ministers of 51 Asian and European ASEM partner countries.

The 17 Sustainable Development Goals are a universal call for action to shape a better future for all. Universities have a key responsibility to tackle complex societal challenges of our times, manifested in these Goals. We invite Asian and European higher education leaders to share how their organizations contribute to policy development and take action towards the Agenda 2030 and to get inspiration from their peers’ strategies.

ARC7 offers a creative space for knowledge exchange on implementing a whole-of-institution approach on sustainable development, teaching the next generation of leaders and thinkers to act sustainably and ethically; conducting research that leads to positive change in our world; and engaging communities outside the walls of academia. The conference also explores how the university and student leaders from Asia and Europe can work together towards a “future we want”.

Established in 2008, the ASEF Rectors’ Conference and Students’ Forum (ARC) is a multi-stakeholder dialogue platform for university leaders, policymakers and student leaders to discuss higher education issues and shape the education landscape in Asia and Europe.

ARC is a biennial conference, with locations alternating between Asia and Europe. The conference aims to address 3 key areas in higher education: 1) quality and inclusive education, 2) university governance, and 3) university-business partnerships. To date, over 650 university leaders representing 226 universities from 51 Asian and European countries have participated in the conferences.

ARC is recognized as the Official Dialogue Partner of the ASEM Education Ministers Meeting (ASEM ME). Its results, including policy recommendations and research, feed into the preparation of ASEM MEs, which ARC rectors and student representatives are invited to attend. ARC results also contribute to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG).