UNFU accepted into the "COPERNICUS Alliance
The Ukrainian National Forestry University (UNFU) has been accepted into the Copernicus Alliance (European Network on Higher Education for Sustainable Development) during a visit to the Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development (HNEE). Prof Dr Zagorskyi Volodymyr Stepanovych, Rector of UNFU, signed the membership agreement and accepted the membership certificate from the hands of Markus Koenecke, Chancellor of HNEE.
Prof Dr Zagorskyi Volodymyr Stepanovych, Rector of UNFU, signs the membership agreement. From left: Markus Koenecke, Chancellor of HNEE, Prof. Dr Zagorskyi Volodymyr Stepanovych, Rector of UNFU, in the background Prof. Dr Lavnyy Vasyl Volodymyrovych, Vice-Rector Research of UNFU and on the right Prof. Dr Danchuk Oleh Tadeyovych, Director of the Stradch Educational and Production Forest Enterprise of the UNFU
From left: Markus Koenecke, Chancellor of HNEE, Prof. Dr Zagorskyi Volodymyr Stepanovych, Rector of UNFU, in the background Prof. Dr Lavnyy Vasyl Volodymyrovych, Vice-Rector Research of UNFU
From left: Prof. Dr Danchuk Oleh Tadeyovych, Director of the Stradch Educational and Production Forest Enterprise of the UNFU, Prof. Dr Lavnyy Vasyl Volodymyrovych, Vice-Rector Research of the UNFU, Prof. Dr Zagorskyi Volodymyr Stepanovych, Rector of the UNFU, Markus Koenecke, Chancellor of HNEE, Prof. Dr Alexander Pfriem, Vice-President Research and Transfer of HNEE
Rector Zagorskyi Volodymyr Stepanovych, the Vice President of Research at UNFU, Prof. Dr Lavnyy Vasyl Volodymyrovych and Prof. Dr Danchuk Oleh Tadeyovych, Director of the Stradch Educational and Production Forest Enterprise at UNFU, expressed their interest in close cooperation, particularly on joint European projects.
They also emphasised the consequences and effects of the war of aggression on their university. Students, teachers and professors who died in the war are missing as colleagues and friends at the university and also represent a serious loss of expertise for the future of the country.
The initiative to include UNFU in the COPERNICUS Alliance goes back to the President of HNEE, Prof Dr Matthias Barth. Matthias Barth was involved in the Alliance as Co-President and is now a member of the Advisory Board of the international university network.
The COPERNICUS Alliance aims to support people and institutions in the higher education sector and work with them to master the challenges of the future. In doing so, the COPERNICUS Alliance supports the development of knowledge and skills required for sustainable development.
One of the Alliance's special activities is the Higher Education Summit. The conference focusses on transformative learning approaches and sustainable university development. In addition to other activities, the COPERNICUS Alliance promotes Erasmus+ projects such as participation in EU-funded projects that support the individual contributions of university staff to the Sustainable Development Goals.
At HNEE, scientists are working on solutions for a sustainable future. For two decades, they have been working together in research and teaching in several collaborations with Ukrainian universities, biosphere reserves and scientific institutions such as the Carpathian Biosphere Reserve and the National University of Forestry and Wood Technology of Ukraine, Ukrainian National Forestry University. As part of this cooperation, several generations of HNEE students have taken part in field trips to Ukraine to date. Various projects funded by the ERASMUS+ and DAAD programmes underpin the partnership.