The University of Orléans is part of the European University ATHENA, an alliance of nine higher education and research institutions.
The European Universities initiative is a flagship project of the European Union in the field of higher education and research, aiming to make Europe's universities more open internationally, more competitive but also more inclusive.
ATHENA is one of the European University pilot projects selected by the European Commission in 2020, bringing together the Universities of Orléans, Siegen (Germany), Maribor (Slovenia), the Polytechnic Institute of Porto (Portugal, coordinator), Vilnius Tech (Lithuania), the University of Salento (Italy), the Hellenic Mediterranean University (Greece), the University of Vigo (Spain), the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University (Poland) and the Igor Sikorsky Kyiv Polytechnic Institute (Ukraine).
Focusing on the digital transformation of societies, the European University ATHENA aims to create internationalized programs, give access to international mobility to the largest number of students, including those with disabilities, promote the emergence of joint research and development projects and open up new European perspectives not only to the more than 160,000 students and 15,000 staff of the alliance, but also to local communities and partners.
The project has received European funding of €5 million over three years, in addition to funds from the Programme d'investissements d'avenir (PIA 3) specifically intended for the deployment of ATHENA-related activities within the University of Orléans.
Contact info for the ATHENA project for the University of Orléans :
Leader and coordinator for ATHENA : Anne Friederike Delouis
Vice-president European University ATHENA : Ioan Todinca
Projet manager : Virginie Le Tallec
Project assistant : Laura Lopez