A new Presidency, new funding and a shared vision for the future of European research marked the three-day meeting of the ATHENA European University Alliance in Orléans. There, from 8 to 10 October 2026, the partners celebrated the approval of the new ATHENA-AHEAD project and handed over the Presidency from France to Germany. The Hellenic Mediterranean University (HMU) had a strong presence at the events.
HMU was represented by Professor Panagiotis Nektarios, Vice-Rector for Academic Affairs, Lifelong Learning and Student Welfare, and Assistant Professor Ioannis Daliakopoulos, Academic Head of the International and Public Relations Office.
The programme, which opened with an official welcome by the Mayor of Orléans, centred on keynote lectures and expert panels on European research collaborations and their funding. During the proceedings, the University of Orléans handed over the annual Presidency of ATHENA to the University of Siegen and its President, Professor Stefanie Reese, and conferred honorary doctorates on Ermanno Calzolaio, Peter Haring Bolívar and Petra Reinke.
The meetings took stock of the Alliance’s progress and set out the next steps. The focus was on several funded projects and joint study programmes currently under way, among them EMINENT and the European Degree label call, under which ATHENA-AHEAD is funded. The call aims to develop new double and joint degrees from existing MSc programmes and to embed European values in their design. HMU participates in two of these programmes: EMINENT, a joint MSc degree in Electronics focusing on Nanotechnology, to which HMU contributes its expertise in Optoelectronics, and INTERTWINED, in Digital Humanities. HMU is a full member and a founding institution of the EMINENT MSc. The funding HMU receives under ATHENA-AHEAD will mainly support student mobility within these joint and double degrees. The partners agreed that mobility must be strengthened even more so that the many short-term activities become more meaningful opportunities for students and staff. They also reaffirmed each partner’s commitment to taking part in joint educational programmes and discussed the prospects of the next Framework Programme, which is expected to provide additional funding for research and innovation.
Within the Alliance, HMU coordinates Communication and Dissemination, including through the ATHENA Talks series. Following the approval of ATHENA-AHEAD, the Alliance is awaiting bridge funding so that joint activities can continue without interruption.
The HMU delegation warmly thanks the University of Orléans for the flawless organisation, its hospitality and its excellent facilities. The visit strengthened the University’s ties with its ATHENA partners. It also reaffirmed HMU’s commitment to contributing actively to shaping a common European area of education and research.