Annex I
TEMPLATE: LETTER OF COMMITMENT

SELECTION OF LEADS FOR
EUTOPIA CONNECTED COMMUNITIES

EUTOPIA MORE WP3 EMPOWERING KNOWLEDGE

CALL DEADLINE: May 28th 2023

THE EUTOPIA CONNECTED COMMUNITIES: IN BRIEF

The Connected Communities (CC ‘s) are the building blocks of the EUTOPIA approach for empowering knowledge in the EUTOPIA MORE Erasmus+ European University Initiative (2022-2026). The CCs are inspired by the outcomes of the former Connected Learning Communities (CLC) and Connected Research Communities (CRC) resulting from the pilot phase of EUTOPIA (2019-2022). 

Today’s CC’s are integrated thematic networks where teachers, researchers, and students cooperate in cross-campus knowledge activities. They do not impose change but aim to strengthen existing good practices in challenge-based learning and research by creating interuniversity connectedness at a European scale.  
 
The CC’s are aligned with the EUTOPIA alliance vision on openness and aim to bridge the typical divides that still characterise academia:

•	Connecting academia and society: by focusing their knowledge activities on key challenges in society, and thereby involve stakeholders emanating from a wide range of activities in the business world, the public sector, and cultural organizations.
•	Teaching and Research: participants combine their experience in teaching and research for testing different formats of cross-campus cooperation; by doing so they create impact that goes beyond the ad hoc experience of staff and students involved.
•	Inclusion: the CCs are expected to open up their knowledge activities to a wide range of potential learners by using flexible and/or blended formats for cross-campus cooperation. 
 
Based on common criteria, the partner universities of EUTOPIA will identify nominees for acting as a lead in future Connected Communities. These leads are permanent members of the existing staff in one of the alliance universities, and are willing and motivated for reaching out to partners/colleagues working on similar topics in the other universities of the EUTOPIA alliance.   
 
During a so-called incubation period the lead and partners gradually move from sharing resources to implementation of connected cross-campus knowledge activities, thereby supported by the EUTOPIA central team. 

A Connected Community can result in a wide range of impacts such as: international exposure, mutual access to specialised data and infrastructure, synergy and complementarity for teaching, joint participation to calls for (inter) national funding schemes, potential for publication etc.
 
In their second year of incubation, colleagues involved in the partnership screen the connected activities they have been developing, and prioritize value added formats for staff and students. The community can then opt for a number of pathways leading to sustainability for their efforts, such as: integration in existing academic offerings, continued cooperation at joint degree level or in joint research programs intended to stimulate innovation in the higher education and research area. 

Ultimately successful Connected Community cooperation will be embedded in the institutional frame of a EUTOPIA College and Institute.

Letter to declare the willingness to be involved in EUTOPIA More and take the responsibility for leading a Connected Community

NAME of the proposed Connected Community 

A) Personal information:  
Candidate leads are permanent members of academic staff having responsibilities as well for teaching as for research and innovation.

a.	Name:
		
b.	University:
		
c.	Present teaching assignment (programs / courses / seminars):
		
d.	Present research activities as a promotor or project holder:

e.	For c) and d) please specify the course outlines and research topics you will focus on for connecting with partners in the EUTOPIA member universities. 

B ) Compatibility with criteria for openness

The Connected Communities are expected to respond to the criterium of openness that is characteristic for the vision of the EUTOPIA alliance. Therefore, the candidate leads are asked to explain how the teaching and research activities they plan to cooperate on with their EUTOPIA partners (see item A.e. above) can contribute to the following expectations.

a.	Connecting academia and society: please indicate the key societal challenges driving the learning and research activities you will be developing in the Connected Community. Will you involve extra academic stakeholders in the development of your community?
		
b.	Teaching and Research: how will teaching and research activities be combined? how will you involve your students (ba / ma /phd) in the connected knowledge activities. 
Applicants are asked to confirm their willingness to bridge the divide between education and research by offering a research-based learning workshop to the CC students with the support of the EUTOPIA central team.
		
c.	Inclusion: the connected communities are expected to open up their knowledge activities to a wide range of potential learners. For example, how do you intend to include students that cannot engage for long-term physical mobility and enable them to profit from an international experience?

 C . Cooperation with partners

Candidate leads are asked to support their commitment by reaching out to colleagues in at least 2 other EUTOPIA alliance member universities (European and/or Global partners). Please indicate the names of colleagues and their relevant details in the boxes below. These are colleagues that you have been in touch with, and that are interested in becoming a partner in the community. If there are more than 2 partners already, please feel free to expand the table to include all relevant names. 

Name (first, last)	University	 Position, Department 	Contact (email address)	

				

				

…

*Note that the local facilitator in your home university will be glad to facilitate these contacts by communicating with his/ her colleagues in the partner universities.
D. Deliverables 

The candidate lead is asked to list a limited number of outcomes which will result from the development of the cooperation with the colleagues in the partner universities. Outcomes can be related to impact/the value-added expected for the participants (e.g., staff, students, stakeholders in society) such as: international exposure, curricular development, mutual access to archives and infrastructure, joint participation to national and international calls and funding schemes, potential for publications, complementarity of skills etc.
 
Resulting connected activities can also help to identify the most suitable formats for international or cross-campus learning and research activities. Activities can involve staff, learners (Ba, Ma, PhD, LLL), and diverse external stakeholders in a range of formats such as: thematic project weeks, academic papers/publications, challenge-driven assignments, conferences, virtual simulations, debates, development of policy guidelines, co-writing of proposals (national and international), cooperation at European degree level etc.

Expected Outcomes of the Connected Community:

	

Date and signature