V Meeting of Rectors of the Universia

The Pandemic, a war and the galloping technological developments marked a great distance compared to the last meeting of Rectors, promoted by the SANTANDER group: five years have passed.

With this ballast, José Bragança de Miranda, Magnificent Rector of the Lusófona University, was called to form a community with the twenty-nine rectors and representatives of Portuguese institutions and with the approximately seven hundred rectors of European, American and Latin American universities .

The major training changes were discussed, pointing out the academic path towards lifelong training, the training models, which tend to be increasingly shorter and fixed with the demands of the markets, and the interconnection networks between the universities, to outline a strategy that makes society increasingly sustainable, as was the motto of this meeting promoted by the aforementioned banking group.

This great meeting, which took place on the 8th, 9th and 10th of May 2023, resulted in a pertinent strategic declaration, which is based on the following points:

• Strengthen the university's mission so that teaching, research and knowledge transfer integrate social, environmental and economic challenges, promoting the progress of society;
• Extend training for the different stages of adult life, expanding and making the educational formats of universities more flexible, taking into account the various training needs;
• Promote multidisciplinary knowledge, transversal skills and values that prepare students for the job market;
• Stimulate, among these students, innovative skills that increase employability and enable them to conceive and develop sustainable entrepreneurial initiatives;
• Integrating global and local challenges into universities' research agendas, increasing interdisciplinarity in research and promoting the transfer and dissemination of results for the benefit of society;
• Facilitate different forms of mobility for students and academics by enabling cultural exchange and enrichment, as well as open and inclusive education;
• Increase collaboration with other economic and social agents in teaching, research and transfer, creating greater value for society.