UNIVERSEH General Assembly at UNamur: a success for UNamur and prospects for closer collaboration

UNIVERSEH General Assemblies are held twice a year, on a rotating basis, on the campuses of the Alliance's partner universities. In November, the University of Namur had the pleasure of hosting one of the 2024 general assemblies.

The main aim of the General Meeting is to bring together all the partners and people involved in the project's realization in order to exchange views on the project's progress and difficulties, but also to build solid, supportive teams and encourage team spirit.

In addition to working meetings and thematic workshops, General Meeting participants had the opportunity to take part in several moments of collective exchange.

Two lectures in English were offered to participants and members of the academic community to delve deeper into spatial themes.

• "Space is a Cultural Construct: Outer Space and the Humanities in the Second Space Age", by Jens Temmen, Assistant Professor at Heinrich-Heine University Düsseldorf. The speaker was able to exchange views with André Füzfa, Professor and astrophysicist at the University of Namur, and with conference participants on the important role of the humanities in space exploration.
• "The formation of Venus' crustal plateaus: Was liquid water on the surface required?", by Max Collinet lecturer at the University of Namur. The speaker was able to exchange views with Eric Tschirhart, Professor at the University of Luxembourg, on the geology of the planet Venus.

Thanks to the University of Namur's partnership with the Théâtre de Namur, General Meeting participants enjoyed a whole evening in the theater's exceptional setting.

The evening's program included several enriching talks by project members.

Among others, participants heard from Annick Castiaux, Rector of the University of Namur, and Michael Toplis, President of the University of Toulouse, on the project's progress and the Alliance's challenges for the coming years.

The President of the UNIVERSEH Student Council, Ariana Sobhani, then took the floor to outline student initiatives carried out over the past year, but also, and above all, to present the strategies and challenges of student involvement in the project.

Finally, Pascal Maussion, coordinator of Beyond UNIVERSEH, the project on the research and innovation dimensions of UNIVERSEH, shared the results and lessons learned from this 3-year project, which came to a close at the end of summer 2024.

The evening was punctuated by musical interludes from the Orchestre Symphonique de Namur which, since 2015, has been recognized as the orchestra of the University of Namur.

Judith De Faux (Visual Garden), meanwhile, produced real-time visual translations of the presentations to illustrate the speakers' remarks.

Cultural activities were offered to introduce visitors to Namur and its heritage, thanks to a collaboration with the City of Namur. Students and members of the 7 universities were able to explore the heart of Namur's historic center on a guided tour. They wandered through the narrow streets of Namur, and were charmed by the city's exceptional architectural heritage.

The participants were also able to visit UNamur's Antoine Thomas Observatory and discover this wonderful and attractive teaching tool for future students.

The UNIVERSEH General Assembly at UNamur thus strengthened collaboration between the partners, opening up new prospects for the future.

The next rendezvous is set for Alliance members and stakeholders in Luleå, Sweden, in June 2025.