They say ‘do what makes you happy,’ so Eurodoc met in Brussels.
A little more than a month ago, Eurodoc had its first in-person board meeting for this operational year. From August 30–31, we met in Brussels and Brussels treated us kindly. As the seat of the EU, Brussels is sometimes referred to as the “capital of Europe”, and its significance as a center of international governance and business makes Brussels a global city.
The board meeting was preceded and followed by a workshop dedicated to an interactive introduction to the European higher education and research ecosystem, and to the possible ways of interacting with policymakers and impacting policies. To let you in on a secret: the ecosystem is vast and the potential ways and forms for Euorodoc to partake seemingly endless. The workshop was thus essential to gain a better understanding of and discuss and reflect on where Eurodoc is positioned within this vast ecosystem.
As part of the workshop, Eurodoc had the chance to meet with two people working at the European Parliament – specifically, with one key person from the European Parliamentary Research Service and one assistant of the minister, a member of the European Parliament – and gain valuable insights on how to best interact with politicians and political administration.
This was also a chance for the Eurodoc team to get to know each other. There is no better way to discuss, deliberate, and brainstorm than to meet in one place all day – from morning to night. Thereby, the Eurodoc team had a chance not only to have debates on the topics that cover the most crucial things for early career researchers in Europe, but also to have a genuine and sincere exchange of ideas, experiences, and reflections. In the face of a rapidly changing world, it is essential to have a real conversation about the conditions of further developing research and higher education, which should respond to these changes. It is essential to highlight that members of Eurodoc are guided primarily by their intrinsic motivation to make the world a better place to live for everyone. And that is why we get to work by supporting early career researchers acrossEurope!
Since returning from Brussels, the autumn semester has seriously started for Eurodoc. Over the coming weeks, we will have a meeting with the National Associations, and likewise the meetings of the working groups have kicked off (you can read more about the Working groups here). If you are interested in our work, you can always follow us on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and LinkedIn.
On behalf of the Eurodoc board and Secretariat
List of Authors
- Linnea Carlsson, 0000-0002-7123-3173
- Aleksandra Lewandowska, 0000-0002-7762-2890
List of Editors (Others)
- Pil Maria Saugmann, 0000-0002-3548-0134
- Hannah Schoch, 0000-0002-3987-4106
- Anna Pavelieva, 0000-0002-2306-1928