Pradales: “I see Euskacampus as a launching point to guide our commitment to the Atlantic Axis”

• The President of the Basque Government, or Lehendakari, Imanol Pradales participated in the opening event of EHU Euskampus Bordeaux Eguna 2024, which took place today at the University of Bordeaux

Lehendakari Imanol Pradales expressed his satisfaction with the fruits of the Euskacampus project which had its official opening today at the University of Bordeaux. This project is the result of a strategic alliance between the Universities of the Basque Country and Bordeaux, DIPC and Tecnalia which was founded some 10 years ago “with the goal of joining forces to respond to shared challenges. Thanks to this vision, excellent results have been achieved in education, research, connections with stakeholders and greater international profile and recognition,” he said.

Pradales reminded us that we are currently living through an historic time in which the Atlantic Arc is losing geopolitical influence in Europe. “The axis of influence in Europe is shifting to the East. We must reverse this trend and relaunch the Atlantic Arc to remain protagonists of our own future.”

In this regard, the Lehendakari underlined the important role played by universities. “The Universities have a dual mission: to collaborate and to socialize that collaboration. We know that advanced knowledge creation is a fundamental component of university activity. We know that to create this knowledge, work in a team is essential.”

Euskampus: effective initiative for dynamic, innovative projects

Nevertheless, Pradales is all too aware that, too often, in the case of public universities, inertia and regulation can be a burden on this potential. “Euskampus has proven an effective initiative for overcoming these limitations. It had provided flexibility and dynamism. It has also connected with groups from different disciplines and given a boost to dynamic, innovative academic projects with a high social impact.”

The Lehendakari also made a commitment to reinforcing this area “because in Europe’s industrial and economic rebirth, the most scientifically advanced regions will be hubs of connection, development and growth. We can’t afford to be left behind. I see Euskacampus as a launching point to guide our commitment to the Atlantic Axis”.