Spending some time in Brussels is always an invaluable opportunity for any EU researcher. I first arrived at KU Leuven on January 6th, 2020, a little over a month since the new von der Leyen Commission took office. At the time, COVID19 was only news in China and Western mainstream media was preoccupied with issues such as the coming into effect of Brexit on January 31st and the potential implications of the Soleimani incident between the US and Iran. Those were the days.

Six months ago back in early January, my fellow UACES Officers and I posted the message below on our website addressing our concerns about the prospects of the UK not remaining part of the Erasmus+ programme post Brexit:

A few months ago, I was having a WhatsApp chat with my 3 best friends. They are all incredibly talented women – one is a partner in a law firm, another an award-winning science journalist and author, another a charity policy director. Intimidating or what? The conversation was about the organisations they’ve worked for and the value of moving between different companies. One of my friends said ‘[it’s] amazing how easily you can think your organisation’s way of doing something is the best or most productive until you experience different workplaces’.

Dear UACES colleague, I hope you and your friends and family are well during these troubling and uncertain times. It has been great to see that the UACES community has remained as vibrant and supportive as ever online and on Social Media as colleagues have adapted to the realities of teaching, researching and staying in […]

To respond to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, we at UACES wanted to bring our community together. And we went the same way everyone is going right now: online. The second virtual coffee meeting encouraged our community to talk about their mental health and how to look after it while working from home. Different perspectives were […]

To respond to the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, we at UACES wanted to bring our community together. And we went the same way everyone is going right now: online. We created virtual coffee meetings to offer our community a space in which everyone can exchange experiences and ideas relating to a topic. We kicked-off with online […]

Dear UACES colleague, This is my first column as Chair since the UK’s departure from the EU. I am sure for many of you, particularly those based in the UK, this was a day of reflection and contemplation. My sentiments on the day were of sadness as I considered what the UK’s exit meant to […]