Open Agora: Empowering Transnational Collaboration
Fostering Cross-Border Partnerships and Institutional Transformation through Expert-Led Coaching and Mentoring Services
Conference
Format: Fifteen-Minute Discussion Tables
Topic: 7. Transnational Collaborations
Abstract
Open Agora is a digital platform designed to foster collaboration and knowledge-sharing among Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) by connecting members with experts in key areas of institutional transformation. The Agora serves as a space for HEI members to access specialised coaching and mentoring services, focusing on six major areas: capacity and resource sharing, researcher career development, collaboration with R&I ecosystem actors, open science, societal outreach, and gender equality. Open Agora supports sustainability at multiple levels by providing HEIs with access to expert guidance and resources that promote long-term resilience and innovation in the higher education sector.
The Open Agora platform is developed by aUPaEU (https://aupaeu.widening.eu/), and will include some acceleration services also offered by sister projects —CATALISI, Accelerate FutureHEI - funded under the HORIZON-WIDERA-2022-ERA-01-51 call for Acceleration Services. It will be freely accessible to users, with a special emphasis on widening countries. This ensures that institutions with limited resources can tap into essential expertise to support their transformation, particularly in areas like sustainability. Open Agora addresses current global challenges by offering HEIs a platform to explore and implement sustainable practices within their partnerships and institutional developments. Through the platform, institutions can collaborate with experts and peers to adopt sustainable strategies that foster long-term resilience and innovation in the higher education sector.
The platform enables users to search for experts—who can be either individuals or representatives of organisations—through filters such as expertise, geographical location, and areas of interest. This allows HEI members to contact these experts for collaboration and mentoring opportunities. In return, experts, whether representing their own skills or their organisations, can showcase their capabilities, manage interactions, and update their profiles to remain relevant within the platform’s ecosystem. The Agora also incorporates customer relationship management (CRM) tools to monitor interactions and feedback, offering a streamlined experience for both HEI members and experts.
The ultimate goal of Open Agora is to support a more inclusive and well-connected European research and innovation landscape, fostering growth and advancement across HEIs through this expert-driven platform.
Takeaway Messages (Learning Outcomes):
Participants will gain insights into how Open Agora fosters transnational collaboration and institutional transformation in higher education by connecting HEIs with experts for coaching and mentoring. They will understand how to leverage these services to address key areas such as sustainability, capacity sharing, and career development. The platform enhances access for under-resourced institutions, ensuring equitable participation in research and innovation. Attendees will discover how Open Agora supports sustainable practices and institutional growth while utilizing its digital tools for expert search, collaboration, and interaction tracking through integrated CRM features.