Thank you for being you

So much has changed since our last ELIA newsletter. As our members support those affected by the war in Ukraine, ELIA Executive Director, Maria Hansen catches up with colleagues in the UK, and looks forward to meeting in person at much needed ELIA gatherings in Bratislava and Tallinn in the coming months.

The last time I wrote in this space, there was no war in Europe. It is inconceivable to me that now there is. We have been shocked and horrified by the attack of Russian forces on Ukraine. I am assuming that all of you are in some way affected – you may have Ukrainian and Russian students in your institutions, but also perhaps teachers and researchers, and other staff. You may be hosting a Ukrainian family in your home. You will, no doubt, have relationships with Ukrainian and Russian colleague institutions. Where collaboration across Europe had flourished from East to West, everything now has come to a grinding halt as we collectively hold our breath.

I have been deeply moved by the actions taken by our member institutions, taking in students and colleagues with their families and collaborating with each other to find solutions. At ELIA, we lobbied successfully, at the request of many, for the opening of the Erasmus+ programme for Ukraine, and we stand ready to support the community in any way we can. Read more on this topic in the newsletter section on Ukraine. Thank you for everything you do. In the meantime, the need to meet physically has become greater than ever.

Now that the pandemic appears to be on its return in Europe, travel seems feasible again. We invite you to consider our upcoming PIE meeting of international officers in Bratislava in May and our Leadership Symposium in Tallinn in June. These first meetings ‘back’ are important moments of coming together, as I found out this past week while traveling around the United Kingdom to attend a conference and meet many of ELIA’s members there. I had not seen them ‘live’ since the pandemic – which also means: since Brexit became a fact. That entire development might feel a long time ago somehow, but it is still a new reality for many. A huge thank you to all members who welcomed me so warmly in Newcastle at the CHEAD conference, as well as in Manchester, York, Nottingham, London, and Kingston.

The ‘E’ in ELIA refers to Europe as defined by the Council of Europe and this includes, of course, our amazing colleagues in the United Kingdom with whom so many of you have collaborated for decades. I was grateful to find that our UK members see ELIA as a welcoming portal to collaboration with their former EU colleagues, the rest of Europe and the world. And so, with that energy in the back of my mind, I invite you to join us in Bratislava and Tallinn. Join us to continue the exchange of ideas, knowledge, inspiration, and inquiry – and to support each other at this moment in history.

Photo: left to right - Mata Ayoub, ELIA EDI Working Group member and School Director of Learning and Teaching, Kingston School of Art; Maria Hansen, ELIA Executive Director; and Alistair Payne, Head of the School of Art at Kingston School of Art.

Read ELIA March 2022 Newsletter for more information on current news and events.