The First DecadeLERU - The League of European Research Universities

The First DecadeLERU - The League of European Research Universities

Joost van Asten

May 2012

5LERU The first decade

to facilitate the exchange of students. Over time, other net-

works were founded for different purposes. At the European

level, there are now some twenty-five university networks in

existence. Some networks are limited to one country, such as

the Russell Group in the UK, or to a specific subject, such

as the European Society for Engineering Education. Next to

the European University Association which unites over 800

universities, the Coimbra Group, the Compostela Group,

the Network of Universities from the Capitals of Europe

(UNiCA), the Santander Group and the Utrecht Network

are among the larger federations.

Outside Europe, university networks exist as well. Some,

for instance the Association of Commonwealth Universi-

ties or the Agence universitaire de la Francophonie, operate

worldwide. Others are limited to a specific region or (sub)

continent, such as the Associations of African, Arab or indian

Universities. Networks with goals similar to those of LERU

include C9 (PRC), the Group of Eight (Australia), and the

Association of Pacific Rim Universities.

in North America, a group of doctorate-granting institutions

founded the Association of American Universities (AAU)

already in 1900, long before anything similar existed in any

other part of the world. They had a good reason for joining

forces: unlike in Europe, HE in America was decentralised

and hardly regulated. institutions of dubious quality could

call themselves ‘universities’ and award doctoral degrees, so-

metimes without even requiring candidates to show up on

campus. This was obviously hurting the reputations of the

more demanding universities, so it was important for the lat-

ter to have some quality mark. Over time, the Association

grew from its 14 founding institutions to its present size of 59

US and 2 Canadian member universities.

The League of European Research Universities (LERU) is an

association of leading European research-intensive universi-

ties that share the values of high-quality teaching within an

environment of internationally competitive research. Foun-

ded in 2002, LERU advocates education through an aware-

ness of the frontiers of human understanding; the creation

of new knowledge through basic research, which is the ul-

timate source of innovation in society; and the promotion of

research across a broad front in partnership with industry and

society at large. This booklet, which gives a short overview of

LERU’s first decade and where it currently stands, is publis-

hed at the occasion of LERU’s 10th anniversary celebration in

Barcelona on 9-10 May 2012.

University networks

University networks are a relatively young phenomenon in

Europe. Academics from various universities have, of course,

always collaborated, but there were no institutional bonds

between them. This should not come as a surprise, because

until some 40 years ago most universities hardly existed as in-

stitutions: individual professors -and sometimes the faculties

they formed- were dominant, the authority of the Rector was

generally limited. But the role of universities gradually chan-

ged, from learned communities of staff and students to insti-

tutions of higher education (HEis). This change called for a

different form of university governance, with more power to

the Rector and his board. Over the years, universities became

more centrally led institutions, and these institutions sought

collaboration with others to attain certain goals.

One of these goals was student mobility; when the then Eu-

ropean Economic Community launched the Erasmus Pro-

gramme in 1987, universities began entering into agreements

The First Decade

FoUnding MeMbers oF LerU (2002)

University of Cambridge

University of Edinburgh

Université de Genève

Universität Heidelberg

Helsingin yliopisto (University of Helsinki)

Karolinska Institutet (Stockholm) (until 31-3-2011)

Universiteit Leiden

KU Leuven

Università degli Studi di Milano

Ludwig-Maximilians Universität München

University of Oxford

Université Louis Pasteur Strasbourg (since 1-1-2009: Université de Strasbourg)

6 2002 - 2012

7LERU The first decade

that time favoured the physical and life sciences and enginee-

ring, but also believed that in universities which were strong

in this area, the humanities and social sciences would be of a

high standard as well.

At the Leuven meeting in February 2002, it was decided in

principle to establish an organisation whose aim would be

to advocate the interests of fundamental research and of re-

search-intensive universities, and to stimulate mutual coope-

ration, e.g. by exchanging best practices. The presence at the

meeting of Mr Philippe Busquin, then EU Commissioner for

Research, laid the foundation for subsequent fruitful contacts

with the European Commission.

After some discussion, the participants at the Leuven meeting

adopted the name ‘League of European Research Universi-

ties’2. it was decided that the organisational structure should

be as simple as possible, with a prominent role for the Rec-

tors. The League was to appoint a Secretary-General and to

formulate a mission statement. From the beginning, it was

emphasised that the League was not only defending the in-

terests of its members, but of the other European universities

and their role in teaching and fundamental research as well.

On a purely voluntary basis, members wanted to harmonise

doctoral and postdoctoral programmes, starting with infor-

mation exchange.

How it started

On 22-24 April 2001, the AAU celebrated its 100th annivers-

ary in Washington, DC. A group of Rectors1 of leading Eu-

ropean universities were invited to attend. At this centennial

meeting, the idea to create a similar group in Europe, i.e. a

group of top-level universities, was informally discussed. its

primary aim, it was felt, should be advocating the interests of

fundamental research, which were believed to be threatened

by budget cuts and governments’ utilitarian views. At that

time, the Medical Deans of the universities of Cambridge,

Leiden, Leuven and Oxford and Karolinska institutet were

already exploring the options of bringing together top-notch

medical research and teaching facilities. This group had com-

missioned a bibliometric analysis to gauge the performance of

about forty European universities in various fields.

After the AAU centennial meeting, the Rectors of the said

universities met in Stockholm on 25 June 2001 and again in

London on 13 September of that year to elaborate the ideas

for a new network. informal visits were paid to the universi-

ties of Helsinki, Edinburgh and the Université Louis Pasteur

in Strasbourg. Some other institutions were addressed in wri-

ting and finally, on 13 and 14 February 2002, a meeting was

held in Leuven, attended by the universities that would be

the founding members of LERU and that had been selected

mainly on the basis of the results of the bibliometric analysis

mentioned above. At that time, it was decided that political or

geographical considerations should not play a role in the se-

lection of the group’s members, just quality. While it was ob-

vious from the onset that the European Commission was to

be an important target for lobbying, it was decided to include

the Université de Genève, although Switzerland was –and is–

not an EU member. The initiators realised that bibliometry at

1. in LERU circles, it is customary to refer to all university leaders as ‘Rectors’, although in fact they may have the title of Vice-Chancellor,

President, Principal etc.

2. Since it was adopted as the working language of the group, its name was defined in English only. in French speaking countries, it is some-

times referred to as ‘Ligue des universités européennes de recherche’.

8 2002 - 2012

André Oosterlinck

Rectors’ Assembly, Leiden, July 2002

Colin Lucas Douwe Breimer

9LERU The first decade

estabLisHing tHe organisation

On July 5th of that same year 2002, the Rectors met again

in Leiden. They adopted a mission statement, which has not

changed since, and signed a Letter of intent. Although it was

felt that strategy development would strictly remain a mat-

ter of the Rectors’ Assembly (RA), it was deemed necessary

to install a Coordinating Group (CG) or Executive Commit-

tee, consisting of a President and two Vice-Presidents, that

would be authorised to take decisions in urgent matters and

to determine the tactics ‘in tune’ with the RA. The CG would

also supervise the Secretary-General (SG), who would have a

high-standing position and would be driving the contact with

‘Brussels’. Since LERU was to employ people and to receive

and disperse money, it should have legal personality. The

KU Leuven generously offered to host the organisation, and

it was therefore decided that LERU would be shaped as a not-

for-profit foundation according to Belgian law. LERU is very

Letter of Intent

grateful to the KU Leuven for providing housing and other

support.

Awaiting a more permanent structure, the Vice-Chancellor

of the University of Oxford, (now Sir) Colin Lucas, and the

Rectors of the universities of Leiden and Leuven, Douwe

Breimer and André Oosterlinck, agreed to sit on the first

Coordinating Group of the League. To preserve its indepen-

dence, LERU did not seek financial support from the Euro-

pean Commission. This implied that a substantial contribu-

tion from the members would be needed to cover the salaries

and operations of the SG and a small staff; a fee of €20,000 per

year was agreed. To allow the organisation to develop on a

stable basis, it was agreed that LERU would not invite others

to become members for a period of at least two years.

10 2002 - 2012

LerU becoMes active

in the period 2002-2003 the organisation began to take con-

crete shape. The presidents of the AAU members meet twice

a year, and a similar rule was adopted for LERU. in fact, in

2002 the Rectors gathered three times: after the meetings in

Leuven and Leiden, they came together in Milan in Novem-

ber to discuss the ways LERU was going to pursue its aims.

By that time, much had happened already. The Coordinating

Group had met twice in search for a Secretary-General and

to draft the budget. Furthermore, two very successful mee-

tings with Commissioner Busquin had taken place. Last but

not least LERU had published its first position paper, The

European Higher Education and Research Areas and the Role

of Research-Intensive Universities, written by Geoffrey Boul-

ton, Vice-Principal of the University of Edinburgh, with the

support of Colin Lucas.

Meanwhile, Articles of Association had been drafted to es-

tablish LERU formally as a not-for-profit organisation. The

Coordinating Group then formally became the Board of Di-

rectors. A full list of the past and present Directors is to be

found on page 15.

A very important meeting took place on 24 and 25 May 2003

in Helsinki. On this occasion, the Articles of Association

were signed officially by all authorised representatives of the

member universities. With their publication in the Belgian

Official Gazette (Het Belgisch Staatsblad) on 10 July 2003,

LERU came into legal existence as a not-for-profit associati-

on under Belgian law. in Helsinki, the Rectors also appointed

LERU’s first Secretary-General, professor Herman Vanden

Berghe, for a period of a year and a half. One of the members

of Commissioner Busquin’s Cabinet, Kurt Vandenberghe,

attended part of the Assembly to discuss the relationship

between LERU and the European Commission.

The biannual Rectors’ Assemblies were and are the most im-

portant events in LERU’s calendar. At these meetings, topical

issues are discussed extensively and decisions are made about

the League’s strategy. Next to this formal part, however, there is

always plenty of opportunity for informal interactions. Many a

friendship between Rectors arose from these meetings, leading

to contacts on other occasions as well. As one of the results,

Herman Vanden Berghe Rectors’ Assembly, Cambridge, November 2008

11LERU The first decade

LerU oFFice

The increasing activities of LERU made it necessary to ex-

pand the Office. As of 1 October 2003, Joost van Asten, an

employee of Leiden University who from the onset had been

closely involved in the establishment of the organisation,

was seconded to LERU for two days per week as Managing

Director. On 1 February 2004, Katrien Maes took up a full-

time position as Executive Director at the Office, which then

moved from its location in the KU Leuven Rectorate in the

Naamsestraat to the St Jan Berchmanscollege in the Parijs-

straat. in 2004 the KU Leuven Research Coordination Office,

which acted as the administrative home for the Office and its

employees, moved from the Rectorate in the Krakenstraat to

House Bethlehem in the Schapenstraat. in 2005 LERU Office

rejoined the Research Coordination Office in House Bethle-

hem, which both still call home in 2012.

To relieve the Rectors of maintaining frequent contacts with

the Office for day-to-day matters, a network of Senior Of-

ficers was set up. These Officers, who were meant to be the

primary contact point between the Office and their univer-

sity, had their first meeting on 4 April 2004 in Leuven. Since

then, this group has played a pivotal role in the development

of LERU.

active networks of leading figures in the member universities

are now discussing all kinds of issues universities are confron-

ted with. These friendly ties are at the basis of LERU’s success.

Since 2004, the Rectors’ Assemblies were held in May and in

November or December of each year. At first, the dates were

set by mutual agreement, but since this was somewhat im-

practical, a schedule was agreed in Munich in May 2006 which

set the dates for the future meetings at, as a rule, the third

weekend in May and in November. Since it was otherwise dif-

ficult to accommodate the Rectors’ diaries, the meetings were

held on Saturday and Sunday until November 2010, when the

dates were moved to Fridays and Saturdays.

Meeting of the Senior Officers’ Network, Leuven,

October 2006Rectors’ Assembly, Lund, May 2008

12 2002 - 2012

expanding LerU

As the contacts with the European Commission and other go-

vernmental bodies intensified, it became evident that LERU

was too small to be considered truly representative. The or-

ganisation therefore wanted to invite new members, thus also

increasing its human and financial resources. The Membership

Committee, which had already formulated criteria for mem-

bership, set out to identify suitable candidates, using all avai-

lable information including the opinion of Rectors and Vice-

Rectors of the members. After ample discussion, the Rectors

agreed to invite a number of carefully selected institutions to

join LERU, and on 1 January 2006 LERU grew from 12 to 20

members.

Although LERU had made clear that membership could be

by invitation only, at regular intervals universities applied or

made enquiries about the possibility to become members. The

Rectors were reluctant to consider further expansion of the

group, for fear it might become less effective or would com-

promise its reputation of being a body of top-quality institu-

tions. it was agreed, however, that the network would benefit

from some diversification, as it consisted almost exclusively

of traditional comprehensive universities with a geographi-

cal bias towards North-West Europe. Finally, it was decided

to invite two high-ranking institutions, imperial College

LERU Office gradually grew with the level of LERU’s activi-

ties. in 2005, Annelies Leysen joined Katrien and Joost, partly

to support the LERU Kids’ University project. Els Volders

succeeded her for a few months in 2006. in 2007, Laura Keus-

termans (Policy Officer) took up a full-time position in the

Office. To assist the Policy Officers with their administrative

duties, Annick Wierinckx was appointed in 2008; she left the

Office a year later. Finally Bart Valkenaers (Communications

and Marketing Officer) and Veerle Van Kerckhove (Adminis-

trative Coordinator) joined the Office in 2009.

eMpLoyee FroM to

Joost van Asten beginning December 2010

Katrien Maes February 2004 present

Annelies Leysen August 2005 February 2006

Els Volders May 2006 October 2006

Laura Keustermans January 2007 present

Annick Wierinckx May 2008 April 2009

Bart Valkenaers May 2009 present

Veerle Van Kerckhove September 2009 present

Joost van Asten Katrien Maes LERU Office Staff 2010

13LERU The first decade

London to cover the technological area, and the Universitat

de Barcelona from the iberian Peninsula. Both accepted and

took up membership in January 2010. Much to everyone’s re-

gret Karolinska institutet, one of the founding members, de-

cided to leave the group in March 2011, which resulted in the

current membership of 21.

LERU selected its members primarily from the group of

comprehensive, research-intensive universities; top-quality

but more specialised institutions, however, were invited if it

was felt that their membership could add strategic value to the

organisation. LERU members are demonstrably excellent in

what they do, and they are also in a position to contribute to

the strategic goals of LERU, e.g. because they play a pivotal

role in some sub-type of institutions, because they are parti-

cularly influential in their own country, etc.

Future candidates for membership should be of sufficient size

Joined on 1 JanUary 2006

Universiteit van Amsterdam

Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

University College London

Lunds universitet

Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris

Université Paris-Sud 11

Universiteit Utrecht

Universität Zürich

Joined on 1 JanUary 2010

Universitat de Barcelona

Imperial College London

and produce a substantial research output. The research base

should be large enough to allow the university to respond

flexibly to changing research priorities, to provide research-

rich environments essential for research-informed teaching

and to cater for the needs of top-level students, in particular

master’s and PhD students. The research output should cover

several disciplines, and the base should be sufficiently broad

to allow cross-fertilisation among various research areas.

From the beginning, bibliometric analyses have played an im-

portant role in identifying potential members and partners of

LERU. Much of this work was done by the Centre for Sci-

ence and Technology Studies (CWTS) at Leiden University.

in preparation for the latest expansion, CWTS was commis-

sioned to perform a comparative analysis of 40 institutions in

Europe and the US, including the LERU members. LERU

intends to evaluate periodically whether its membership is

still in agreement with its mission and status.

14 2002 - 2012

Making it work

From the beginning, committees and working parties were

formed to cover a specific area or to tackle particular issues.

These included the Senior Officers’ Network, the Research

Working Group (later to become the Research Policy Com-

mittee), the Technology Transfer Officers, a working group

on doctoral studies and research career development, the

Deans of Medicine, the Membership Committee, the Social

and Behavioural Sciences Community, etc. Some of these

groups operated rather independently, some relied heavily on

the support of LERU Office. All of them had their own struc-

ture and methods of working.

The second Secretary-General, David Livesey, who took of-

fice in May 2005, set out to create a more transparent and uni-

form structure of the various groups within LERU. Partially

based on structures already existing in some of the groups,

he introduced ‘communities’ with a common model, self-

governing groups that in principle set their own agendas and

organise activities themselves. As a rule, a community has a

steering group of three or four people, who take the lead in

activity or policy development for the community. LERU

Office supports the communities in varying degrees, for

example by assisting in the organisation of meetings and by

giving policy advice especially with regard to European af-

fairs. Often, the Secretary-General or one of LERU’s Policy

Officers attends the meetings of the communities, to inform,

advise and ensure proper linkage to activities of other groups

or to LERU’s advocacy activities in Brussels.

By introducing this model as a standard and expanding the num-

ber of communities, the Secretary-General responded to a re-

commendation made in the Reichert report to involve a wider

group of people in LERU’s activities. Because in the beginning

LERU’s main objective was lobbying, few people within the

member universities were familiar with the organisation; only

the Rectors and small groups around them were active in the

network. Gradually, it became apparent that LERU couldn’t

afford to rely on the contributions of the Rectors alone; it nee-

ded to mobilise the support of more people within the network.

evaLUation

After the first five years, the Rectors wanted an independent

judgment about LERU’s performance. Were the achievements

indeed worth the efforts put in by them and their colleagues?

it was decided to ask Reichert Consulting, a bureau speciali-

sing in higher education policy and strategy that had worked

for the European Commission, the European University As-

sociation, several national governments and many universities,

to perform an assessment. Reichert Consulting produced a re-

port on LERU’s achievements that was presented at the RA

in Edinburgh in November 2007, together with a number of

recommendations. The Rectors were pleased with the report’s

conclusion, namely that LERU had performed well. The

Rectors furthermore decided that a limited expansion of the

network seemed desirable, and asked the Membership Com-

mittee to rethink the criteria for membership and to come up

with candidates, which resulted in inviting two universities to

join the League in 2009 (see page 12-13). LERU was to aim

at enhancing collaboration and strengthening ties between

the members, next to its lobbying activities. Moreover, an at-

tempt should be made to involve a wider community within

the member institutions than just the Rectors and a few col-

leagues, in order to strengthen LERU’s basis. The next section

of this paper describes how LERU negotiated this issue.

Kurt DeketelaereDavid Livesey

15LERU The first decade

This led to the foundation of communities of the Directors of

Communication (2007), the Vice-Rectors for Learning and Tea-

ching and the Vice-Rectors for Research (2008), the European

Research Project Managers and the Heads of Libraries (2009).

At the initiative of the third Secretary-General Kurt Deketelaere,

who took office in July 2009, LERU started to form expert groups

to combine and exploit the expertise available in the member uni-

versities in certain fields and to contribute to topical discussions

related to the EU agenda. Examples are the Expert Groups on

Biodiversity, on Social Security, and on Human Rights. LERU

has also a number of active working groups dealing with alumni

relations, student mobility, charitable funding, gender, humanities

and e-learning.

While LERU’s core activities have been carried out as detailed

above, occasionally there have been collaborative initiatives,

usually proposed by one and joined by many or all member

MeMbers oF tHe board oF directors

Colin Lucas (Oxford) (chair) July 2003 May 2004

André Oosterlinck (Leuven) July 2003 May 2005

Douwe Breimer (Leiden) July 2003 February 2007

Kari Raivio (Helsinki) (chair) May 2004 May 2008

John Hood (Oxford) May 2005 October 2009

Hans Weder (Zurich) February 2007 August 2008

Bernd Huber (LMU) (chair) May 2008 present

Hans Stoof (Utrecht) August 2008 March 2011

Malcolm Grant (UCL) October 2009 present

Alain Beretz (Strasbourg) March 2011 present

secretary-generaLs

Herman Vanden Berghe May 2003 May 2005

David Livesey May 2005 July 2009

Kurt Deketelaere July 2009 present

universities, such as the Bright conferences, LERU Kids’ Uni-

versity, the eLERU/EUREA projects and the Doctoral Sum-

mer Schools. These are described in the following paragraphs.

16 2002 - 2012

brigHt conFerences

in 2004, a group of Leiden students organised a conference

for 20 advanced students from each of LERU’s members. The

theme of the so-called Bright conference was ‘Challenges for

Europe’s future’, with a focus on European identity, Euro-

pean innovation and the Union on the world Stage. The con-

ference was addressed by some key public figures and was

concluded with a dinner which was attended by the LERU

Rectors, officials and invited guests from industry.

The originators had at first wanted the conference to be a year-

ly event in Leiden. LERU, however, preferred to let it rotate

through all member universities. in the following years, the

conference was held in Leuven (“The Credibility of the Eu-

ropean Project”), Heidelberg (“Why Europe?”), Stockholm

(“The Ageing Europe and the Ageing European”), Helsinki

(“Europe as a Knowledge Society”), Milan (“Food and Water:

an increasing Challenge”), Munich (“University Teaching in

Europe: Challenges and Perspectives”) and Lund (“Equal and

Sustainable infrastructures”). As this made it difficult for the

Leiden initiators to remain involved in the event, a different

model was adopted that gave the hosting university the lead in

organising the conference with support from the Office. The

ninth edition of the Bright conference is scheduled to take

place at the Universiteit van Amsterdam in August 2012.

LerU kids’ University

in 2004, the Universität Heidelberg applied for a European

Commission grant to organise a LERU Kids’ University wit-

hin the framework of the European Science Week 2005. The

aim was to promote public understanding of research and sci-

ence. The target group was made up of children aged 10 to 12

years and (indirectly) their parents. Children at each of the

ten participating member universities in eight EU countries

and Switzerland experienced exciting experiments and lectu-

res on physics (in its broadest sense) during the Science Week,

demonstrating the impact of science on everyday life. Female

tHe LerU cHairs

The Rectors’ Assembly is the highest authority in LERU, but

from the beginning, the Board of Directors, and in particular

its Chair, played an important role. The Directors are respon-

sible for the budget and the accounts, they oversee the prep-

aration of the RAs and set the meetings’ agendas, and they

recruit the Secretary-General. The Chair represents LERU at

important occasions, and contributes to its visibility by deliv-

ering speeches, giving interviews, etc.

Until now, LERU had three Chairpersons of the BoD. Co-

lin Lucas contributed greatly to the transformation of a good

idea –establishing an association of top-level universities in

Europe- into a functioning organisation. Kari Raivio under-

took successfully the difficult task of substantially expanding

LERU’s membership without losing any of its coherence and

effectiveness. Bernd Huber, who like the others was involved

in LERU from the beginning, is now consolidating LERU’s

position as an authoritative discussion partner in its field.

Bernd Huber Kari Raivio

17LERU The first decade

LERU Kids’ University

eight member universities participating, ran for two years and

aimed at jointly creating e-learning modules for students. The

goal was to construct extensive interoperable and multilingual

European multimedia databases of lectures in European uni-

versities in digital format (text and video) and other digital

university productions. The digital content compiled in this

way was to be distributed through an electronic publisher and

a European web-based television channel.

By and large, the results of the EUREA project were as in-

tended. A test repository had been set up, including materials

from several partners. To make this possible, agreements had

been reached on standards and procedures. A very useful re-

port had been written on the issues involved in the areas of co-

pyright and iP, and a realistic business model was developed.

Much effort was spent on the eLERU project, and valuable

experience was gained within the participating institutions.

The gap between the strategic goals and interests of the mem-

ber universities and the more operational goals and interests

of the teachers, however, made it difficult to reach the pro-

ject’s goals completely.

After a latent period, the eLERU network got a new impulse

in 2011, bringing together interested LERU universities for

mutual learning and exchange of good practice on the latest

e-learning technologies. To provide a suitable organisational

context, the group was brought under the aegis of the Com-

munity of Vice-Rectors of Teaching and Learning.

scientists were actively present as key members of the project

to show that the natural sciences are, of course, equally acces-

sible for women. in collaboration with media partners these

messages were also communicated to a broad public audience.

The project was concluded by a common event held in the

Museum for Natural Sciences in Brussels on 23 November

2005. The aim was to demonstrate in what ways science and

society could interact. in 2006, eight member universities par-

ticipated in a similar project on a somewhat smaller scale.

eLerU and eUrea

in 2004, the Université Louis Pasteur Strasbourg submitted

two proposals for projects in the area of iCT and teaching

within the framework of the European e-Content and e-Lear-

ning programmes to the European Commission. Both propo-

sals were accepted, and at the beginning of 2005 the projects

EUREA and eLERU started.

The EUREA project, in which nine member universities par-

ticipated, was a feasibility study to clarify the prerequisites

for a successful design of a repository of digital learning ob-

jects, varying from items like pictures to (parts) of courses.

Teachers were to be encouraged to share high-quality learning

materials with others.

The eLERU project, which started on 1 February 2005 with

18 2002 - 2012

coMMUnication

At an early stage already, it became obvious that LERU nee-

ded to be present on the internet. The first website develo-

ped in 2003 was replaced by a more comprehensive one in the

spring of 2005. This site in turn was completely redesigned

in 2010.

Vital for communication within the network is the Members’

Only area, which contains agendas, presentations, reports

and briefing documents related to meetings of the governing

bodies, the committees and the communities. it serves as an

archive for all involved in LERU’s activities.

spreading tHe word

Publishing policy papers has been a major activity for LERU

since its inception. By the end of 2010, LERU had published

twelve position papers, addressing such topics as the purpose

of universities and their evolving function in society, the role

of research-intensive universities in particular, innovation, the

development of the European Research Area and of the Eu-

ropean institute of innovation and Technology, the role of

doctoraL sUMMer scHooL

Since 2010, a very successful LERU Doctoral Summer School

is organised annually for about 35 PhD students. The first

Summer School was hosted by the universities of Utrecht and

Amsterdam. The topic was “Communicating about Acade-

mic Research”, and the activities were embedded in the theme

“Towards a sustainable future”. in 2011, the Summer School

was organised by University College London and focused on

Entrepreneurship, including essential enterprise skills for ear-

ly career researchers. The theme of the 2012 Summer School is

open scholarship/open access and is hosted by the Universitat

de Barcelona.

Geoffrey BoultonDoctoral Summer School, Utrecht, July 2010

19LERU The first decade

pers, one briefing paper and two notes, covering a wide range

of subjects like social security for researchers, open access,

biodiversity, academic freedom, research funding and grant

management, and academic health centres. By this diversity

of publications, LERU reaches a much wider audience and is

therefore even more effective in disseminating its views.

All LERU papers are authored by high level academics or to-

pic experts from the member universities, who work with the

support of a LERU Policy Officer. All papers go through an

internal review and approval process. They are usually intro-

duced at a launch event in Brussels to attract the attention of

policy makers and the media.

externaL reLations

To pursue its goals effectively, LERU needs to maintain con-

tacts with organisations that contribute to science policy ma-

king and research funding. These obviously include the bodies

of the European Union, the European Science Foundation,

the European University Association – of which all LERU

universities are members -, and the the European Round Ta-

ble of industrialists. LERU also liaises with other university

networks with similar objectives, such as the Association of

American Universities, the Group of Eight in Australia, the

C9 (Ji xiào Liánméng) in China. Possible ways of cooperation

with the iDEA League, i.e. imperial College London, Delft

University of Technology, ETH Zurich, RWTH Aachen and

the Paris institute of Technology, which in some respects is

complementary to LERU, have already been explored.

the European Research Council, doctoral studies, research

training and careers, and rankings. Many of these papers had

as their primary author Geoffrey Boulton, Vice-Principal of

the University of Edinburgh and Chair of the Research Po-

licy Committee (2006-2008). The papers were well received

by the target audience. At first LERU papers were little more

than neatly laid out word processor documents, but from

the fourth paper on they came from the hands of a profes-

sional designer/printer who is also responsible for LERU’s

house style. They have been disseminated widely and are read

throughout Europe and the world.

Although they have been very influential, position papers

are not the only way in which LERU spreads its views. Next

to position papers, LERU started to produce advice papers,

briefing papers and notes. Advice papers endeavour to provi-

de concrete recommendations for action to specific stakehol-

ders at European, national or other levels. Briefing papers are

often the result of meetings of senior academics and univer-

sity leaders of member universities, and take a closer look at

a discipline- or institution-based topic. LERU notes are short

statements providing specific advice in response to a pres-

sing issue related to European research and higher education

policies. At the initiative of Secretary-General Kurt Dekete-

laere, in 2010 and 2011 alone LERU issued nine advice pa-

LERU paper ‘What are Universities for’

pUbLications

LERUPositionPapers

2002 The European Higher Education and Research Areas and the Role of Research-Intensive Universities

2003 Research-Intensive Universities as Engines for The “Europe Of Knowledge”

2004 Unlocking Europe’s Intellectual Potential – Universities and a European Common Market for Research

2005 Growth, Research-Intensive Universities and the European Research Council

Competitiveness, Research and the Concept of a European Institute of Technology

2006 Purpose, Structure and Functions of a European Institute of Technology

Universities and Innovation: the Challenge for Europe

2007 Doctoral Studies in Europe: Excellence in Researcher Training

The Future of the European Research Area

2008 What are Universities for?

2010 Harvesting Talent: Strengthening Research Careers in Europe

Doctoral Degrees Beyond 2010: Training Talented Researchers for Society

LERUAdvicePapers

2010 Improving the Social Security of Internationally Mobile Researchers

Towards an Effective 8th Framework Programme for Research

University Rankings: Diversity, Excellence and the European Initiative

Challenges for Biodiversity Research in Europe

Universities, Research and the “Innovation Union”

Academic Freedom as a Fundamental Right

2011 Clear Choices for Europe: Smart Investment in Research and Innovation

The LERU Roadmap towards Open Access

The European Research Area: Priorities for Research Universities

2012 The TTO, a University Engine Transforming Science into Innovation

LERUBriefingPapers

2009 How Research Can Inform Policy

2011 Academic Health Centres in Research-Intensive Settings in Europe

LERUNotes

2009 Developing the European Research Area

2010 ERC Grant Management: Recommendations from LERU

2011 Research Funding - Best National Practices for Simplification

Administrative Costs for Managing Grants under the 7th Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development (FP7)

OtherLERUPublications

2005 Strengthening Europe’s Knowledge Base to Secure Its Future (Leuven Declaration)

2009 LERU Statement on the ERC

2010 LERU Model Code of Practice for Research Employment

LERU Letter on the Innovative Medicines Initiative (IMI)

2011 Getting to Grips with the Competitive Challenge

20 2002 - 2012

LERU The first decade 21

tHe reLevance oF FUndaMentaL researcH

The Framework Programmes are major European sources for

research funding; the seventh FP started in 2007 and will run

until 2013. The FPs have undoubtedly been successful, but

many still see room for improvement. in several publicati-

ons, LERU has identified issues and suggested solutions that

would make the Framework Programmes more effective, e.g.

by reducing the administrative burden of running projects; in

2011 e.g. a note was published on the administrative costs for

managing grants. in 2010 and 2011, LERU issued notes with

recommendations on ERC grant management and on best na-

tional practices for simplification of research funding.

From the very beginning LERU has actively contributed to

the debate on the next Framework Programme for Research,

Horizon 2020. Already in 2010, LERU’s views were publis-

hed in the advice paper Towards an Effective 8th Framework

Programme for Research. LERU will continue to work with

EU policy makers to assure that participating in Horizon

2020 is attractive to the best researchers and that excellent

basic research from all disciplines can fully contribute to the

whole of Horizon 2020

LERU strongly supports the European Research Council as

an autonomous body because of the Europe-wide competiti-

on it creates, and appreciates the ERC’s ability to support the

development of young researchers. LERU has expressed its

views on the ERC in two publications, a position paper pu-

blished in 2005 and a statement issued in 2009. LERU consi-

ders strong competition for research funding as a prerequisite

for optimising the quality of the research performance and

output. Already in 2004, in a position paper on the common

market for research, LERU expressed the view that only by

enhancing the internal competitive environment European

universities will be able to compete with the best globally. The

ERC clearly contributes to this competitive environment.

Although initially LERU was somewhat sceptical on the ad-

ded value of an European institute of innovation and Tech-

LerU’s Messages

Three main themes dominate LERU’s publications: the

importance of fundamental research with an emphasis on

competitive mechanisms, the development of the European

Research Area in connection with the European Higher Edu-

cation Area, and the modernisation of higher education to

meet the increasingly diverse needs of society. Next to pro-

ducing papers on these themes, LERU takes up topical issues.

The international year of biodiversity, 2010, informed the

advice paper Challenges for Biodiversity Research in Europe

LERU published in that year. The Charter of Fundamental

Rights of the European Union, which became binding in

2009, guarantees academic freedom; this inspired LERU to

produce a paper on this issue.

first, second and current LERU logo

22 2002 - 2012

deveLoping tHe era

The idea of creating a European Research Area dates back to

the 2000 Lisbon European Council when it was launched by

the European Commission. Since then, many programmes,

projects and other coordinated actions have been set up under

the umbrella of this general concept. Already in its first posi-

tion paper in 2002, LERU recognised the importance of the

ERA. it also pointed out that the ERA should be connected to

the European Higher Education Area with research-intensive

universities as important linking pins. in papers published in

2003 and 2004, LERU again emphasised the vital role research

universities play in the ERA.

LERU sees the primary functions of the ERA as creating the

processes and infrastructure that stimulate and enable creati-

vity in research, rather than a primary one of pushing towards

commercialisation and social adoption from the research base.

in 2007, LERU published The Future of the European Re-

search Area, expressing its views on the further development

of the ERA, followed in 2011 by the advice paper The Euro-

pean Research Area: Priorities for Research Universities.

LERU has paid special attention to doctoral training and

career opportunities for young researchers, as these are vital

to the development of the European research base.

Doctoraltraining

The modern doctorate is determined by an interplay between

professional research experience and personal development.

The most important outcome is an individual trained to have

a unique set of high level skills who is also excellently trained

for roles in the public, charitable and private sectors, where

deep rigorous analysis is required. A prerequisite for suc-

cessful doctoral studies is an environment which meets high

international standards of research quality, such as research-

intensive universities offer. in 2007, LERU published a paper

expressing its views on this subject, followed by another posi-

tion paper, Doctoral Degrees Beyond 2020: Training Talented

Researchers for Society, in 2010.

nology (EiT), it now recognises its potential to enhance

university-industry collaboration through the Knowledge

and innovation Centres (KiCs). Through these KiCs, the

EiT should be committed to young researchers’ programmes

who will be key agents of interaction with industry. LERU

expressed its views on the concept of an EiT in two early pa-

pers (2005 and 2006) and has commented on its recent deve-

lopment in the advice paper Clear choices for Europe: Smart

investment in research and innovation (2011).

Cross-disciplinary research and research in industry should

be encouraged and strengthened, and university-industry

collaboration should be developed and enhanced. industry-

science links are key in both innovation management and in-

novation policy. Therefore, universities around the globe have

created professional organisations to support and develop the

links between the two worlds. The Technology Transfer Or-

ganisation (TTO) can manage industry access to academia’s

discoveries, inventions and improvements. in The TTO, a

University Engine Transforming Science into Innovation, an

advice paper published in 2012, LERU elaborated on the role

of TTOs.

23LERU The first decade

Special attention should be given to the position of women

in academia, who are still less likely to reach senior positions.

LERU has been studying the main obstacles to women’s career

advancement and is planning to release an advice paper on the

subject in 2012.

Innovation

Europe is losing ground compared to its traditional and new

competitors because its investment in innovation is too low.

in response to the European Commission’s Green Paper and

Consultation, LERU has formulated five key principles for

the future European research and innovation framework in

its 2011 advice paper Clear Choices for Europe: Smart Invest-

ment in Research and Innovation.

Universities have a fundamental contribution to make to the

innovation process, but they are not its drivers. innovation is

dominantly a process of business engagement with markets.

Universities do, however, fertilise the environment that inno-

vation needs if it is to flourish. RiUs in particular are hubs

of creativity which attract research-intensive companies and

investment into a region and help to catalyse innovation in

local businesses through their technology transfer offices.

LERU has described the role of universities in the innovation

process in several publications, including Universities and In-

novation: the Challenge for Europe (2006), and Universities,

Research and the “Innovation Union” (2010).

Today, the medical and life sciences play a prominent role in

academic research and in innovation, which makes this area of

particular importance to LERU. Papers such as Challenges for

Biodiversity Research in Europe (2010) and the LERU Letter

on the Innovative Medicines Initiative (2010) are witness to

this. in 2009, LERU and Science|Business organised a sympo-

sium under the title “How long will you live?” with EU policy

makers and LERU experts to draw attention to two of society’s

grand challenges: health and ageing. The results were published

in the briefing paper How Research Can Inform Policy.

Researchcareers

in Harvesting Talent: Strengthening Research Careers in Eu-

rope, a paper published in 2010, LERU made recommenda-

tions for structuring research careers to develop a powerful

and creative cohort of researchers. Often, young researchers

are employed on a succession of short-term contracts, causing

a lack of a career perspective which creates difficulties with

discontinuous social security cover, obtaining mortgages, etc.

Researchers need to be provided with adequate support to ne-

gotiate the employment instability that is often an uncomfor-

table side-effect of research dynamism and competitiveness.

in 2010 the LERU Model Code of Practice for Research Em-

ployment, to which all members adhere, was published to set

standards for the employment of researchers.

Research posts should fit into a structure of opportunities in

the university sector, but also need to consider how the uni-

versity segment will articulate with non-university public and

private sector posts, both for those moving from university

into those sectors and for those moving from elsewhere into

universities.

international mobility and exposure to a variety of research

environments are essential to the development of a well-

rounded academic career. Europe should aim for greater le-

vels of mobility to enable researchers to gain international

perspectives and more interdisciplinary experience; obstacles

to the mobility of researchers, including the frontier between

university and industry, should be removed. This includes

improving the coordination of social security needs of inter-

nationally mobile researchers, ensuring that third country na-

tional researchers active in a member state enjoy fully equal

treatment compared to researchers who are EU citizens, and

allowing second and third pillar pensions to better absorb the

negative social security consequences of a typical research

career. LERU made recommendations on improving the so-

cial security of internationally mobile researchers in an advice

paper published in 2010.

24 2002 - 2012

Modernising HigHer edUcation

Themissionandnatureofuniversities

As past exercises have proved, the ideas, thoughts and tech-

nologies that tomorrow will need or that will forge tomor-

row can hardly be predicted. it is therefore important that

universities not just address and train for current needs, but

also develop the thinking and the mental and conceptual skills

and habits that equip their graduates to adapt to change and

even steer it.

Universities are not enterprises with standardised processes

leading to a defined product. in research, universities create

new possibilities; in teaching, they shape new people. The two

interact powerfully to generate emergent capacities that are

adapted to the needs of the times, embodying and creating

the potential for progress through the ideas and the people

that will both respond to and shape an as yet unknown future.

Universities are unique in the range of knowledge they en-

compass. This allows them rapidly to re-structure and re-

combine their skills in novel ways to address the many trans-

disciplinary issues that are becoming increasingly important,

and to explore new, unexpected avenues of understanding.

This gives them an invaluable advantage over specialised re-

search institutes.

What society expects from universities is not always based on

a full understanding of the role and function of universities.

LERU has attempted to clarify the nature of universities and

the various roles they play in the position paper What are

Universities for? This paper, which was written by Geoffrey

Boulton and Colin Lucas in 2008, met with great approval in

the academic community.

Rankings

LERU has used the results of bibliometric analyses when se-

lecting its members. it also advocates competitiveness as an

effective mechanism to enhance research quality, which ob-

Medical innovation requires a constant and close interaction

between researchers and health care professionals. Hospitals

with strong links to comprehensive universities therefore of-

fer the most suitable environments for innovation if the orga-

nisational structure and relationships are adequate. To illus-

trate the progress made in this area in recent years, LERU in

2011 published the briefing paper Academic Health Centres

in Research-Intensive Settings in Europe.

AcademicFreedom

To mark Human Rights Day 2010, LERU launched its paper

Academic Freedom as a Fundamental Right. Both in many

national constitutions and in a growing number of interna-

tional conventions, academic freedom appears as an indis-

pensable right for the proper functioning of modern univer-

sities. Yet, in recent years academics and academic research

have been brought under close scrutiny, both from public and

from judicial bodies. This points to the need for a clear under-

standing of academic freedom. LERU’s paper illustrates how

policy makers and legislators can and should take measures to

protect, facilitate, strengthen and optimise academic freedom.

OpenAccess

Two modes of Open Access exist. The ‘gold’ route implies

that the author pays a publisher to make his publication avai-

lable for free. Along the ‘green’ route, copies of peer-reviewed

research outputs are made freely available on the web along-

side any formal published versions.

LERU is a strong supporter of Open Access, in particular

through the green route, without denying the important role

publishers of academic papers have played and continue to

play in the process of knowledge production. in 2011, the Le-

ague published an advice paper entitled ‘The LERU Roadmap

to Open Access’ explaining its views and indicating the steps

it wants to take towards their realisation.

25LERU The first decade

10 years and coUnting

in its first decade, LERU has firmly established itself as a

network of top-level universities dedicated to fundamental

research. internally, it has built up an organisation that is fit

to deliver what LERU aims for. it has found ways to disse-

minate its message and gathered an audience. it now faces

the challenge of leading by example and delivering the com-

bined wisdom and experience of Europe’s leading research-

intensive universities with a sound vision of the future for

research universities in an ever more globally competitive

higher education market, with opportunities for mutual lear-

ning and enrichment, and with concrete and practical advice

to universities, its staff and students, and to those who inter-

act with them and want to thoroughly understand them - go-

vernments, businesses and others. For the next decade LERU

intends to keep pushing the frontiers.

viously implies comparing researchers and research groups.

While these are indeed comparable entities, entire universities

are not because of the diversity of their activities. it is absurd

to express the quality of such a complicated and diverse or-

ganisation as a university in a single number. More impor-

tantly, there are a multitude of methodological issues at stake,

partly as a consequence of the use of proxies to measure qua-

lity. LERU expressed its views in the advice paper University

Rankings: Diversity, Excellence and the European Initiative,

published in 2010.

Rectors’ Assembly, UPMC, May 2011

rectors oF MeMber Universities

Universiteit van Amsterdam Paul van der Heijden 01-01-2002 07-01-2007

Jaap Zwemmer (acting) 08-01-2007 30-09-2007

Dymph van den Boom 01-10-2007

Universitat de Barcelona Dídac Ramírez i Sarrió 01-11-2008

University of Cambridge Alec Broers 01-10-1996 30-09-2003

Alison Richard 01-10-2003 30-09-2010

Leszek Borysiewicz 01-10-2010

University of Edinburgh Stewart Sutherland 01-09-1994 30-09-2002

Timothy O’Shea 01-10-2002

Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg Wolfgang Jäger 01-01-1995 31-03-2008

Andreas Voßkuhle 01-04-2008 07-05-2008

Hans-Jochen Schiewer 01-10-2008

Université de Genève Maurice Bourquin 15-07-1999 14-07-2003

André Hurst 15-07-2003 31-08-2006

Jacques Weber 01-09-2006 14-07-2007

Jean-Dominique Vassalli 15-07-2007

Universität Heidelberg Peter Hommelhoff 01-10-2001 30-09-2007

Bernhard Eitel 01-10-2007

Helsingin yliopisto Kari Raivio 01-06-1997 31-05-2003

Ilkka Niiniluoto 01-08-2003 31-07-2008

Thomas Wilhelmsson 01-08-2008

Karolinska Institutet Hans Wigzell 01-07-1995 31-12-2003

Harriet Wallberg-Henriksson 01-01-2004

Universiteit Leiden Douwe Breimer 01-02-2001 31-01-2007

Paul van der Heijden 01-02-2007

KU Leuven André Oosterlinck 01-09-1995 31-07-2005

Marc Vervenne 01-08-2005 31-07-2009

Mark Waer 01-08-2009

Imperial College London Keith O’Nions 01-01-2010

26 2002 - 2012

27LERU The first decade

University College London Malcolm Grant 01-08-2003

Lunds universitet Göran Bexell 01-01-2003 31-12-2008

Per Eriksson 01-01-2009

Università degli Studi di Milano Enrico Decleva 01-09-2001

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München Andreas Heldrich † 01-10-1994 30-09-2002

Bernd Huber 01-10-2002

University of Oxford Colin Lucas 01-05-1997 30-09-2004

John Hood 01-10-2004 30-09-2009

Andrew Hamilton 01-10-2009

Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris Jean-Charles Pomerol 04-03-2006 30-08-2011

Maurice Renard 01-09-2011 11-03-2012

Jean Chambaz 12-03-2012

Université Paris-Sud 11 Anita Bersellini 16-01-2004 15-01-2009

Guy Couarraze 16-01-2009

Université de Strasbourg Jean-Yves Mérindol 21-06-1997 20-06-2002

Bernard Carrière 21-06-2002 20-06-2007

Alain Beretz 21-06-2007

Universiteit Utrecht Willem Hendrik Gispen 01-04-2001 11-10-2007

Hans Stoof 12-10-2007 30-04-2011

Bert van der Zwaan 01-05-2011

Universität Zürich Hans Weder 01-03-2000 31-07-2008

Andreas Fischer 01-08-2008

28 2002 - 2012

Universiteit van Amsterdam

Universitat de Barcelona

University of Cambridge

University of Edinburgh

Albert-Ludwigs-Universität Freiburg

Université de Genève

Universität Heidelberg

Helsingin yliopisto (University of Helsinki)

Universiteit Leiden

KU Leuven

imperial College London

University College London

Lunds universitet

Università degli Studi di Milano

Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München

University of Oxford

Université Pierre et Marie Curie, Paris

Université Paris-Sud 11

Université de Strasbourg

Universiteit Utrecht

Universität Zürich

©Photographs courtesy of LERU universities,

Phil Sayer, David Rose

Joost van Asten (1947) read Che-

mistry at Leiden University, with

Russian as a minor. He was a ju-

nior lecturer until 1976, when he

was appointed educational co-

ordinator and student counsellor

at the Department of Chemistry.

From 1989 to 1996 he worked at

the Main Office of the Faculty of

Science, initially dealing with budgetary affairs and since

1992 in the capacity of Secretary to the Board.

From 1993 he took a postgraduate course in Public Admi-

nistration at the Netherlands School of Government in The

Hague, where he graduated in 1995.

From 1996 until his retirement in 2011 he has been a policy

adviser to the Board of the University, in charge of inter-

national relations, educational matters, implementation of

legislation, etc. From 2001, he was involved in establishing

LERU, and he was seconded to LERU Office from 2003 to

2010 for two days per week.

“The First Decade” team:

Author: Joost van Asten

Editing and production: Kurt Deketelaere, Laura Keustermans,

Katrien Maes, Bart Valkenaers, Veerle Van Kerckhove

Design: Vaes Grafische Producties bvba

LERU Office

Huis Bethlehem

Schapenstraat 34

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tel +32 16 32 99 71

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