The Three Seas initiative (3SI) unites 12 countries of Central Europe: Austria, Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia and Hungary. The target of the initiative is to act for the economic development of countries located among three seas, namely: the Baltic, the Adriatic, and the Black Sea. Apart from cooperation in the economy and energy, education should be the priority of the international format, especially its academic aspect.
The subject of the 3SI is not only „soft” cooperation, but there are many more activities supporting economics, which can be obtained through analyses, research, conceptions, and scientific support. All these actions would lead to the unity of science and business. An area of the 3SI universities is their enormous intellectual potential, fostered by a cultural and historical commonwealth with collective research infrastructure, new research programs, innovations, and partnerships with the United States.
The Three Seas Initiative is a generational project oriented towards the future. Education is the most significant factor of the initiative, since this branch of science is responsible for solutions to the most crucial socioeconomic challenges. As a consequence, cooperation would be strengthened and the growth of Central and Eastern Europe would be increased. A coherent and stable partnership among the countries can be achieved by such collaboration.
It is not a coincidence that the initiative was raised in Lublin. Lublin is an enormous academic area which aspires to the role of the 3SI leader. The city has an opportunity to connect the countries of the region and to be a place which is traditionally open to Ukraine and Lithuania. The 3SI reaches good cooperation practices as follows: Via Carpathia Polytechnic Network, Eastern-European University Network of John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (KUL), Institute of East Central Europe, Lublin Universities Association, The Lublin Digital Union, Collegium Carpaticum.
Targets
The target of the initiative is to strengthen international cooperation among universities, intensify exchange and expand research. Therefore, prestigious publications, enormous projects and European grants would be the results of such collaboration.
The Three Seas Universities Network (3SUN) is created by universities cooperating voluntarily. The Network has no legal personality.
The objectives of the Network are:
- partnership cooperation in the field of science
- conducting joint research, projects and development works
- undertaking joint initiatives and investments aimed at improving the quality of education and research
- implementation of innovative solutions in the field of education quality
- exchange of information on human resources and didactic base
- disseminating and multiplying the achievements of the Universities forming the Network in the field of science, culture and technology
- collection and sharing of library and information collections
- supporting the commercialization of research results
- activities for the benefit of local and regional communities and establishing and maintaining cooperation with representatives of the economy and entrepreneurs
Areas of cooperation might especially include:
- international relations in 3SI region
- challenges and security risks (ecological, energetic, military, economic, social, cultural, technical and cybernetic)
- communication and media, law
- diplomacy
- information technology (IT)
- data exchange in the area of artificial intelligence
- telemedicine and medical education
- exchange of technological knowledge and inter-academic information
Member Universities
The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin (Poland)
Catholic University of Croatia (Croatia)
Tallinn University (Estonia)
Vytautas Magnus University (Lithuania)
Mykolas Romeris University (Lithuania)
Baltic International Academy (Latvia)
Babeș-Bolyai University (Romania)
Catholic University in Ružomberok (Slovakia)
University of Water and Environmental Engineering (Ukraine)
Ivan Franko National University of Lviv (Ukraine)
Pázmány Péter Catholic University (Hungary)
University of Presov (Slovakia)
Georgian American University (Georgia)
Sulkhan-Saba Orbeliani University (Georgia)
Metropolitan University Prague (Czech Republic)
Demos Kratos European Universities Alliance
The Alliance's main goal is to contribute to informed democracy by educating a wide audience about democratic elections in Europe through professionally moderated discussion panels led by experts with the participation of students, researchers, and specialists, broadcasting them online for public access, creating a space for public debate, and increasing the mobility of students and academic staff.
Adhering to the common concept of informed democracy and collaborative learning, and motivated by the goals set by the European Council, we seek to rethink the paradigm of higher education by developing transnational alliances and promoting “European universities,” driven by a shared commitment to the transformative power of education in democracy.
Demos Kratos European University Alliance’s members:
- Higher Educational Institution Holy Cross in Kielce (Świętokrzyska Szkoła Wyższa in Kielce)
Poland - Baltic International Academy
Latvia - ISCE – Higher Institute of Lisbon and Tagus Valley
Portugal - Douro Higher Institute of Educational Sciences in Porto
Portugal - Trakya University
Turkey - Romanian-American University in Bucharest
Romania - ECampus University in Novedrate
Italy - University of St. Cyril and Methodius in Trnava
Slovakia - University Synergy in Bijeljina
Bosnia and Herzegovina
