The FORTHEM Alliance has been awarded new Erasmus+ funding for the 2026-2028 period. This support will allow the Alliance to consolidate its European Campus, strengthen the integration of joint activities into the academic life of the nine participating universities, including the Universitat de València, and continue to advance towards a more robust, sustainable and integrated European university model.
The European Commission has selected FORTHEM in the latest call for the European Universities initiative, the results of which were announced on 9 July 2026. In this edition, in which 37 proposals were submitted, the Alliance has succeeded in renewing its funding to continue developing its project for the next two years. The new project, FORTHEM NEXUS (Nurturing Excellence and Talent through Exchange with Universities and Society), will receive funding of approximately €7.2 million, covering around 80% of the total budget.
This new phase represents a step forward towards consolidating a permanent European university model, with increasingly integrated cooperation between the participating institutions. The project will be coordinated by the University of Jyväskylä (Finland), which will lead the Alliance's joint work.
A new phase for the European Campus
After more than seven years of collaboration, FORTHEM is embarking on a new phase focused on consolidating its achievements, expanding the reach of its initiatives and advancing the development of its European Campus, in line with the Alliance's strategy up to 2030. The main objectives for the 2026-2028 period are to structurally integrate FORTHEM's activities into the participating universities and to facilitate regular access for students, academic and research staff, and administrative and support staff to the international training, research, and cooperation opportunities offered by the Alliance. The priorities of the new project include:
- To integrate internationalisation and mobility into training pathways.
- To promote teaching innovation and the shared development of academic skills.
- To strengthen support for research staff, especially in the early stages of their careers, by promoting more stable and sustainable scientific collaboration.
- Expand FORTHEM's social impact through initiatives linked to democracy, artificial intelligence, entrepreneurship and collaboration with the authorities, businesses and organisations of the partner territories.
A consolidated Alliance
Since its creation in 2019, FORTHEM has been one of the first European University Alliances launched by the European Commission. The previous funding phases (2019-2022 and 2022-2026) have enabled the development of a wide range of mobility activities, joint training, collaborative research and innovation. More than 15,000 students have already participated in activities organised by the Alliance. The new funding will allow these opportunities for students, researchers and university staff to be expanded, strengthen the common cooperation structures and launch new initiatives with external entities.
FORTHEM in figures
FORTHEM brings together nine European universities and more than 60 partner organisations, including public authorities, businesses, civil society organisations and research centres. Together, the Alliance comprises a community of approximately 230,000 students, 2,500 doctoral candidates, 19,000 researchers and academics, and 17,000 administrative and service professionals, forming a European ecosystem for collaboration in education, research, innovation, and societal engagement.
