In 2020, Université Gustave Eiffel coordinated and submitted the PIONEER Alliance, a European university Erasmus+ project, with the University Institute of Lisbon (Portugal), Cologne University of Applied Sciences (Germany), Laurea University of Applied sciences (Finland), the National Technical University of Athens (Greece) and the University of Žilina (Slovakia). Although the project was rejected, despite receiving a good score, the alliance set up between the partners will provide a starting point for multiple Erasmus agreements and the preparation of responses to Horizon Europe calls for proposals.

The alliance will fundamentally transform the partner universities by creating a network of campuses in connection with cities and citizens’ needs. The aim is to co-create and integrate personalised approaches based on challenges and practical learning in programmes related to research and innovation. The alliance is composed of 93,200 students, 8,500 members of staff and 17 campuses.

Similarly, Université Gustave Eiffel coordinated a proposition for a COFUND H2020 programme as part of the Marie Sklodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA). The PhD programme, called CLEAR-Doc (City Lab Education And Research DOCtoral), provides co-funding for the recruitment, training and mobility of 30 international doctoral students. It offers an original approach structured around three joint international challenges in line with several United Nations sustainable development goals:

• Challenge 1: design and develop resource-efficient urban spaces
• Challenge 2: understand and manage “urban risks” for resilient cities
• Challenge 3: develop digital cities, making them a catalyst for social, environmental and economic performance.

Alongside these three challenges, six multidisciplinary thematic fields have been identified, such as civil engineering for carbon-neutral zones, technological solutions for smart cities, sustainable urban life and tourism, etc. The PhD students will be given easy access to the major research facilities on Université Gustave Eiffel’s campuses in order to carry out their research. To date, 35 academic and socio-economic partners have joined the project, providing co-financing for 21 PhDs and 75 mobility opportunities.

The MadAtlas project was designed by Université Gustave Eiffel in partnership with the University of Fianarantsoa (Madagascar), the University of Bordeaux Montaigne and the French National Research Institute for Sustainable Development (IRD) in response to a call for tenders by the AFD for higher education partnerships in Africa. The objective of the training programme planned in Madagascar is to provide Bachelor’s, Master’s and PhD courses of an international standard in digital mapping with a focus on sustainable development issues specific to the country. The programme will train technicians, executives and engineers able to use and design a variety of innovative mapping tools according to the requirements of spatial planning professionals. MadAtlas courses will be open to currently marginalised populations, particularly women and disadvantaged students. It will also promote the upskilling of employees in the private and public sectors through lifelong learning and career development among teacher-researchers in the fields concerned. Two-way mobilities for teachers and students, joint degrees and co-supervised PhDs will open up new perspectives for graduates and stimulate research in this innovative field, not only in Madagascar but for all the partners. AFD’s response is expected at the end of June 2021 with courses due to start in September 2021.

2020 marked a focus on the challenges of cities of the future within Université Gustave Eiffel’s activities in the European networks. After reflection involving several vice-presidencies, the University joined the POLIS network of cities and regions and new Horizon Europe public-private partnerships: Connected, Cooperative and Automated Mobility (CCAM) and Towards Zero emission road transport (2Zero).