International Partners’ Week 2023 Begins at HSE University-Moscow

International Partners’ Week 2023 Begins at HSE University-Moscow

© HSE University

Representatives of 23 countries have gathered in Moscow for International Partners’ Week at HSE University. The participants will discuss pressing issues related to cooperation, sign agreements on research and student exchanges, and take part in the Educational Forum of the Greater Eurasian Partnership, which is being held as part of Russia’s chairship of the EAEU.

From September 25–29, HSE University in Moscow is holding International Partners’ Week 2023, a key event in the international life of the university.

On the first day of International Partners’ Week (IPW), representatives of leading universities and research organisations from 23 countries met to discuss the latest development trends in higher education, share best practices in the development of academic and student mobility, and form new partnerships. Among the invited guests was Adjima Thiombiano, Minister of Higher Education, Scientific Research and Innovation of Burkina Faso. A tour of the campus was held in the morning, giving guests a glimpse of life at the university and where students learn. IPW events are held in both Russian and English with simultaneous interpretation. The event programme includes plenary and working sessions, as well as expert discussions on pressing issues.

On Monday, September 25, the week opened with the Educational Forum of the Greater Eurasian Partnership (GEP) in recognition of Russia’s EAEU chairship in 2023. The GEP forum is organised with support from the Eurasian Economic Commission.

The participants of the forum were welcomed by HSE University First Vice Rector Vadim Radaev and Vice Rector Victoria Panova.

Victoria Panova greeted the guests of the forum and highlighted its importance in the development of international scientific cooperation. ‘Business, state diplomatic missions, and civil society organisations connect people and facilitate communication. As a university, we also do this. And as vice rector of the university, I can say that there is nothing more valuable than stable, long-term and trusted international ties,’ she said. The vice rector added that International Partners’ Week presents a unique opportunity for cooperation and the implementation of joint initiatives, as ‘throughout centuries of history, the dialogue of cultures, science and education—or more broadly, the dialogue of knowledge—has promoted mutual enrichment, overcoming differences, and even achieving success in social and economic development.’

First Vice Rector Vadim Radaev noted that the main goal of International Partners’ Week is to create a shared intellectual space for the development of cultural cooperation in Greater Asia. ‘HSE University is known as a university with a high level of internationalisation. There are more than 5,000 international students and around 100 international specialists at the university,’ he noted.

The participants of the forum also received written welcomes from Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Mikhail Myasnikovich, Deputy Prime Minister of Russia and Chairman of the EEC Council Alexey Overchuk, and Director of the Department for International Cooperation at the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of the Russian Federation Ksenia Trinchenko.

During the opening ceremony, academician and Vice President of the Russian Academy of Sciences Stepan Kalmykov highlighted that the GEP Educational Forum is a great example of how to bring people together to discuss joint actions, tasks, and goals in the fields of education, science, and culture.

Deputy Head of Rossotrudnichestvo Pavel Shevtsov expressed his confidence that education is the foundation of cultural cooperation: ‘Forums like this provide an opportunity to hear, consider, and design the future, not only in the cultural sense, but regarding the development of peoples in general.’

As in previous years, the HSE University Exchange Fair is taking place alongside International Partners’ Week. Organised with the participation of partner universities, the fair gives students a chance to learn about international academic exchange programmes and talk to representatives of foreign universities.

On the first day of International Partners’ Week, the participants noted the importance of such events in light of modern global challenges, which cannot be tackled alone.