European Cooperation continues to gain momentum

29.7.2020 | THD-Pressestelle

On Tuesday, 28 July, representatives of the European Campus Rottal-Inn (ECRI) met with the managing director of the Euregio office in Freyung, Kaspar Sammer, and the European Commission’s expert for territorial cooperation, Dirk Peters, to plan further steps of the European Grouping of Territorial Cooperation (EGTC).

During the campus tour at the ECRI, the guests were able to see for themselves the first university in Germany to be approved as an EGTC. The next steps were then discussed with President Prof. Dr. Peter Sperber, Head of Campus Prof. Dr. Horst Kunhardt, Dean Prof. Dr. Georg Christian Steckenbauer and University Coordinator Georg Riedl.

The main topics were the planned kick-off event in autumn together with the founding members of the EGTC, the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria and the Salzburg-based Alma Mater Europea, and the establishment and development of the EGTC in general. The main focus was to fill the existing structure with life in the future and to advance the goal of ECRI as a pioneer in bringing nations together. This underlines again ECRI's own claim to peacefully unite people of different nationalities under one roof, emphasised Dean Prof. Steckenbauer.  

With the EGTC, ECRI is not only more visible within the EU, but can also cooperate with other institutions across borders more easily than before. For this reason, the discussion focused on universities in other EU countries as future partners of the EGTC and the intention to establish and expand this partnership in the coming years. In this context, events on politics, economics and culture are also planned at ECRI in Pfarrkirchen, which will transport the "European spirit" to the region and convey European values to students.  

According to Euregio Managing Director Kaspar Sammer, the fact that the international campus is widely perceived positively by the population deserves special attention. This shows that the concept of territorial cooperation through the EGTC at ECRI is the proper step into the future.  

The EGTC is an instrument of the EU, which serves to promote cross-border, transnational or interregional cooperation within the EU. The EGTC acts as a legal entity and usually has members from at least two EU Member States, who define the objectives and tasks of the EGTC in a cooperation agreement.

Bild (THD/ECRI): Mayor W. Beißmann, Head of Campus Prof. Kunhardt, Dean Prof. Steckenbauer, District Admin M. Fahmüller, D. Peters (EU Commission), K. Sammer (Euregio), President Prof. Sperber, G. Riedl