European Higher Education Area and Bologna Process. CSB in line and relevant to EU innovation action

"The European Higher Education Area (EHEA) is a unique international collaboration on higher education and the result of the political will of 48 countries with different political, cultural and academic traditions, which, step by step during the last twenty years, built an area implementing a common set of commitments: structural reforms and shared tools" (http://www.ehea.info/).

Our project is born inside this main framework for many reasons: from a side the consortium is composed by EU and NON EU Countries, the NON EU are the 2 main candidates, Albania and North Republic of Macedonia.

In line with Bologna process partner universities are researching to innovative proposing a new Curriculum on Cultural Studies. This broad topic is now new of course, but it belongs more to the British culture. Our consortium doesn't put aside what the University of Birmingham started in 1964 with the Centre for Contemporary Cultural Studies (CCCS) - now known as "Birmingham School of Cultural Studies". They started a confrontation based on the actuality of university studies creating a bridge between Economic and Business Studies and Cultural Studies.

As the so-called European Higher Education Area (EHEA) recommends the "48 countries agree to and adopt reforms on higher education on the basis of common key values– such as freedom of expression, autonomy for institutions, independent student unions, academic freedom, free movement of students and staff. Through this process, countries, institutions and stakeholders of the European area continuously adapt their higher education systems making them more compatible and strengthening their quality assurance mechanisms. For all these countries, the main goal is to increase staff and students' mobility and to facilitate employability (http://www.ehea.info/ ) .

The need for a change is clear; international cooperation with Erasmus doesn't have borders permitting students and teachers to move, experience and contaminate other cultures. "Cultural Studies in Business" is in fact a project where what is considered very European (the old Europe) and consolidated, like La Sapienza University (leader), the 1st Italian University in the "World University Ranking" also for quality and employability of students (https://cwur.org/ ) and emergent universities, smaller scale but very creative and smart, like the partners are.

Lifelong learning, innovation, creativity, employability, cooperation in education are the key words of our project which is definitely in line with what in 1999 the Bologna process started. More than ever is necessary to regularly remember what EU policy makers started to do and continue shaping our target students' results and innovation improving and challenging!

Article written by Erika Gerardini, representative of JUMP association, the only Non University partner, web-designer of this website and responsible of the editorial staff.