Modern higher education has no borders, and global challenges only emphasize the need for international integration. Sumy National Agrarian University is taking another confident step towards structural modernization by starting work on a large-scale international project – HELIUM.
The initiative was officially launched during a two-day inaugural meeting, which took place on February 26-27 in Leuven (Belgium). The event was held at the base of the main coordinator of the project – the University of Applied Sciences UCLL. During the two days, European and partner institutions discussed the implementation strategy, work packages, financial management and international research context.
Sumy National Agrarian University was represented at this strategically important event by a strong team of managers and scientists: Yurii Danko– Vice-Rector for Scientific and International Activities; Olena Nifatova – Head of the Laboratory of Bioeconomy and Green Marketing; Kseniia Bliumska-Danko is an associate professor at the Department of Marketing and Logistics.
HELIUM (Helix for Education Leadership and Universal Modernisation) is a two-year Erasmus+ capacity-building project in higher education co-financed by the European Union. The name of the initiative is deeply symbolic: like helium – a light element that lifts objects up – the project is designed to raise the institutional capacity of universities to a fundamentally new level. The main focus is on a comprehensive structural reform: improving management systems, promoting digital transformation, strengthening ties between universities and business, and ensuring inclusive access to quality education.
Today, Ukrainian universities are forced to operate in extraordinary conditions of a full-scale war. This requires educational institutions to be incredibly resilient, quickly adapt digitally to ensure continuity of education, and strong international support. The role of SNAU in the HELIUM project is proactive. The university acts not only as a recipient of European experience, but also as a full-fledged partner that will test, scientifically substantiate and implement new management models. The participation of our team will allow us to adapt advanced European practices of transparent decision-making and global academic cooperation directly to the realities of the Sumy region.
One of the unique features of the HELIUM project is its cross-regional approach. The project unites European Union institutions with partner universities from Ukraine and Egypt. For SNAU, this means entering new vectors of international partnership.
While Ukraine is overcoming security and crisis challenges, the Egyptian higher education system is experiencing a phase of rapid expansion, which creates enormous pressure on their management structures and digitalization processes. Such an exchange of experience between two different countries creates powerful synergy. Universities will jointly seek universal innovative solutions that will help them become more competitive on the global stage and respond more effectively to the needs of society.
