Hochschule Bremen (HSB) – City University of Applied Sciences, Germany, and Marie and Louis Pasteur University (UMLP), France, both partners in STARS EU, will launch a new academic collaboration within the Business Administration/International Management (BIM) degree programme, which will enable the development of a double degree programme between the two institutions.

Thanks to this agreement, students will be able to complete their studies following the so-called “two-plus-two” model: four semesters in Bremen and four at the partner university abroad, allowing them to obtain two official bachelor’s degrees.

The collaboration will take place within the framework of STARS EU, of which both universities are members alongside seven other European institutions. With UMLP joining the BIM programme as a new partner university, STARS EU moves closer to one of its key objectives: promoting joint degrees and greater academic integration across Europe.

“We are delighted to welcome UMLP as another strong partner university to the BIM network,” says programme director Leena Pundt. “This collaboration strengthens our international profile and opens up further attractive opportunities for our students to gain a truly binational education.”

Powerful linguistic approach

Julie Beugnot, professor and programme director at the French university, explained that UMLP has been working for several years to internationalise its academic offer. The university’s proximity to the German border, together with the existence of an ABIBAC double qualification programme (German Abitur and French Baccalauréat) at one of the largest secondary schools in Besançon, played a decisive role in UMLP’s decision to establish a double degree with HSB.

Ulrich Krüger, professor in the BIM degree programme and responsible for negotiating the new double degree agreement with UMLP, highlighted the importance of finding a partner university capable of helping further develop the integrated international programme. “As a member of the STARS EU alliance, UMLP is an ideal institution for offering a multilingual Franco-German double degree,” he said.

For her part, Célia Berger-Tarare (UMLP), who negotiated the agreement on behalf of the French university, explained that professors from both institutions already maintained strong links in research as well as in short-term training programmes. “We needed to build on this momentum through a long-term collaboration that would also involve students,” she noted.

This new partnership not only expands the international exchange opportunities available through the double degree programme but also brings the alliance closer to its main objective: facilitating joint study programmes throughout Europe. At the same time, it strengthens the programme’s distinctive language-based approach, as students will complete their studies bilingually in German and French while also receiving additional training in English, providing them with the foundation for a trilingual international career.

The STARS EU alliance will hold a new session of its STARS Talks featuring Nicolas Andreff, professor at the Marie and Louis Pasteur University, in a talk focused on robotics and its role in addressing current sustainability challenges. During the session, Andreff will explore how robotics can contribute to enhancing economic competitiveness, in line with recent initiatives such as the European Commission’s Industrial Accelerator Act. He will also revisit the concept of the circular economy, proposing a shift towards a “spiral economy” model.

The event will take place online on Tuesday, 21st at 13:00 (CET), and will present the main conclusions of a recent workshop held at the European Robotics Forum 2026. The workshop examined, from an interdisciplinary perspective, the relationship between robotics, economy, and sustainability in a context shaped by climate change, resource depletion, and their socio-economic consequences.

STARS Talks, organised by the alliance’s Challenge Lab, is a monthly knowledge exchange format that brings together international experts to discuss innovation, science, and regional development. Following the speaker’s presentation, the session will open for dialogue with participants.

International student teams, real regional challenges and an intensive week of collaborative project work – this was the second edition of FutureLab Camp, held on 2–6 March 2026 in Belfort, France. The programme, organised within the STARS EU – Strategic Alliance for Regional Transition, brought together 34 students from partner universities across Europe.

The 2026 edition was hosted by Université Marie et Louis Pasteur and organised in the Blended Intensive Programme (BIP) format, combining an intensive on-site workshop week with continued online collaboration in the following months.

Students from universities in France, Germany, Spain, Portugal, the Netherlands, Sweden, the Czech Republic, Albania and Poland took part in the camp. Working in international and interdisciplinary teams, participants addressed real development challenges of the Belfort–Montbéliard region, combining perspectives from engineering, architecture, technology and social sciences.

The event was organised by the French STARS EU partners, with Prof. Robin Roche (Université Marie et Louis Pasteur, FEMTO-ST Institute) and Dr Halima Ikaouassen (Université Marie et Louis Pasteur – IUT Nord Franche-Comté) coordinating the academic programme and project activities in Belfort.

During the week in France, students also participated in study visits to local institutions and companies, including the headquarters of the Pays de Montbéliard Agglomeration Authority and the Peugeot Museum, gaining insight into the region’s industrial and economic context, particularly its strong links to the energy, mobility and manufacturing sectors.

Three projects for the future of the region

Participants worked on three challenge-based projects developed in cooperation with regional stakeholders. The tasks focused on energy transition, technological innovation and sustainable urban and campus development.

• Revitalisation of the Portes du Jura former polyclinic – a hydrogen technology demonstrator: This project, developed in cooperation with Pays de Montbéliard Agglomération, explored the transformation of a former medical facility into a demonstration centre for hydrogen technologies. Students worked on the functional concept of the building, potential uses of the space and strategies for promoting hydrogen innovation and public awareness.
• Energy, data and artificial intelligence – an innovation hub for Belfort: The second challenge was prepared together with Grand Belfort Communauté d’Agglomération. Students designed concepts for a collaborative innovation space bringing together researchers, startups and industry partners, focusing on energy transition, data analysis and artificial intelligence.
• Sustainable student living environments: The third project, developed in cooperation with Université Marie et Louis Pasteur – IUT Nord Franche-Comté, addressed the future of student housing and campus life. Teams proposed ideas for sustainable, energy-efficient and socially engaging living spaces designed to meet the evolving needs of students and universities.

After presenting their concepts to institutional partners at the end of the workshop week, the teams will continue developing their projects online until June 2026, when final presentations will take place.

From Kraków to Europe

FutureLab Camp is one of the flagship educational initiatives of STARS EU – Strategic Alliance for Regional Transition, which brings together nine European universities working jointly to support regional transformation through innovation, research and modern education.

The Belfort camp builds on the success of the first edition held in Kraków in 2025, where international student teams developed concepts supporting the development of the Zakliczyn municipality in southern Poland, focusing on topics such as public space design, tourism development and local infrastructure.

According to Adam Sadło, FutureLab Camp task leader within STARS EU: “FutureLab Camp demonstrates how much can be achieved when students from different countries and disciplines collaborate on ambitious regional challenges. Bringing together diverse perspectives, interests and experiences leads to creative solutions even within a single intensive week of teamwork. It is also a valuable opportunity for students to learn how to collaborate in an international environment that will shape their future professional careers.”

The third edition of FutureLab Camp is planned for 2027 at the Polytechnic Institute of Bragança in Portugal, continuing the development of this collaborative, challenge-based learning model across the STARS EU alliance.

Science that reaches society, research that crosses countries and projects that mark the future. This is how STARS EU participated  in the European Researchers’ Night, an event held simultaneously in 25 countries and more than 460 cities to showcase science in a more informative and approachable way.

As the general coordinator of the alliance Dick Pouwels highlighted, for all the members of STARS EU it is very important that “research does not stay within universities, but that we put our experience and knowledge at the service of society”. And a good example of this are the research initiatives that allow the public to approach three key areas: healthy ageing, clean energy and entrepreneurship with a European impact.

Health and technology for the elderly

The researcher at the University of La Laguna, Sara Darias-Curvo, presented a project (STARS-Health) focused on improving digital literacy and health of the elderly, especially in rural areas. The aim of the project, in which several STARS partners are involved, is to adapt existing applications to the real needs of these people to facilitate their day-to-day lives and that of their caregivers. “The first thing is to listen to the population and then design tailor-made solutions,” Darias stressed.

Hydrogen, the energy of tomorrow

From the French region of Franche-Comté, the researcher at the Marie et Louis Pasteur University (France), Samir Jemei, and the dean Jan Jaap Aué, from the Hanze University of Applied Sciences (The Netherlands), showed how they work on sustainable mobility, electrolysis and energy storage, united by a common horizon: to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. The key?, the international collaboration:  “By sharing knowledge, we learn from each other and accelerate change.”

Entrepreneurship with European impact

The third axis of the night was entrepreneurship, by researcher Ariola Arizi, from Aleksander Moisiu University (Albania), the alma mater of the BETTER project. Backed by the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, its initiative supports startups, students and researchers in sustainability, digitalisation and health. “We are training the next generation of entrepreneurs and innovators and, to do this, international collaboration is essential in opening up opportunities for all.”

Europe, a network of collaboration

The event left a common and forceful message: research is not an isolated matter, but a living tool to transform the present and the future. When Europe works together, the speakers agreed,  it empowers people and transforms their regions, the motto and spirit of STARS EU.

Take a look at this special evening and discover our projects through the voices of their own protagonists.