EURASHE has submitted its response to the European Commission’s Call for Evidence on the Right to Stay Strategy, strongly supporting its goal to ensure citizens can build their futures in their home regions. Our response highlights that Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), including Universities of Applied Sciences (UAS), are crucial anchors of regional attractiveness and competitiveness. By driving applied research, skills development, and innovation with local SMEs, HEIs strengthen local labour markets and help territories overcome demographic decline.
Beyond traditional education, HEIs increasingly operate as “ecosystem orchestrators,” connecting business, research, and public governance to generate place-based impact. To fully unlock this potential, we emphasise the need to align EU research and cohesion instruments, integrate HEIs into Smart Specialisation Strategies, and build institutional capacity in less-developed and transition regions.
Ultimately, EURASHE calls for a reinforced place-based approach across EU instruments that explicitly recognises the diverse missions of HEIs. By investing in these institutions, the EU can ensure that all territories can thrive and retain talent, offering European citizens a genuine choice to stay and succeed locally.