VUAS in the European University Alliance COLOURS

April 4, 2024

Representatives of the Ventspils University of Applied Sciences participated in the kick-off event of the European universities Alliance COLOURS in Germany. Participation in such an important alliance opens up a wide range of international opportunities for both university staff and students. The kick-off event brought together the executives, project staff and students from all 9 partner universities and the associate partner from Ukraine. Plenary sessions, group meetings and various activities took place over the two days to work together towards the Alliance's objectives.


Andris Vaivads, Rector of Ventspils University of Applied Sciences, says: "COLOURS is a strong alliance of European regional universities, bringing together more than 120,000 students and 12,000 employees. It is a wonderful opportunity for Ventspils University of Applied Sciences to work together with European regional universities that are many times larger than our university, with very different study offers, but united by a common understanding of the importance of regional universities for national development. For Ventspils University of Applied Sciences, these will be new opportunities for the development of studies and science in both existing and new fields. For our students, this will provide additional new opportunities for international collaboration with other universities in Europe. For Ventspils city and the region, these will be new opportunities for the education of its citizens, better prepared students for the modern employment market."


Dace Štefenberga, project manager, notes: "Ventspils University College is one of the smallest universities in the COLOURS Alliance, but it can make a significant contribution to the transfer of good practice between partner countries and institutions to promote economic development in the region. Most of the European regions involved face similar challenges: depopulation, brain drain and the creation and long-term viability of knowledge-intensive enterprises. Cooperation in the exchange of knowledge and experience between the participating European regional universities, institutions and the business environment can have a positive impact on the quality of European higher education in the future. At the project kick-off meeting at the Paderborn University, the future directions and the first steps were outlined and the VUAS team represented the university and the city of Ventspils with honour."


President of the Paderborn University Prof. Dr Birgit Riegraff, in her welcoming speech, emphasised the importance of international cooperation in higher education. "Becoming part of the COLOURS Alliance is an excellent stepping stone towards an even stronger international network of education. This will have many benefits, especially for students, and of course also for research, teaching and knowledge transfer."


COLOURS aims to bring social and technological initiatives to citizens and encourage international cooperation across Europe. This may include, for example, new mobility programmes or joint study courses, the creation of joint study programmes, international research projects. Professor Torsten Meier, Vice-President for International Relations at Paderborn University, stresses that students have a particularly important role to play in achieving these goals and in actively shaping the vision of an inter-university campus’.The European Commission is funding the COLOURS Alliance with around €14 million. The COLOURS Alliance brings together nine international universities, with around 126 000 students and 12 300 staff. The aim is to strengthen long-term collaboration, increase international recognition and promote the mobility of students and researchers across Europe.


‘COLOURS’ stands for ‘COLlaborative innOvative sUstainable Regional univerSities’. Through strategic cooperation, the initiative aims to bring social and technological innovation to people across Europe. Alongside Paderborn University as the coordinating institution, the alliance also includes Le Mans University (France), the University of Castilla-La Mancha (Spain), the University of Ferrara (Italy), Kristianstad University (Sweden), Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa (Poland), Josip Juraj Strossmayer University in Osijek (Croatia), Ventspils University of Applied Sciences (Latvia) and the University St. Kliment Ohridski Bitola (Northern Macedonia). Lesya Ukrainka Volyn National University (Ukraine) is an associate partner of the alliance.

View more

Share on other platforms

Other news

Initiative for Space Weather Investigations 2025

By Rota Rulle • May 22, 2025
BLU 2025 - workshop of the Bulgaria – Latvia – Ukraine Initiative for Space Weather Investigations June 2-6, 2025 Primorsko, Bulgaria

A delegation from the Norwegian space industry visited VUAS

By Rota Rulle • May 22, 2025
Last week, a delegation from the Norwegian space industry visited Ventspils University of Applied Sciences (and the Ventspils International Radio Astronomy Centre. The delegation included representatives from nine Norwegian companies and organizations. The visit was organized by Austris Keišs, Director of Export Promotion in Norway at the Investment and Development Agency of Latvia (LIAA). Among the visitors was Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace, Norway’s largest defense manufacturing company, which produces advanced defense, aviation, and space systems, including combat management solutions and remote weapon stations, as well as developing air defense systems and missile technologies for various military applications. The company also offers maritime systems such as autonomous and remote-controlled solutions for naval forces. Also visiting Ventspils was Space Norway, one of Norway's leading satellite and space infrastructure companies; PaleBlue, a company that offers spaceflight simulations; Spectrum Blue, which uses quantum technologies to develop and produce next-generation materials used in healthcare and sustainability sectors, as well as digital decision-support systems for building management. Other visitors included Inventas, a leading Norwegian design and innovation company; Rocket Grace Group, which organizes Spaceport Norway, one of the largest space conferences in the Nordic countries; and startup Nava Space, which plans to manufacture next-generation space suits designed for extreme environmental conditions by combining artificial intelligence solutions with smart materials. The visit also included representatives from the University of Oslo, the engineering research foundation Norwegian Geotechnical Institute, and the Norwegian Industrial Forum for Space Activities (NIFRO). During the visit, the delegation toured the VIRAC and VUAS electronics laboratories. VUAS Rector Andris Vaivads gave a presentation introducing the activities of both VUAS and VIRAC. According to Austris Keišs, Head of the LIAA representative office in Norway, the goal of the visit was “to promote cooperation in the space industry between Latvia and Norway and to integrate Latvian companies into international projects and supply chains, positioning Latvia as an attractive investment destination for Norwegian companies.” VSRC Director Mārcis Donerblics assessed the visit as productive: “We were pleased that the Norwegian Ambassador to Latvia, Ine Måreng, who is a strong supporter of the space sector, also joined the visit. The visit was doubly effective because both the political and industrial sectors were represented,” said Donerblics. “Of course, we took the opportunity to exchange contacts with representatives from various institutions, and with several, we agreed to continue the dialogue in one-on-one meetings. It’s too early to mention specific examples, but we are interested in topics like telecommunications, satellite communication antenna systems, and student exchange opportunities.” Donerblics also reminded that VIRAC already has a strategic partnership with the Swedish Space Corporation and that there is a solid basis to hope for broader partnerships among the Nordic and Baltic countries.

Guest lecture by the Head of the Culture and Press Section of the German Embassy

By Rota Rulle • May 20, 2025
On 15th of May, students of the Faculty of Translation Studies had the opportunity to attend a guest lecture about German-Latvian cooperation, embassy work and diplomatic protocol. The guest lecture was given by Christopher Grounau, Head of the Cultural and Press Section of the German Embassy, and Nataļja Buinicka, graduate of VUAS’ bachelor and master study programme in translation. At the beginning of the day, the visitors were welcomed by the 3rd year students of the translation bachelor study programme; the students gave them a short tour of the University and told them about the daily life of students and about the VUAS in general. During the guest lecture, the Embassy representatives told the students of the Faculty of Translation Studies about the work of the Embassy, its structure and responsibilties of specific units, shared some aspects of their daily duties, and answered questions asked by students. Matīss Jansons and Elēna Šatrovska, 3rd year students of the bachelor study programme Translation, Interpreting and Language Technology shared their impressions of the tour and the guest lecture: Matīss said: "Until now, I had no idea how close and diverse the cooperation between Latvia and Germany actually is. It was interesting to hear how much attention and support they give to cultural projects that really bring our countries closer together. I used to think that diplomacy was all about fine suits, empty speeches and champagne at events, but today I realised that there is much more to it. It's a lively, dynamic environment where every day is different, and behind it all, there's people who do exciting and important work.” Elena also shared: “It was a wonderful opportunity not only to learn how the Embassy works from the point of view of insiders, how diplomatic meetings are organised, where so many details need attention, but also to meet the people who make the Embassy run smoothly. Moreover, meeting them in person allowed me to see the human perspective of their work making it more understandable, not as something idealised, complicated and unachievable.” Event organized by the lecturer of the VUAS Egita Proveja. Information prepared by the students of the bachelor study programme Translation, Interpreting and Language Technology.

European Space Agency Mission “Comet Interceptor” Applies Comet Models Developed in Latvia

By Rota Rulle • May 20, 2025
Through collaboration between Latvian technology company Nanocraft SIA, Ventspils University of Applied Sciences, and the Tartu Observatory, the photo-realistic modelling project “CI3D” has been successfully delivered to the European Space Agency (ESA). The project activities have produced computer-generated images used for testing the cameras of ESA’s “Comet Interceptor” mission. Since the mission, scheduled for the early 2030s, will approach a still-unknown target comet—its trajectory from the Oort cloud towards the Sun currently too distant to observe with telescopes—photo-realistic images are needed to validate the mission’s cameras.

Literary Translation Workshop at the VUAS Library with Poet Linda Mence

By Rota Rulle • May 20, 2025
On May 7, the second- and third-year students of the study program “Translation, Interpreting and Language Technologies” participated in a literary translation workshop at the VUAS Library. The event was led by poet, translator, and editor Linda Mence and attended by students with a particular interest in literature and literary translation. The main theme of the workshop was the voice embodied in the text. This voice can belong to an author or translator, although the translator’s voice usually plays a symbolic role. At the beginning, Linda Mence introduced the audience to the questions that should be asked before starting a translation, such as: “Identity – who is the speaker?”, “What are the lexical layers and the emotions conveyed by the words?” Students read several texts – poems and story excerpts – and expressed their opinions during discussions in order to reach a common understanding. They also translated texts from English into Latvian to explore the nuances of literary translation. The poet and translator also shared her experience of translating various works and spoke about “absolute language pitch”, which is comparable to absolute musical pitch and is just as undeniably a great talent. Moreover, this sensitivity can be developed by reading works of various genres and authors from different time periods. However, translation should begin with shorter forms – essays and short stories. Two third-year students, Ilze Jaunzeme and Natālija Dolgova, shared their feedback on the event. Ilze said: “Once again, I was reminded that translating expressive texts is not an easy task. What I really liked was that it felt more like a conversation with a like-minded person – a colleague who is genuinely interested, listens freely and curiously to all ideas, and offers suggestions. This event was incredibly valuable; I hope no one loses interest and that more of these workshops will follow.” Meanwhile, Natālija commented: “I truly enjoyed how heartfelt this event was. Linda Mence explained very clearly and engagingly the aspects that must be considered when translating literature. She didn’t just lecture – she actively involved the audience, and I believe that the exchange and weighing of different translation options taught us more than if we had simply listened.”  The event was organized by the Dean of the Faculty of Translation Studies at VUAS, the Ventspils International Writers’ and Translators’ House, and the VUAS Library.

VUAS Culture Day: Unveiling the Cultural Iceberg

By Rota Rulle • May 12, 2025
Join us for an insightful and delicious journey around the world at our upcoming Culture Day event! On May 21st at 4:30 PM in the VUAS student lounge D0, students from Turkey, Spain, France, Italy, Latvia, China, and India will take you on a fascinating exploration of their unique cultures, inspired by the concept of the Cultural Iceberg. Just like an iceberg, there's so much more to a culture than what meets the eye. Our presenters will go beyond the familiar tourist sights and delve into the deeper, often unseen aspects of their heritage. Prepare to: Savor authentic flavors: Taste traditional dishes prepared with love by our student representatives. It's a culinary adventure you won't want to miss! Uncover hidden depths: Through engaging presentations, discover the values, beliefs, and customs that truly shape each culture. Navigate cultural nuances: Learn about intriguing taboos and gain a better understanding of potential cultural misunderstandings. Challenge stereotypes: Engage in open discussions and hear firsthand perspectives that break down common misconceptions. This is a fantastic opportunity to broaden your horizons, connect with fellow students from diverse backgrounds, and gain a deeper appreciation for the richness and complexity of our global community right here at VUAS. Don't miss this chance to: Expand your cultural intelligence. Make new friends and connections. Enjoy delicious international food. Participate in thought-provoking discussions.  Mark your calendars for Tuesday, May 21st at 4:30 PM and head to the VUAS student lounge D0 . Let's explore the fascinating depths of culture together! We look forward to seeing you there!
Other news