U7+ Alliance of World Universities: Universities are calling for closer cooperation between policymakers and higher education institutions
The U7+ University Alliance summit in Paris was hosted by Sciences Po, Université Paris Cité und École Polytechnique. In their joint communiqué “The Social Role of Universities in a Divided World”, the U7+ members call on the governments of the G7 countries to involve universities in global policy-making processes: Through national and international consultations on artificial intelligence (AI) and democracy, universities could help bridge social divides and promote responsible technological development.
In the communiqué, the U7+ Alliance emphasizes the central societal role of universities in an increasingly divided and crisis-ridden world: As places of education, research, and public trust, universities contribute significantly to strengthening democracies, fostering economic and social innovation, and promoting international cooperation. The U7+ Alliance underscores the responsibility of universities to generate reliable knowledge, foster critical thinking, facilitate constructive dialogue, and advance AI in a way that allows societies worldwide to benefit from its potential. In the declaration, the U7+ members therefore commit to providing excellent, easily accessible education, and impact-oriented research as well as to actively promote civil discourse. At the same time, universities are facing crises of trust, rising education costs, attacks on academic freedom, and the spread of disinformation; they therefore call on G7 nations to provide reliable funding for the higher education sector and to protect academic freedom.
The presidents of 30 U7+ universities signed the communiqué. “With the rise of extreme political forces in many countries, the shift away from fact-based reasoning, attacks on academic freedom, and rapid advances in the field of AI, we face major societal challenges,” said Fetzer regarding the declaration, which he signed on behalf of the University of Mannheim. “Universities can and will do their part to address these challenges.”
On 15 April, the communiqué was presented to French President Emmanuel Macron, who is hosting this year’s G7 summit. He welcomed the members of the U7+ Presidential Steering Committee, including Rector Prof. Dr. Thomas Fetzer, to the Élysée Palace. The meeting gave U7+ members the opportunity to present their views to the President on the role of universities in the face of technological, democratic, climatic, geopolitical, and demographic upheavals. The dwindling trust in scientific institutions and facts was also a topic of discussion. President Macron encouraged universities to engage in public debate to bring scientific facts and arguments to bear against opinions, beliefs, and misinformation.
Fetzer also chaired a panel on climate change and sustainability, during which participants discussed, among other things, the role universities play in promoting sustainability within their core fields of activity: research, teaching, and knowledge transfer. The panel was organized by the U7+ Working Group on sustainability and climate change, co-chaired by Prof. Dr. Moritz Fleischmann, Vice Rector for Sustainability and International Affairs, who also attended the summit. “It is essential that we do not lose sight of the issue of sustainability, even if wars and economic crises currently seem more urgent to many people,” said Fleischmann, “which is why many U7+ members are actively involved in initiatives such as the UN Climate Conferences, and we promote the exchange of best practices in the field of sustainability within the alliance. U7+ offers a unique framework for this.”
About the U7+ Alliance
The U7+ Alliance is an international coalition of 48 universities, primarily from the G7 member states, which aims to make a scientific contribution to solving the major social and political issues of our time. The University of Mannheim is one of the founding members of the Alliance and is represented on its Presidential Steering Committee by Prof. Dr. Thomas Fetzer. The members of the alliance meet annually to establish a joint agenda and identify key areas for coordinated action. Together, the presidents of the U7+ universities commit on behalf of their institutions to concrete actions to address the world's most pressing challenges at the local, regional, and global levels.
Since 2025, the U7+ Alliance of World Universities has been officially recognized as a G7 Engagement Group and represents the higher education sector of the G7 countries and beyond. This means it is consulted by the G7 Presidency as an advisory body on civil society issues.
General information about the U7+ Alliance and statements from previous years: https://www.uni-mannheim.de/en/about/international/u7/