From 11th-12th June, LSE hosted the 2026 CIVICA Presidents’ Committee Meeting, bringing ten leaders together from Europe’s most prestigious social science universities.
Taking place annually at a different university in the Alliance, this meeting focuses on the CIVICA priorities in research, education and democratic engagement across the continent for the next year.
The cohort of visiting Presidents and Rectors includes Professor Francesco Billari (Bocconi University), Professor Carsten Q. Schneider (CEU), Professor Patrizia Nanz (EUI), Professor Manuel Muñiz Villa (IE University), Professor Luis Vassy (Sciences Po), Professor Piotr Wachowiak (SGH Warsaw School of Economics), and Professor Remus Pricopie (SNSPA), as well as Professor Thurid Hustedt and Professor Laurence Romani, senior leadership representatives from the Hertie School and the Stockholm School of Economics, respectively. The senior leaders were joined by members of the CIVICA Steering Committee, including the CIVICA Executive Director, Aurélien Krejbich.
Throughout the meeting, participants discussed future trajectories for collaborative research, the role of universities in the age of artificial intelligence and the distinct offerings of social science universities to the higher education sector.