EELISA stands for European Engineering Learning Innovation and Science Alliance and at the same pays a tribute to Elisa Leonida Zamfirescu, who not only was one of the first women to obtain an engineering degree in the world, but also embodies the core elements of EELISA: innovative, multicultural and with a social commitment. This Alliance aims to transform European Higher Education, promoting a “European engineer” which strengthens the link between engineering and society.
EELISA-on-the-MOVE: Planning urban transitiONs for THE MOst inclusiVE and sustainable mobility
Our aim is to create an academic and multidisciplinary environment to address the challenge of reaching sustainable and inclusive cities through mobility planning. It will rely on the interaction between students, teachers, researchers, and external actors, through innovative teaching activities focused on creating efficient and technological-oriented solutions.
Urban mobility is a major challenge for current society. Institutions, academics, and practitioners acknowledge the need for addressing daily mobility needs by using a multidisciplinary, innovative, user-centered, sustainable, and inclusive approach. Under this context, the creation of “EELISA-ON-THE-MOVE” can contribute to this social challenge not only from an academic view but also by seeking specific solutions linked to technological development and its further validation. The feasibility and strategic convenience of this EELISA community relies on the following aspects:
● Based on real projects: “EELISA on-the-MOVE” will focus on developing real projects, through technological development and the creation of solutions based on engineering and architecture. Some examples of real projects are the following: developments of mobility-as-a-service applications; design of universal accessibility design for public transport stations; design of tools for integrating mobility data platforms; design of policies that improve the integration of multimodal stations at the urban level; design of policies for liveable and healthy open spaces in cities.
● Based on solutions co-creation: methods followed by “EELISA on-the-MOVE” are based on promoting activities where teaching staff, students, companies, institutions, and stakeholders interact with each other. That will activate learning processes between participants oriented towards solving real social challenges. To implement this methodological approach, specific activities will be covered, such as seminar series focused on real mobility projects; co-creation workshops involving multiple case studies linked to EELISA institutions; the implementation of hackathons for specific challenges; summer schools.
● Based on synergies with existing teaching activitieS: activities promoted by “EELISA on-the-MOVE” will be highly connected to existing teaching offers from EELISA institutions. To elaborate this EELISA community, the team has made specific contacts and arrangements with institutions within EELISA (e.g. Ecole des Ponts-Paris Tech and Budapest Institute of Technology and Economics), which have teaching programs focused on urban mobility. Furthermore, the teaching staff involved in this proposal are responsible for a wide range of courses focused on urban mobility.
● Based on external collaborations with institutions and stakeholders: the creation of “EELISA on-the-MOVE” will not only be oriented towards establishing links to other EELISA institutions, but external institutions and stakeholders will also be involved. To make this possible, the team has already contacted different institutions and stakeholders with interest in “EELISA on-the-MOVE”, such as Consorcio de Transportes de Madrid, METRO-Madrid, Telefónica, International Public Transport Association (UITP), Patronato de Personas con Discapacidad, Asociación a Pie. Moreover, it is known that the rest of EELISA institutions approached by this team has also an extensive network of external institutions and stakeholders interested in this EELISA community.
