Report on the virtual WBAA Board and Teams meetings Feb 2022
Board meeting
On Saturday, 12 February, the WBAA Board met virtually to discuss current issues. Hélène Benegas, the contact person at EACEA, also attended to report on the funding of WBAA in the coming years. An important point of the meeting was the preparation of the hybrid General Assembly on 3 April. Unfortunately, the pandemic situation still does not allow a meeting with many WBAA members, so only a few selected active WBAA members can travel to Pristina, Kosovo*. But they will be putting together an exciting programme for all those who will be attending the event virtually, so stay tuned!
In the afternoon, the team leaders of the four WBAA Teams joined and as they had all been elected to their positions only in the last few months, this was the first meeting in this constellation. We talked about what has changed with the restructuring of the WBAA Teams, what the tasks of the team leaders are, how the teams will be organised and what will be important for the WBAA Teams this year. The meeting also served as a final preparation of the WBAA Teams meeting the next day.
Teams meeting
On Sunday, 13 February, the first WBAA Teams virtual meeting took place. It was a groundbreaking event, long-awaited after the restructuring of the teams (WBAA 2.0). Members from all four teams joined, namely, Quality mobility / student exchange within higher education, Higher Education Reform & Equal Access to Higher Education, Transition from higher education to labour market & professional life, and Research. During the plenary, the new leaders of each team (Heads, Vice Heads for Advocacy and Vice Heads for Communication) were officially presented to all team members with a brief description of their tasks. The Service Provider emphasised the opportunity to adjust and shape the teams as it better fits their needs, as defined by the WBAA Rules and Regulations. Other important points were the collaboration with the Board and WBAA Communities.
Afterwards, each team discussed separately in the break-out sessions as expected in the agenda, getting to know each other, exploring ways to increase participation of WBAA members and reach new ones. Next steps for further activities and meetings were developed, as well as suggestions for future projects and collaborations. The atmosphere was particularly engaging, fresh and productive.
After the break-out sessions, each team comprehensively presented the results of the discussions, the annual plan, decisions and action points. Team meeting minutes will be available in the WBAA online community platform.
Great start of the new teams´ activity!
Klejda Harasani (WBAA Vice Head for Communication) and Service Provider
Cologne, 15.02.2022
*This designation is without prejudice to positions on status, and is in line with UNSCR 1244/1999 and the ICJ opinion on the Kosovo declaration of independence.