From 8 to 10 October 2025 at Uppsala University: Our fifth Teaching & Learning Conference brought 301 educators, students and innovators from across our ten partner universities and beyond to explore how playful methods can open up learning without losing rigour. The three-day programme mixed idea generating sessions, oral presentations, interactive workshops, poster sessions and a few surprises.

Vice-Chancellor Prof. Coco Norén set the tone: “Playfulness is not about being unserious – it’s about being open to curiosity, creativity, and the unexpected in academic environments.”

Project manager Jonathan Schalk added a nudge to experience the theme first-hand, from a mind-bending opening by magician Johan Ståhl to a Night at the Museum in Uppsala Castle and an evening of board games at CEMUS. The goal was simple: open minds, test methods, and leave with tools colleagues can adapt immediately after returing to work.

What made this edition special

• A sharp theme with depth. “Playfulness for the Future of Higher Education” framed sub-themes such as collaboration, discovery and experimentation, futuring, gameplay, and toys and tools — all aligned with ENLIGHT’s educational principles.
• A record-strong programme. 144 proposals were selected from 172 submissions, reflecting broad interest in playful pedagogy across disciplines.
• Formats that spark ideas. The programme debuted “idea-generating sessions,” where a question holder worked with peers to prototype approaches and exchange practice.
• Learning beyond the event. The plennary sessions and Awards were recorded and are available on our YouTube @enlighteu for replay.

Awards celebrated at the conference

ENLIGHT Sustainability and Inclusion Awards 2025

Sustainability Award
🏆 Winner: Adam Mullins, University of Galway – SPÉIR SU Pantry Students’ Union
🎖️ Runners-up: Merel Janquart, Ghent University – Future Proef; Yannick Alain Käser & Elmo Francis, University of Bern – Boat2Bag

Inclusion Award
🏆 Winner: Active Champions*, University of Galway
🎖️ Runners-up: Lívia Rosina, Comenius University Bratislava – WheelShare; Johannah Rybrant, Uppsala University – Equal opportunities – but with what resources?

ENLIGHT Teaching & Learning Award 2025

🥇 University of Bern – Dr Lara Maria Lundsgaard-Hansen
Be fair, contextually aware, and conflict-sensitive in inter-cultural and inter-contextual collaborations: key competences for sustainability transformations
🥈 Ghent University – Prof Veerle Van Eetvelde, Integrated International Projectwork
🥉 University of Groningen – Dr Jacoba Oedzes, HR Analytics

In the pictures to the right and below is Dr Lara Maria Lundsgaard-Hansen from University of Bern receiving the Teaching and Learning Award 2025.

By the numbers and across the halls

Across plenaries and parallel tracks, colleagues shared playful ways to boost engagement and deepen learning: classroom games and role-play, puzzle-based assessment, low-tech tools for collaboration, and performance-driven sessions that made complex topics feel accessible without being simplistic. The atmosphere was open, energetic, and full of exchange — a reminder that serious learning can also be joyful.

Looking ahead: Bern 2026

The 6th ENLIGHT Teaching & Learning Conference will take place from 22–24 October 2026 at the University of Bern, exploring the theme “Learning and Context.”

"But I'll never use that – why should I learn it?" will be the guiding question inviting participants to reflect on:

• Teaching & Learning Context
• Physical Context
• Subject-based Context
• Work and Social Context

Stay tuned for the call for participation in early 2026, and for another round of creativity, critical reflection, and community in teaching and learning across ENLIGHT.

Group photo of Teaching and Learning Conference 2025 at Uppsala University.

Photo credits: Mikael Wallerstedt (Uppsala University) 

Discover how Yaël De Rocker’s involvement in ENLIGHT helped her grow academically, professionally, and personally, proving the power of cross-border learning and collaboration.

Assoc. Prof. Peter Hanajík, PhD, member of the ENLIGHT Green Network at Comenius University Bratislava recently visited the St. Francis of Assisi School in Bratislava, where he led an engaging and interactive session for second-grade pupils.

This December, Ghent University invites ENLIGHT academics to take part in two major international events exploring the intersection of Artificial Intelligence and Health Care — bringing together researchers, practitioners, policy makers, and innovators from across Europe. 

On 5 December 2025, the spotlight turns to the HINT Innovator Summit on AI in Health Care, organised by Ghent University within the framework of the ENLIGHT Regional Academy. The event will showcase leading innovations, ethical perspectives, and real-world applications of AI in health, with opportunities for ENLIGHT academics to connect with the Health Intelligence Network Ghent (HINT.Ghent) community.

The ENLIGHT Staff Training week taking place in Bilbao from 21 to 23 October tackles mobility management of digital platforms, Master admission procedures and Technology Transfer matters.

The results of this year’s ENLIGHT Thematic Network and Incubator Grant Calls are in, and the engagement across our ten universities has increased significantly. With 104 proposals and more than 1,400 academics involved, the 2025 calls mark a new record for collaboration within our community.

How can humour heal, and how can understanding one’s rights empower? This October, the Regional Academy of Comenius University, part of the ENLIGHT university alliance, explored these themes through two engaging events — one focused on empathy in medicine, the other on civic awareness and rights protection.

From 14 to 16 October, around 70 African and European colleagues are gathering in Mauritius for the final conference of the Erasmus+ Capacity Building in Higher Education project PoMiSA – Potential of Microcredentials in Southern Africa.

Between 29 September and 2 October teaching academics from the ENLIGHT alliance met in Göttingen for networking and the development of joint teaching and learning initiatives.

As two ENLIGHT partner universities step into a new academic year, both Ghent University and the University of Galway begin fresh leadership chapters marked by vision, inclusion, and a shared commitment to global collaboration.

From 15 October to 26 November 2025, ENLIGHT is hosting a virtual Exchange forum: AI and Translation: How can I use AI in my writing and translation process in a careful, aware, and reflective way?

As higher education grapples with increasingly complex subjects, educators turn to playfulness as a super tool for learning. In a couple of weeks, some of these innovators will gather at Uppsala University in Sweden for the ENLIGHT Teaching & Learning Conference 2025 to explore the approach.