Enhancing University Lifelong Learning Culture in Europe

Themes of the conference:
Lifelong learning (LLL) is a major challenge for Europe in a world that is constantly evolving. No longer limited to a single phase of life, learning across the lifespan has now become almost a necessity for people to flourish in both their personal and professional lives. The challenge for Europe is convincing individuals from a wide array of backgrounds of the importance in engaging in LLL.

Building a robust LLL ecosystem is essential to promote worker adaptability to technological advancements, enhance employability, and meet the demands of a rapidly changing labour market.  It combines diverse expertise from various actors, fosters innovation and productivity, and supports career mobility. Embedding a strong LLL culture in our universities is critical to achieving all sustainable development goals by 2030, as well as meeting the challenge of transitions and emerging jobs requirements. Developing and enhancing LLL culture across Europe is therefore essential to ensure that everyone can get the appropriate knowledge, skills and competences needed to prosper in society, in their professional career, and to enrich their personal life!

The eucen 55th European Conference 2025 aims to explore how universities and key stakeholders can contribute to building sustainable, resilient LLL ecosystems which will help to promote a culture of University Lifelong Learning (ULLL) across Europe. These ecosystems aim to connect all actors, whether from public or private organisations, local or regional authorities, businesses, educational systems, or even citizens themselves. During the conference, we will also open the debate on LLL from a lifelong and life-wide perspective, which could even extend to later-life learning, meaning that LLL continues beyond the traditional working years. We will focus on strategies and lead discussions on flexible pathways and learner-centred approaches which are key to achieving the goals of ULLL. The contributions should bring some insights on the barriers to ULLL experienced by learners (lack of time, high costs of some training programs, limited access to information, ...) and the enablers (financial incentives, personal training account, flexibility, accessibility, recognition of skills, …) that can successfully foster a culture of ULLL.