The project concerns the fourth cycle of the by now established, recognised and praised EUROPAEUM SCHOLARS PROGRAMME, a leadership training and character formation scheme, which was founded in 2018 and has been supported by the Templeton World Charity Foundation on three previous occasions. The Europaeum, a network of 19 leading European universities, generally provides unique and tailor-made education programmes for some the best and highly motivated students from EUROPE’s most successful universities. The Scholars Programme, which lasts for two years and includes 8 intensive training modules plus extensive and innovative policy formation project work, generally aims to identify Europe’s future leaders and trains a morally aware cadre of young people for whom service to the public good is a life-time commitment in their professional and personal activities.

Founded on the philosophy that one can only become a top-level leader if one’s academic, professional and technical skills are embedded in firm values, ethical judgement, awareness of the natural environment, and the ability to work globally with sensitivity in inclusive teams. The programme has already established itself as a premier course in Europe and the growing number of alumni testify to this life-changing experience.
The programme vision is more needed than ever. If one simply compares the challenges to the liberal world order in 2018 with that of 2024, it is obvious why we need the next generation of leaders to be equipped with the analytical skills, ethical judgment, and optimistic courage to navigate Europe and its global partners through a rougher and more complex world environment. The list of challenges is too long but they include the following: the erosion of democracy through internal polarisation, i.e. the opposite of prudent and balanced judgement, and though external and open attacks of authoritarian regimes; the horrible wars in Ukraine and the Middle East and the resulting human sufferings and the consequences for world energy supplies and global production chains; the ever present challenge of climate change and other environmental harm across the world; and the human tragedies connected with poverty, health hazards, human rights violations and mass migration. They all remind us of the necessity of having leaders who think holistically and long-term but who also have the optimism, faith and resilience to find and pursue solutions to address these challenges.

The next cycle of the Scholars Programme will continue to train exactly those team-oriented leaders with brilliant analytical skills, deep empathy, and firm ethical foundations who are determined to formulate and defend evidence-based policy with resilience against all new challenges. They will produce 8 policy documents (4 policy briefs and 4 policy reports) focussed on making Europe a better place. Based on the proven success of the pervious cohorts, this round will enhance the integration of Scholars with alumni of the Programme, will deepen the long-term mentoring scheme, and will increase the dialogue and connectivity with new high-level partners in business, government, and civil society. The leaders of tomorrow must be able to bridge these three sectors and must have the intercultural awareness to address Europe challenges in a multiplex wider world.