UNAVEX will be introduced as part of the Teaching Resilience and Environmental Democracy (TREnD) 2026 Staff Training Program, an international initiative designed to support innovative teaching practices in higher education.
TREnD is organized as a series of online conversations, and the Staff Training Program consists of interactive webinars offered to instructors across the TREnD partnership network, which includes:
- University of Leiden (Netherlands)
- University of Bologna (Italy)
- University of Helsinki (Finland)
- Complutense University of Madrid (Spain)
- Roosevelt Institute for American Studies (Netherlands)
- Media & Learning Association (Belgium)
- Grand Valley State University (USA)
- Emory University (USA)
- Louisiana State University (USA)
- University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (USA)
The program is primarily aimed at university teachers who are planning to develop student virtual exchanges and immersive learning activities in the coming years. Each session lasts approximately 1.5 hours, consisting of a 40–45 minute lecture followed by a Q&A discussion.
Participation is also open to interested educators and researchers from other networks. Further information will follow soon.
Webinar Schedule (all times CET)
- Session 1 – 25 February, 3:00–4:30 pm
Kelly Tzoumis (DePaul University / Johns Hopkins University)
Introduction to COIL and Virtual Exchanges - Session 2 – 11 March, 3:00–4:30 pm
Bill Rankin (Yale University)
Integrating Critical Mapping into Higher Education - Session 3 – 25 March, 3:00–4:30 pm
Miriam Mulders (University of Duisburg-Essen)
Employing Virtual and Extended Reality in Higher Education - Session 4 – 20 April, 3:00–4:30 pm
Hanna Lappalainen (University of Helsinki)
UNAVEX and Virtual Exchange Practices