Silesian University of Technology wins Elsevier Research Impact Leaders 2023 Award

Silesian University of Technology is among this year's winners of the Elsevier Research Impact Leaders Award in the special category of the European University Alliances Members' Research Impact Leaders Award 2023, awarded for activities within the framework of the European Universities Initiative programme.

The Elsevier Research Impact Leaders Award is part of Elsevier Publishing's global initiative to support research and scientific development. Launched in 2016, the award recognises outstanding research institutions that demonstrate the high quality of research conducted and its internationalisation, as well as the implementation of strategic initiatives of excellence at national and international level, which contribute to a better recognition of Polish science worldwide.

The prize is awarded in 6 main categories: agricultural sciences, engineering & technology sciences, humanities, natural sciences, medical sciences and social sciences. For the first time, the prize was also awarded in a special category for participation in the implementation of the European Commission's prestigious 'European Universities' Initiative programme, for which, in addition to the Silesian University of Technology, the Gdansk University of Technology and the University of Opole were nominated.

Elsevier, together with the Foundation for the Development of the Educational System (FRSE), which is the National Agency of the Erasmus+ Programme and the European Solidarity Corps, decided to honour the Silesian University of Technology with the European University Alliances Members' Research Impact Leaders Award 2023. The committee appreciated the University's activities in the field of the European University "EURECA-PRO", created in consortium with 8 institutions from the European Union:

• Montanuniversität Leoben z Austrii,
• Technische Universität Bergakademie Freiberg z Niemiec,
• Technical University of Crete z Grecji,
• Universidad de León z Hiszpanii,
• University of Petrosani z Rumunii,
• University of Applied Sciences Mittweida,
• Hasselt University,
• University of Lorraine.

The main mission of the EURECA-PRO consortium is to enable staff, including undergraduates, postgraduates and employees, to train and conduct research in fields and disciplines related to the UN Sustainable Development Goal 12: Responsible Consumption and Production, with a long-term plan to create a networked, virtual and integrated European campus by 2040. The stated vision is that EURECA-PRO will be a major academic innovation hub in Europe, contributing to the principles of the European Green Deal, developing new technologies, processes and systems, and defining and promoting responsible consumption behaviours, which together will enable dynamic social and economic growth with efficient use of natural resources and respect for the environment and climate.

This is the third Elsevier Research Impact Leaders award for the Silesian University of Technology. In 2016. The university was recognised in the Engineering and Technolgical Sciences category and two years later in the Social Sciences category.

Elsevier announced the winners of the Research Impact Leaders Awards on 26 October during the Plenary and Presidium Meeting of the Conference of Rectors of Academic Schools in Poland held in Lodz on 26-27 October.