Magna Charta Conference attendees with His Majesty King Felipe VI & Her Majesty Queen Letizia of Spain
This week, Abdullah Gül University (AGU) Rector, Prof. Dr. İhsan Sabuncuoğlu joined an event which marks an important milestone for the University: indeed, the Abdullah Gül University had been approved to become an official signatory of the “Magna Charta Universitatum“.
This September, for the 30th Anniversary of the Signature of the Magna Charta Universitatum, AGU Rector was kindly invited to join the event, held in Salamanca, Spain, since the University’s application to become a Magna Charta Universitatum signatory had been granted.
With his signature, Prof. Sabuncuoğlu marked the Abdullah Gül University’s commitment — as one of the leading State Universities in Turkey for Education & Research, which puts strong emphasis on Societal Impact, Higher Education Development and Internationalization — to comply with and uphold the values and principles of the Charter.
Along with the Ceremony for the Signing of the Magna Charta held in the presence of the King and Queen of Spain, Prof. Dr. Sabuncuoğlu also participated in the Magna Charta Conference, which this year focused on “University values in a changing world“.
It was also the perfect opportunity for AGU Rector to meet with partners and colleagues attending the event as well.
The Magna Charta Universitatum
The “Great Charter of Universities” is an agreement — first written in 1988 and now counting over 816 signatories from 86 countries — which lays down the “fundamental values and principles of the university” and “[encourages] strong bonds among European Universities”.
“It contains principles of academic freedom and institutional autonomy as a guideline for good governance and self-understanding of universities in the future.”
The history of the creation of the Magna Charta Universitatum and its political context can be found here.
The groundwork for the Magna Charta was laid by the University of Bologna in 1986, when the institution addressed a proposal to all of Europe’s oldest universities.
The resulting Charter, which in its finished form was first signed by 388 institutions, can be read online here in 49 languages.