NEWS On 17 September, staff and students were invited to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the inauguration of Umeå University. During the celebrations, Vice-Chancellor Tora Holmberg gave a speech. It is published below.
Tora Holmberg, Vice-Chancellor, during her speech at Universum.
ImageMattias PetterssonDear students and colleagues!
Umeå University turns 60 today. It is truly a day to celebrate! As the new Vice-Chancellor, it is particularly exciting for me to stand here today and look both back and forward – something I do with great pride, joy and anticipation!
Sixty years. That is six decades of wise thoughts, hard work, laughter and success. There have been a few blunders too, but perhaps that would be strange if there weren't.
A university is nothing more than the people who fill it.
Staff and students have come and gone. Some have stayed, and many are here today. Dreams have been formed and fulfilled here. A university is nothing more than the people who fill it. And right now, that is us, together with all those who have passed through our university over the years. That is what we are celebrating today!
The inauguration of Umeå University in 1965 demonstrated foresight and wisdom. Not least from Member of Parliament and later Minister Gösta Skoglund, who understood the importance of an academy north of Dalälven.
Although the original motive was to secure an important supply of expertise in northern Sweden, the last 60 years have meant so much more. It is also about our university contributing a unique perspective on issues in various fields of science.
And it has succeeded in doing so. Today, we are one of the country's largest universities, attracting students, teachers and researchers not only from all over Sweden, but from all over the world. Important discoveries at our university have resulted in a Nobel Prize. Today, we have almost 5,000 employees and over 40,000 students. We offer 150 educational programmes in virtually all fields, which means that, together with our three student unions, we contribute every day to making our society a better place.
We have a proud history. But we are not a university that primarily lives on past achievements; on the contrary, we constantly strive to look ahead. To identify new challenges and contribute to solving the major problems of our time.
To succeed in this, we need depth in basic research combined with the breadth that we have at Umeå University.
Every day, we are confronted with warnings about an ecological system that is on the verge of collapse, while our society is unable to make sufficient changes. We see democracy being eroded in more and more countries and people dying in war and famine. Humanity managed to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic collectively, but everything indicates that similar crises will recur. We see AI increasingly intervening in our lives, for better or worse, but how can we benefit from and at the same time manage this development?
The picture may seem bleak – and in many ways it is – but at the same time, it is in the very nature of academia to constantly question and patiently seek solutions to current problems. To succeed in this, we need depth in basic research combined with the breadth that we have at Umeå University. Major societal challenges affect several different scientific fields, and we are active in all of them, with our four faculties and Umeå School of Education.
Students and staff were invited to the celebration.
ImageMattias PetterssonWe also have a cohesive and attractive campus, where researchers and students from widely different subjects can meet in shared spaces. This breadth is extremely important and something we should cherish.
But breadth alone is not enough – we must also have depth. The two are mutually dependent. Umeå University conducts highly distinguished research in many important and topical areas. And we will continue to do so!
As the university's ninth vice-chancellor, I have had the privilege of contributing to the development of Umeå University's activities. It is a challenge I have accepted with both humility and pride. My most important role as vice-chancellor is to ensure that the conditions for conducting education and research are the best possible. Now it is time to take the next step.
It is time to look ahead and decide where we want to be as a university in ten years' time. The project to develop Umeå University – Vision 2035 – is in full swing and will continue throughout the autumn. I have high hopes.
Visions for academia should be shaped from the bottom up. Together, we must creatively and courageously chart the course. Then, of course, we must do the right things that will take us towards our common goals, and that is why we need a well-thought-out and clearly stated strategy.
I believe in diversity and that we should make the most of it.
At a large and broad educational institution such as Umeå University, this does not mean that everyone should do the same things, but rather that everyone can contribute in different ways. Faculties, departments and equivalent units will work out their priorities based on the strategy. I believe in diversity and that we should make the most of it. And if, based on our differences, we move at (more or less) the same pace and strive in the same direction as ONE university, we will be able to become even stronger and achieve wonders.
It is together that we have made and continue to make Umeå University the fantastic university it is!
From the bottom of my heart, I would like to express my deepest and warmest THANKS to all of you teachers, research fellows, administrators, faculty director of studies, study counsellors, IT technicians, staff scientists, students, professors, directors of studies, administrative managers, administrators, communication officers, postdocs, deans and, last but not least, heads of department and all of you who contribute your expertise and commitment to the future success of Umeå University!