Future partners in the network have been invited, and talks are already under way with Norway Opening Universities (NOU) and the Polish Virtual University.

"One of the means to reach the Lisbon goals is the creation of a knowledge-based economy", says Dr. Paul Rühl, Managing Director of the Bavarian Virtual University, who opened the founding ceremony in Brussels. "In the higher education process, the universities obviously have a key role to play."

Acknowledging the links between the Lisbon strategy and the Bologna Process (which encourages mobility and comparability of education in Europe), Paul Rühl comments, "The networks working together in EuNeOn hold the view that there should be not only physical, but also virtual mobility of students: students should get the opportunity to use online educational resources from other European countries."

EuNeOn's first activities are focusing on cooperating with new partners, exchanging experiences, supporting short-term exchanges of staff, and developing course material and courses in a collaborative way. "At this year's EDEN conference, the Finnish and Bavarian Virtual Universities presented their first experiences in the common use of courses, and the first joint course production is well on its way", explains Paul Rühl. EuNeOn will also lobby for further funding to support the dissemination of good practices and the emergence of networks in other European countries.