News

Science knows no country, because knowledge belongs to humanity,
and is the torch which illuminates the world.”
/Louis Pasteur/

Tartu, August 24, 2010

Dear rectors, academic community and students of BOVA member institutions:

the Latvia University of Agriculture; the Lithuanian University of Agriculture; the Estonian University of Life Sciences and the Lithuanian Veterinary Academy.
 

On behalf of the BOVA University Network I wish you all a successful beginning of the new study year, filled with energy to teach, do research, and study.
 

In the years to come, knowledge will be of a paramount importance to the ability to create growth and prosperity in our countries. It is also obvious that universities and other educational institutions are facing a tough competition. To stay attractive, institutions will need to maintain and continue to develop high quality standards. Remaining attractive is crucial in the world, where distances are becoming less important and mobility a rule of the thumb.
 

Our universities are unique because they offer higher education in agriculture; forestry, veterinary sciences and related fields, and sometimes this profile of gives us an extra work load on the educational market. But food will be needed forever and hot summer will come to an end very soon, and we will look again for the heat from our forests or other energy sources, we will demand biodiversity and the quality of nature and we are satisfied that still a lot of young people want to be educated in these vital fields.
 

We have an obligation and a responsibility to invest in our students, because they are our future guarantee. We have a task to create functional environment for our teachers because they are our strongholds now and forever.

Internationalization is necessary for a country or for a union of countries, in order to be competitive in relation to the rest of the world. It is one of the elements that should increase educational quality and students’ opportunities. Over the years BOVA has launched and supported many international activities that have made us proud, but now, in the global context, internationalization is becoming even a more important task. Let’s cooperate to be the best and the strongest!

 

Yours sincerely,

Mait Klaassen, BOVA Rector