Union Académique Internationale

Creation

The UAI was founded in 1919 on the initiative of the Académie des Inscriptions et Belles-Lettres. After 4 years of war, the world was longing for peace and understanding between nations. With this in mind, international cooperation was to be promoted in all areas and at all levels, including those of intellectual and scientific work. At a meeting held in Paris in May 1919 the draft statutes were prepared. Later on, they were revised and adopted at a second meeting held again in Paris from 15 to 18 October 1919. The proposed project envisaged international academic cooperation in the area of the humanities. During the assemblies, representatives of National Academies from eleven countries have adhered to the Union (Belgium, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Poland and Russia, the United States) and National Academies of three other countries gave their agreement without being represented (Spain, Norway and Romania). Later on that same year, Jugoslavia and Portugal adhered to the Union. Currently, the UAI has members from more than 60 countries all over the world.

First Assembly in Brussels

The first general assembly was held in Brussels from 26 to 28 May 1920 where the Belgian historian Henri Pirenne was elected the first president. The administrative seat of the Union was established in the Palace of Academies in Brussels. The Académie royale des sciences, des lettres et des beaux-arts de Belgique is in charge of the secretariat of the UAI and its Permanent Secretary is the ex officio General Secretary.

During this first session, three projects were submitted: the Corpus vasorum antiquorum, the Alchemical Manuscripts, and the publication of the Works of Grotius. These projects of a real international character have since earned the thanks of scholars by the meticulous precision with which they have been executed. Currently, The Union Académique Internationale has 81 projects, completed or in progress, called in French Entreprises. Up to the Second World War one can observe a slow development (13 projects were adopted altogether). At present, the number of projects has risen to 81. The UAI can only realize its projects by the international cooperation of its Members Academies.

The following years

Between 1937 and 1947 no General Assemblies were held because of the world catastrophe and all its consequences. In 1949, the UAI takes pride in having assisted in the foundation of the International Council for Philosophy and Humanistic Studies (ICPHS ) - In French: Conseil International de la Philopsophie et des Sciences Humaines (CIPSH). In 1964, the UAI received the Erasmus Prize for its success in promoting international collaboration. In 1969, the 50th anniversary of the UAI was celebrated. A ceremony was held under the cupola of the prestigious Institut de France in Paris. In 1976, the UAI included 31 member countries and the number of its projects has risen to 32. In 1995, the 75th anniversary of the UAI was celebrated in Prague.

The 100th anniversary will be held at the Institut de France in Paris in 2019.

Missions and objectives of the UAI

The missions of the Union Académique Internationale are:

1. to encourage cooperation between national Academies (and comparable institutions) whose activities are mainly or partly concerned with the field of human and social sciences. This cooperation is achieved by leading projects of high scholarly and intellectual standard and by coordinating interdisciplinary and joint activities, conceived in full partnership, over the long and medium-term. These should result in the production of fundamental reference tools that enhance the knowledge and advance fundamental research, for the benefit of both the people involved in the research (scholars, experts, researchers,…) and the general public; 2. to preserve and promote of the human and social sciences, at the level of both national and international academies; 3. to develop a solid support for every national academy and its members, provided people are convinced of the rightfulness and the advantages of this solidarity and international cooperation.

To achieve its mission, the UAI will work, in the years to come:

1. to increase inter-academy cooperation by multiplying the projects which it will share or initiate ; 2. to encourage all the national organisations that are active in the domain of human and social sciences, to join the uai by developing or cooperating on scholarly projects of a high standard recognised at the international level ; 3. toat the international level to represent jointly and in a proactive way, directly or indirectly (in partnership with supranational and or non governmental organisations) both the academies themselves and their fundamental principle of excellence.

To fulfil its mission and to carry out its vision, the UAI will have the following objectives:

1. to strengthen the progress and the implementation of current projects and to increase their relevance in a positive and critical way; to undertake syntheses, made available to the Member Academies ; 2. to set up a strategic plan that will consider the dissemination of information to be essential in the new information age, a plan that will facilitate the sharing of knowledge and the spread of information, and that will be updated through periodic assessments ; 3. to update the functioning of its governance and management bodies and to develop a positive image by a critical reassessment of its communication tools; 4. to increase its financial means and the funds made available for projects through a systematic search for partnership with international public or private foundations ; 5. to encourage member academies to participate more actively in current projects and to set up new interdisciplinary and internationally oriented projects; 6. to strengthen its presence and its participation in international organizations by increasing its visibility in these venues, utilizing its accumulated knowledge and that of its members, and emphasizing its links with the global communications set up by them.

Bureau (Board)

The Bureau (Board) is responsible for organizing the General Assembly and presides over its deliberations; it control the general administration and the progress of works. He is entitled to take, in the interval between General Assemblies, urgent measures and, if it's necessary, to convene an Extraordinary General Assembly. The Bureau has all the powers of management and administration who are necessary or appropriate to carry out the purposes of the association, except those specifically reserved to the General Assembly.

It is composed of a President, two Vice-President, the Honorary Presidents and six members. All are elected for a mandat of three years. The Secretary General is also a member of the Bureau.

General Assembly

Each year, a representative from every member academy - called Delegate - comes to the General Assembly to discuss and to cooperate in meetings. The General Assembly is always organized at the seat of one of its Member Academies. Each year it's organised at a different location: one year in Brussels, one year somewhere in Europe, one year somewhere in the world (outside Europe).

General Secretariat

The Secretary General attends to the coordination of the activities of the UAI and remaining attentive to the follow-up of the various projects. He supports the Bureau in its handling of correspondence and agenda of the UAI and in the organization of annual sessions. Since its foundation the Union Académique Internationale has its seat in the Palace of Academies in Brussels. The Académie royale des sciences, des lettres et des beaux-arts de Belgique is in charge of the secretariat of the UAI and its Permanent Secretary is the ex officio General Secretary.

Projects

Since 1919, the number of projects sponsored, supported or supervised by the UAI has steadily increased. From the first three projects adopted in 1919, we came today to the number of 81 projects.

An initiative for a new project can only be taken by a Member Academy of the UAI (through its delegate mandated for this purpose) or by the Bureau (Board) of the UAI itself. The proposal must contain a precise definition of its subject, an explanatory, the work plan and estimate of the expenditure and the financial responsibility for its execution. The project must set and maintain high standards of scholarship and have international character and interest.