The Valencian Agency for Evaluation and Prospective (AVAP) took part from 22 to 24 April in the ENQA Member’s Forum 2026, held in Budapest (Hungary) and organised by the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (ENQA). Under the motto “Strengthening trust in an evolving higher education landscape”, the event brought together representatives of leading European quality assurance agencies to address the key challenges currently shaping the European higher education agenda.
An agenda focused on trust and cross-border quality assurance
The forum tackled some of the most pressing issues for the European Higher Education Area, including building trust in university systems, transparency and good conduct in cross-border quality assurance, the revision of the Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance in the European Higher Education Area (ESG) and of the European Approach, the evolution of European policies in this field, and the strengthening of academic integrity against fraud and fraudulent qualifications.
Throughout three days of work, member agencies had the opportunity to share experiences, compare approaches and move forward towards a common vision on how to continue strengthening quality and trust in a higher education environment undergoing significant transformation.
AVAP’s contribution: the European GREENVERSITY project
AVAP was represented by Luis Miguel Martínez, from the Higher Education Quality and Innovation Service, and Javier Oliver Villarroya, Director-General of the Agency, who took part in the thematic poster session with a contribution on the European project GREENVERSITY.
The contribution focused on how the integration of the European Sustainability Competence Framework (GreenComp) into higher education systems can help reinforce trust among the different stakeholders —students, academic staff, institutions, employers and society— around university training that is genuinely committed to sustainability.
A model for embedding sustainability in higher education
Coordinated by the University of Valencia, GREENVERSITY promotes a model to embed sustainability in higher education through four main pillars:
- Curricula, ensuring that green competences become an integral part of university training.
- Teacher training, providing academic staff with specific resources and methodologies.
- Active student participation throughout the process.
- The development of recognition and accreditation pathways for these competences.
The project is working on the creation of a structured framework that facilitates the integration of green competences into study programmes, equips academic staff with the right tools and encourages students to play a leading role in the transition towards a more sustainable education.
AVAP’s role in official recognition
AVAP contributes to this project by promoting a clear path towards the official recognition of the GreenComp framework within higher education institutions —a key step to ensure that the efforts of universities, academic staff and students are properly reflected in accreditation processes.
Committed to a higher education connected with today’s challenges
Participation in the ENQA Members’ Forum 2026 reaffirms AVAP’s commitment to European cooperation, knowledge exchange and joint work with the rest of the agencies in order to build a higher education that is more closely connected with the major challenges of our time: sustainability, institutional trust and academic integrity.
AVAP thanks ENQA for organising this event and the participating agencies for the spirit of cooperation and dialogue, which remains a fundamental asset for continuing to advance the improvement of quality assurance within the European Higher Education Area.
