Téthys

  • International

Consortium of Euro-Mediterranean universities coordinated by amU

Aix Marseille Université (amU) is deploying its international strategy with a particular focus on the Europe-Mediterranean-Africa axis. This orientation aims to contribute to the strengthening of the Mediterranean higher education and research area, in line with the scientific and societal challenges specific to this region.

In this context, the Téthys network is a major lever for cooperation, structuring and energizing amU's partnerships with higher education establishments in the Mediterranean area.

Summary

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Useful links

Contacts

Téthys-amU team : 
tethys@univ-amu.fr

Camille de Garidel-Thoron, President of the Téthys network and Director of Strategic Projects and Networks:
camille.de-garidel@univ-amu.fr

Documents to download

Discover the Téthys network in pictures!

Building a Euro-Mediterranean Higher Education, Research and Innovation Area

As part of its Mediterranean strategy, amU promotes several thematic networks focusing on scientific issues and challenges such as climate (Mediterranean Experts on Climate and Environmental Change), law (Ecole Doctorale des Juristes Méditerranéens) and Mediterranean studies. Téthys, of which amU is a founding member, is a highly original institutional network.

It was in the context of the Barcelona Conference that the Consortium of Euro-Mediterranean Universities Téthys was created on January 28, 2000, to contribute to the Euro-Mediterranean partnership in higher education and research, with the aim ofensuring peace, stability and prosperity in the region.

This network makes it possible to undertake large-scale actions, with the support of national and European programs, for the benefit of young people on both sides of the Mediterranean. In the Mediterranean, as in the rest of the world, universities must be vectors of development, mobility and innovation.

A wide network of universities

Téthys brings together the leading universities in the Maghreb, Mashreq and Southern Europe.

Within the consortium, each partner is a full-fledged member, and plays an active role in teaching and research according to its own specificity.

Today, 100 universities in 22 countries around the Mediterranean are members of the network:

Albanian University - TIRANA

Université de Chypre / University of Cyprus - NICOSIA

University of Zakho - ZAKHO

University of Zakho - ZAKHO

Université de Malte / University of Malta - MALTE

Birzeit University / Université de Birzeit - BIRZEIT

Université Nouvelle de Lisbonne / New University of Lisbon - LISBOA

University of Ljubljana / Université de Ljubljana - LJUBLJANA

To strengthen cooperation between Euro-Mediterranean countries through knowledge-sharing, harmonization and cultural exchanges.

Assemblée Générale 2025 du réseau Téthys, Aix Marseille Université

Assemblée Générale 2025 du réseau Téthys, Aix Marseille Université


Téthys is at the heart of major Mediterranean events, taking part in those organized by international organizations (UPM, EU, UN agencies), government initiatives (Forum des Mondes Méditerranéens) and universities (UNIMED, international conferences). Téthys also organizes numerous annual meetings between its members.

The network's main missions are
  • To build a forum for cultural and scientific exchange, making a strong and lasting contribution to the construction of the Euro-Mediterranean Higher Education, Research and Innovation Area.
  • Strengthen cooperation between Euro-Mediterranean countries by sharing knowledge, harmonizing skills and exchanging cultures.

To drive large-scale international collaborative projects

-> Discover some examples of structuring projects


The strength of Téthys also lies in its contribution to the major challenges facing the Europe-Africa-Middle East zone, by bringing together partners with complementary and innovative fields of intervention in training and governance projects.

Taking advantage of its remarkable success in the field of higher education capacity building, the Téthys network has, since its launch, stimulated 33 collaborative projects, 27 of which have been financed by the European Commission, for a total of over 40 million euros.

-> Democratizing digital education and skills
AfriConnect+ is a joint capacity-building project designed with 12 partners in France, Morocco, Senegal and Romania. Coordinated by AMU's IUT, it began in June 2023 and will run until December 2026. Its main objective is to democratize education and skills in the digital domain. To achieve this goal, the project team will focus its efforts on 4 areas: transferring IoT (Internet of Things) skills, identifying and developing applications to create startups, supporting entrepreneurship, and strengthening links between universities, high schools and industry.

More information

-> Democratizing digital education and skills
AfriConnect+ is a joint capacity-building project designed with 12 partners in France, Morocco, Senegal and Romania. Coordinated by AMU's IUT, it began in June 2023 and will run until December 2026. Its main objective is to democratize education and skills in the digital domain. To achieve this goal, the project team will focus its efforts on 4 areas: transferring IoT (Internet of Things) skills, identifying and developing applications to create startups, supporting entrepreneurship, and strengthening links between universities, high schools and industry.

More information

-> For gender equality and empowerment
Women's Empowerment for LEADership in higher education and research, which aims to increase women's access to the highest decision-making positions within Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), is the CBHE ERASMUS + project developed within the framework of the Téthys Consortium of Euro-Mediterranean Universities. Coordinated by Aix-Marseille Université (AMU), the project brings together eight partners. Under the leadership of Isabelle Régner, Vice President for Equality between Women and Men and the Fight against Discrimination at AMU, the WE4LEAD project aims to contribute to a fully inclusive governance and management of HEIs, notably through the dissemination of a culture of equality between women and men.
It was launched in March 2023 for a three-year period.

More info

-> For gender equality and empowerment
Women's Empowerment for LEADership in higher education and research, which aims to increase women's access to the highest decision-making positions within Higher Education Institutions (HEIs), is the CBHE ERASMUS + project developed within the framework of the Téthys Consortium of Euro-Mediterranean Universities. Coordinated by Aix-Marseille Université (AMU), the project brings together eight partners. Under the leadership of Isabelle Régner, Vice President for Equality between Women and Men and the Fight against Discrimination at AMU, the WE4LEAD project aims to contribute to a fully inclusive governance and management of HEIs, notably through the dissemination of a culture of equality between women and men.
It was launched in March 2023 for a three-year period.

More info

-> European project desigN and management in the South MediTerranean region for Coordination and Capacity Building
EuNIT was a joint project involving 16 partners from the Téthys network. Coordinated by amU, it also came to an end in October 2019 at the end of a 3-year funding period. It responded to the priority of Internationalization of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the South East Mediterranean, particularly in Jordan, Lebanon and Libya. The overall aim of the project was to enable HEIs in partner countries to build sustainable international partnerships and maximize their internationalization efforts. Train-the-trainer programs and practical internships were carried out in 2017; these measures enabled the eight partners to acquire the skills needed to set up and manage project set-up and management units with institutions in the southern Mediterranean.

More info

-> European project desigN and management in the South MediTerranean region for Coordination and Capacity Building
EuNIT was a joint project involving 16 partners from the Téthys network. Coordinated by amU, it also came to an end in October 2019 at the end of a 3-year funding period. It responded to the priority of Internationalization of Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the South East Mediterranean, particularly in Jordan, Lebanon and Libya. The overall aim of the project was to enable HEIs in partner countries to build sustainable international partnerships and maximize their internationalization efforts. Train-the-trainer programs and practical internships were carried out in 2017; these measures enabled the eight partners to acquire the skills needed to set up and manage project set-up and management units with institutions in the southern Mediterranean.

More info

-> Coordination, Academic Solutions for the Euro-Mediterranean Territory, Leader of Innovations and Technology Transfers of Excellence.
SATELIT was an Erasmus+ capacity-building project involving 21 partners (universities, ministries, chambers of commerce, public bodies, etc.) from the Mediterranean basin (Algeria, Spain, France, Italy, Morocco and Tunisia).
The main aim of the project was to strengthen the capacities of partner universities in the Maghreb region in terms of innovation, technology transfer and research valorization, so that they could become pilot universities in their respective countries. SATELIT has made it possible to propose solutions at local level (exchange of best practices), at national level (transfer of skills), and at Mediterranean level (creation of a regional cluster), by mobilizing the region's driving forces and key players.

More info

-> Coordination, Academic Solutions for the Euro-Mediterranean Territory, Leader of Innovations and Technology Transfers of Excellence.
SATELIT was an Erasmus+ capacity-building project involving 21 partners (universities, ministries, chambers of commerce, public bodies, etc.) from the Mediterranean basin (Algeria, Spain, France, Italy, Morocco and Tunisia).
The main aim of the project was to strengthen the capacities of partner universities in the Maghreb region in terms of innovation, technology transfer and research valorization, so that they could become pilot universities in their respective countries. SATELIT has made it possible to propose solutions at local level (exchange of best practices), at national level (transfer of skills), and at Mediterranean level (creation of a regional cluster), by mobilizing the region's driving forces and key players.

More info

-> To strengthen relations between higher education and the socio-economic world.
(partnership)
The project has significantly strengthened relations between higher education and the socio-economic world in the Maghreb, stimulating entrepreneurship and innovation.

More info

-> To strengthen relations between higher education and the socio-economic world.
(partnership)
The project has significantly strengthened relations between higher education and the socio-economic world in the Maghreb, stimulating entrepreneurship and innovation.

More info

(partnership)
Auditum accelerated the introduction of an internal control and audit system in Moroccan universities.

More info

(partnership)
Auditum accelerated the introduction of an internal control and audit system in Moroccan universities.

More info

-> Facing the polycrisis in Europe and Africa
Jean Monnet partnership network coordinated by the Université Libre de Bruxelles, made up of 21 universities: 11 CIVIS universities, 6 CIVIS African strategic partners and 4 other African universities.
PolyCIVIS paves the way for new partnerships with African universities, putting science at the forefront of global challenges.

More info

-> Facing the polycrisis in Europe and Africa
Jean Monnet partnership network coordinated by the Université Libre de Bruxelles, made up of 21 universities: 11 CIVIS universities, 6 CIVIS African strategic partners and 4 other African universities.
PolyCIVIS paves the way for new partnerships with African universities, putting science at the forefront of global challenges.

More info

Strengthening student and teacher exchanges through targeted partnerships


Téthys is also a vast space for exchanges between students, doctoral students, teachers and staff from the network's member institutions.

Thanks to the Erasmus+ program's International Credit Mobility (ICM) scheme dedicated to collaborations with partners outside Europe, they can benefit from incoming and outgoing mobility grants for study stays, internships, training or teaching.

Since the initiative was launched by the European Union in 2015, amU has secured MIC contracts every year, enabling it to significantly strengthen its collaborations with strategic partners in Africa and the Mediterranean.

Téthys General Assemblies

Every year, all the universities in the network come together for a general assembly, held in a different country each time. This event is an opportunity to present initiatives, organize exchanges and invite partner institutions: the European Commission and the Union for the Mediterranean, academic networks and associations.

In June 2025, the General Assembly was held at Aix Marseille Université, bringing together 60 representatives from 30 universities and 8 Mediterranean countries (Algeria, Spain, France, Italy, Lebanon, Northern Macedonia, Morocco and Tunisia). During the event, six universities from four countries (Algeria, France, Northern Macedonia, Spain) joined the network.

At the same time, the network organized a doctoral workshop bringing together more than 30 doctoral students from various consortium member universities. Participants worked together on the theme " What can Mediterranean universities do to tackle climate change?

Discover the Téthys student network!

Téthys aims to encourage the emergence of proposals and initiatives from students at member universities, by creating a framework conducive to meetings and discussions. At the first "Téthys Étudiants" meeting in 2022, a declaration was promulgated on student perspectives for multidimensional cooperation between Mediterranean universities.

Students were able to work on making the student network a reality, and a Tunisian-French initiative was launched as part of the Entrepreneurship & Sustainable Development summer school organized by the University of Sousse in 2023.

Train with Téthys!

Since 2022, training courses have been offered through the Téthys network to help students discover the Erasmus+ program and its opportunities. To date, 130 teacher-researchers and administrative staff in Morocco and Tunisia have benefited from this program.