Gitte Adler Reimer is the rector of Ilisimatusarfik. Here, she and Martin Tvede Zachariasen, rector of the University of the Faroe Islands, shake hands following the signing of a formal cooperation agreement.
Formal Partnership Between the Faroese and Greenlandic Universities
Today, a partnership agreement was signed between the University of the Faroe Islands and Ilisimatusarfik in Greenland. The agreement lays the groundwork for cooperation in teaching, research, and administration between the two universities.
- This agreement is not going to sit in a drawer – it will be brought to life in practice.
These were the words of Gitte Adler Reimer, rector of the University of Greenland, smiling as she and the Faroese rector signed the new agreement earlier today.
The agreement, which will initially run for five years, aims to strengthen ties between the Faroe Islands and Greenland, with a focus on advancing knowledge and education in the North Atlantic region.
A cornerstone of the agreement is the mobility of academic staff between the two universities in order to foster interdisciplinary knowledge exchange. This includes short-term teaching exchanges, guest lectures, and larger collaborative research projects. The universities also plan to work together on administrative and technical matters, sharing knowledge on mutual interests such as the development of new academic programmes, enhancing student services, assuring educational quality, and collaborating on doctoral education.
In November last year, staff from the University of the Faroe Islands visited Ilisimatusarfik in Greenland. The visit was part of a project funded by the Nordic Council of Ministers aimed at establishing an “administrative network among small universities in the Arctic.”
The programme included workshops, meetings, and information exchanges designed to identify key areas for future cooperation. Since then, the two institutions have been in dialogue about the contents of the new partnership agreement, which will also support joint applications for Arctic research funding — an area of shared interest.
Gitte Adler Reimer did not come to the Faroe Islands empty-handed. She brought with her a traditional Greenlandic ulu — a handcrafted knife historically used by Greenlandic women for skinning seals and other animals. The handle is made of pine, and the decorative figures carved from reindeer antler. The gift was warmly received by the rector of the Faroese university.
