Background: Amber Road
Amber is not a precious gem but a semi-precious stone, more accurately, the hardened resin that fell millions of years ago from the now extinct European pine trees. When a tree is injured, it releases sap, which is then washed downstream. Over several million years, this sap hardened, often with insects or plants trapped within – voilà, amber. It is found in yellow, gold, orange, reddish brown and white, but a shade between yellow and orange is typical – the chroma colour that derives its name from the material: amber. The German word for amber is Bernstein or “burn stone”, in reference to the pleasant scent amber emits when heated.
Amber is a special stone with many facets. In 600 BC, the Greeks discovered that amber, when rubbed with a woollen cloth, can attract other objects. Amber is also incredibly light and does not sink in seawater, even in turbulent water, so, the stone either ends up on the shore or buried in the sand. Some amber stones are clear, while others are opaque due to tiny bubbles inside the gemstone. This type of amber is less valuable; to make it clear, the amber is placed in boiling water with oil.
From around 3000 BC, amber was brought from the Baltic coast to Europe and beyond, transported by traders and travellers on a series of routes that intersected with the Salt and Silk Roads. The resinous gem reached as far as Egypt, adorning the chest jewellery of Tutankhamun. Baltic amber has also been found in Mycenae in Greece and in the royal tomb of Qatna in Syria. Amber is not to be confused with ambergris (sperm whale excretions), although the two share still share a name in some countries to this day. Amber is also found and mined in other parts of the world, but nowhere is there such a massive outcrop of amber as on the coasts of the Baltic Sea.
The metaphor of the Amber Road works on many levels for StudyEU Amber Road: the vision of the European Union, like a precious stone, is present and important; the reality, however, is a valuable but changeable semi-precious stone that can reveal uncanny beauty, but can also be destroyed. Like the European Union, it must therefore be cultivated, traded, disseminated, and adapted, processed, and integrated into life in many places and regions in Europe – especially where cultures and histories are different, amber and its many different facets connect. The Amber Road can be a strong backbone, an amplifier of common European values and endeavours between East and West, North and South.

Our Acronym

“Stud” hints at our comprehensive, in-depth approach of placing students at the centre of our “student-driven” alliance.
In the form of “Study” (with the addition of “y”, symbolising youth), “studying” itself is emphasised.
The “St” in “Study” also represents our determination to strengthen; it is in all honesty not about creating something genuinely new, but very much about improving, renewing and strengthening something that already exists and needs attention and development.
The “higher education lifecycle” is at the centre of our mission; it is the basis of the work packages, which deal with the entire lifecycle of a person in higher education, from interest in studying to lifelong learning.
This person is addressed in a focused manner in the alliance as a “future EUropean professional”: the most important cornerstone in the regions of the European Union, a professional who resiliently ensures economic stability and development, drives innovation, takes a sustainable approach to the environment and integrates new technologies such as artificial intelligence locally and regionally.
As such, the “future EUropean professional” is the nucleus of the university and the region along the Amber Road, that important region in Europe connecting east and west, north and south.

Our Logo
The alliance, rooted in the legacy of the Amber Road, seeks to draw inspiration from the historical richness of the ancient trade route. By doing so, it endeavours to deepen understanding from north to south and east to west, and vice versa, acknowledging the cultural nuances and shared heritage that have shaped the identities of the regions along the Amber Road.
The logo equally highlights this strong connection between north, south, east and west, whereby the “Y” signifies the Amber Road that has been – in comparison to the ancient route – slightly moved to the north-west and south-west in order to increase geographical balance and respond to current political events. The colour beneath “Amber Road”, as well as the colours in all graphs and this document in general, relate to the ancient Amber stone, which can unfold uncanny beauty, but can also be destroyed and therefore – like the European Union and its values – must be cultivated, disseminated, adapted, and integrated into life in many places and regions in Europe, because especially where cultures and histories are different, amber and its many different facets connect.

Our Spirit
The long-term goal of StudyEU Amber Road is to bring together nine universities into one. A unit we have already become, step by step. Some of these steps began many years ago between individual partners; other partners came to know and appreciate each other in this constellation for the first time last year in countless workshops and retreats. The thrilling result is a shared, dynamic and almost infectious „Amber spirit“ that goes far beyond expectations and has turned strangers into partners and even friends. The passion with which the representatives and students of all universities have contributed to our first common goal – submitting the application – is amazing, admirable and, apart from its practical value, also a wonderful idealistic sign of European cooperation and appreciation in turbulent times.
We, the people at this European University, want to move towards a common future in order to create added value in and for Europe – hopefully with the support of the European Union.
Some impressions of this spirit are provided by snapshots from our recent week-long on-site meeting in Riga, where final decisions were made and many details finalised for StudyEU Amber Road:


