Who We Are


General Council & Board

Aurora has a General Council which consists of the rectors/presidents of the Aurora universities – or their formal representatives. The General Council meets twice a year. 

In addition to the General Council, Aurora has a board of four rectors and presidents who are charged with the management of the association. As of May 2022 the board composition is:

Jón Atli Benediktsson

Aurora President and chair of the Aurora Board

Rector and President of the University of Iceland

David Richardson

Aurora Board member and Treasurer

Vice-Chancellor of the University of East-Anglia

Mirjam van Praag

Aurora Board member

President of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

Martin Procházka

Aurora Board member

Rector of Palacký University Olomouc

Alma Ágústsdóttir

Aurora Student Council President and Board member

Student Council International relations officer at the University of Iceland

Barbara Albert

Rector of the University of Duisburg-Essen

Veronika Sexl

Rector of Universität Innsbruck

Matteo Lorito

Rector of the University Federico II of Naples

Aurora Coordinators

Institutional coordinators

Each Aurora university has an “institutional coordinator” who monitors the Aurora activities in their own institution as well as in the network. Below you will find an overview of the institutional coordinators per university. 

Esmee Paques

VU Amsterdam

e.m.paques(at)vu.nl

Fanney Karlsdóttir

University of Iceland

fanneyk(at)hi.is

Thomas Baumgartner

University of Innsbruck

thomas.baumgartner(at)uibk.ac.at

Friðrika Harðardóttir

University of Iceland

fridrika(at)hi.is

Alessandro Arienzo

University of Naples Federico II

alessandro.arienzo(at)unina.it

Helena Gillespie

University of East Anglia

h.gillespie(at)uea.ac.uk

Petra Günther

University of Duisburg-Essen

petra.guenther(at)uni-due.de

Joan Miquel Canals

Universitat Rovira i Virgili

jmcanals(at)urv.cat

Selma Porobic

Palacky University Olomouc

selma.porobic(at)upol.cz

Anne-Karen Hüske

Copenhagen Business School

ahu.msc(at)cbs.dk

Dr Eylem Atakav

University of East Anglia

e.atakav(at)uea.ac.uk

Aurora Central Office

Aurora is supported by a small central office consisting of six team members:

Anne-May Janssen

Secretary-General

a.m.j.p.janssen(at)vu.nl

Sabine Sainte-Rose

Programme Director

sabine.SR(at)aurora-network.global

Auður Inga Rúnarsdóttir

Project Manager for Research and Innovation

air(at)hi.is

Pim de Boer

EU Liaison Officer

pim.de.boer(at)aurora-network.global

Elham Shayegh

Educational Developer

e.shayegh(at)vu.nl

Maria José Montaña Correa

Office Manager

info(at)aurora-network.global

Anna Klas

Communications Officer

a.r.c.klas(at)vu.nl

Christy Clabots

Office Assistant

c.a.clabots(at)vu.nl 

Aurora Student Council

Aurora Student Council consists of two elected student representatives from each university, who collectively decide on student priorities within Aurora. The council is led by the elected president and vice-president. 

Alma Ágústsdóttir

Aurora Student President – University of Iceland

internationalcommittee(at)hi.is

Hanus Patera

Aurora Vice-President – Palacký University Olomouc

hanus.patera(at)gmail.com

Ivo Graham

Aurora Student Council Secretary – University of East Anglia

i.garnham(at)uea.ac.uk 

Michel Breuer

ASC member – University of Duisburg Essen

Michel.Breuer(at)asta-due.de

Serene Shibli

ASC member – University of East Anglia

S.Shibli-Sexton(at)uea.ac.uk

Elise Page

ASC member – University of East Anglia

e.page(at)uea.ac.uk

Anna-Maria Weiß

ASC member University of Innsbruck

Vorsitz3-oeh(at)uibk.ac.at

Lukas Schobesberger

ASC member – Universität Innsbruck

Vorsitz2-oeh(at)uibk.ac.at

Imane Boussof Sbai

ASC member – Universtat Rovira i Virgili

imaneboussofs(at)hotmail.com

Xènia Roviralta

ASC member – Universtat Rovira i Virgili

xenia.roviraltai(at)estudiants.urv.cat

Vincent Mesrine

ASC member – Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

mesrinev(at)gmail.com

Sumeyye Dalkiran

ASC member – Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam

sumeyye.dalkiran.usr(at)vu.nl

Hanus Patera

ASC member – Palacký University Olomouc

hanus.patera(at)gmail.com

Gréta Dögg Þórisdóttir

ASC member – University of Iceland

varaforsetishi(at)hi.is

Gaetano Loffredo

ASC member – University of Naples Federico II

ga.loffredo(at)studenti.unina.it

Gaia Nunes

ASC member – University of Naples Federico II

gaiangn(at)outlook.com

Lucie Badurova

ASC member – Palacký University Olomouc

lucy.badurova(at)gmail.com

Fantin Lowenstein

ASC member – Universite Paris-Est Créteil

fantin.lowenstein(at)u-pec.fr

Andréa Gaucher

ASC member – Université Paris-Est Créteil

andreagaucher1601(at)gmail.com

Katharina Roxane Kühr

ASC member – Copenhagen Business School

Krk.msc(at)cbs.dk