The ERASMUS Story

By the late 1970s, opportunities to study across borders in Europe were limited. Universities operated within national systems, and mobility was difficult to access. At the same time, the European Commission began developing a framework for cooperation in education, led by Hywel Ceri Jones, Head of the European Commission’s Department for Education and Youth.

Through the European Institute of Education and later the Office for Cooperation in Education in Brussels, the European Cultural Foundation worked with the European Commission to design early mobility schemes. This involved coordinating institutions across countries and establishing the systems needed to support exchange.

When ERASMUS was launched in 1987, the European Cultural Foundation, through the Erasmus Bureau, managed its implementation until 1994 under the leadership of Alan Smith. As Alan Smith wrote, “Erasmus is widely regarded as one of the most important cultural initiatives in post-war Europe. It was also an eye-catching public success for European policymaking,” reflecting how sustained cooperation translated into a programme of continental scale.

Over time, this work shaped how Europe is experienced by those who participate in it. Students formed relationships, navigated differences and built familiarity across borders. It is in these shared experiences that culture brings people together in practice, creating the everyday interactions through which trust, participation and a sense of belonging develop.

For many participants, these experiences became defining moments in their lives. Living in a different country, navigating unfamiliar systems and building friendships across cultures reshaped how they understood themselves and others. These individual journeys coalesced into something larger: a generation for whom Europe is not an abstraction but something lived, remembered, and carried forward into their personal and professional lives.