The U7+ Alliance of World Universities convened in Paris for its annual Presidential Summit on April 14¨C15, 2026. Hosted by Sciences Po, Universit¨¦ Paris Cit¨¦, and ?cole Polytechnique, ÎçÒ¹¾ç³¡¡¯s delegation was led by President Kohei Itoh, who currently serves as Chair of the U7+ Alliance, and Professor Motohiro Tsuchiya, the Vice-President for Global Engagement.
Established at the initiative of President Emmanuel Macron in 2019, the U7+ Alliance has grown to include 48 universities from 19 countries. At this year¡¯s summit, the Alliance was officially recognized as a G7 Engagement Group, a significant milestone in the organization¡¯s ongoing efforts.
On April 14, President Itoh met President Macron at the Palais de l¡¯?lys¨¦e, where he formally presented the U7+ 2026 Communiqu¨¦ in his role as Alliance chair. Titled ¡°The Social Role of Universities in a Divided World,¡± the document defines universities as ¡°guardians and pillars of democratic societies¡± and calls upon G7 governments to engage universities as key strategic partners in addressing the complex global challenges of our time.
President Macron reaffirmed his steadfast commitment to supporting ¡°free and independent science and academic freedom.¡± He praised the public role of universities in countering the misinformation and digital manipulation prevalent in the media and on social networks with evidence-based reasoning and scientific fact.
During a thematic panel discussion on dual-use research in universities held at the summit, President Itoh led a dialogue on the ways universities can balance their contributions to international trust and global security with the preservation of scientific independence.