European higher education is increasingly shaped by the need for cross-institutional collaboration, knowledge sharing, and joint capacity building. European University Alliances are designed around long-term transnational cooperation between higher education institutions and increasingly connect staff, students, researchers, and external partners across institutional and national boundaries (European Commission, n.d.). This creates a need for participatory formats that do not only disseminate information, but also allow participants to exchange experiences, compare practices, and co-create insights.  

The World Café format responds to this need by offering a structured participatory method for dialogue and mutual learning.  

This activity plan supports organisers who want to use the World Café format for professional development, dissemination, and knowledge exchange across CHARM-EU and other European University Alliances. It provides guidance for designing online World Cafés around complex educational topics where knowledge is distributed across institutions, roles, and disciplines.