The “Birmingham-Illinois Partnership for Discovery, Engagement and Education” (BRIDGE) was signed in March 2014 by the University of Birmingham’s Vice Chancellor and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign’s Chancellor at the University of Illinois. The BRIDGE agreement establishes a framework for creative knowledge exchange across disciplines through frequent, purposeful, face-to-face meetings between faculty, staff and students at both undergraduate and graduate levels. What makes the BRIDGE partnership so distinctive is that it is genuinely multi-disciplinary, with over 115 cross-faculty links spanning Biosciences, Economic and Physical Geography, Psychology, Neuroscience, Environmental Genomics, Railway Engineering, Maths, Mechanical Engineering, Chemistry, American & Canadian Studies, Classics, History of Art, African Studies, Cultural Heritage and Education.
Birmingham gained its royal charter in 1900 and has been challenging and developing great minds for more than a century. Characterised by a tradition of innovation, research at the University has broken new ground, pushed forward the boundaries of knowledge and made an impact on people’s lives.
Since its founding in 1867, the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign has earned a reputation as a world-class leader in research, teaching, and public engagement with a mission to enhance the lives of citizens in the State of Illinois, across the nation and around the world through their leadership in learning, discovery, engagement and economic development.