ConnectED History
From the Digital Teaching Network to a sustained academic ecosystem
The turning point
What began as an urgent initiative matured into a network with shared values, trusted cooperation, and the capacity to keep growing beyond one project cycle.Timeline: From DTN to ConnectED
The ConnectED Network builds on several years of German–Ukrainian academic collaboration. What started as a rapid response to wartime challenges has grown into a long-term university network built on trust, co-creation and shared goals.The journey begins
The Ukrainian–German Digital Teaching Network (DTN) was launched with three partner universities to support the continuity of environmental education during wartime. While the initial focus was digital teaching, it also laid the foundation for long-term academic cooperation.
Building an academic community
The network expanded through joint online courses, staff mobilities, digital teaching workshops, collaborative project development and knowledge exchange. New universities and organisations joined, transforming DTN into an active German–Ukrainian academic community.
From network to ConnectED
As cooperation deepened, the need for a more structured and sustainable collaboration mode emerged. ConnectED was established as the next stage of the network — expanding its mission beyond digital teaching towards research collaboration, institutional development and long-term academic partnerships.
Growing together
Today, ConnectED brings together over 200 active individual members and partner organisations. The network continues to develop joint educational initiatives, research collaborations, academic mobility and capacity-building activities, creating new opportunities for universities to learn, innovate and grow together.
What the network built
The DTN period created a strong base of collaboration, learning resources, and evidence-driven development that ConnectED continues to extend.From Germany, Ukraine, and Slovakia by 2025.
Digital courses, materials, and immersive formats.
Registered learners and educators on the DTN Moodle platform.
Workshop and webinar participants in digital pedagogy and innovation.
Students, lecturers, and managers informing network development.
Evidence from 2022-2025
- Around 60 digital learning products were developed and made available through the DTN
- Moodle platform, an inter-university space for informal learning designed for ecologists, environmental professionals, and those working towards positive change.
- More than 2,000 educators and academic staff participated in workshops and webinars on digital pedagogy, media production, and innovative teaching approaches.
- Four annual surveys and focus groups conducted between 2022 and 2025 engaged over 1,600 participants, helping align activities with institutional needs and strategic development.