After brexit

This paper presents a discussion of the main issues involved in the Brexit decision and negotiations for Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation both for the EU and the UK. It analyses the challenges posed by the results of the British referendum in 2016, providing current data and figures about students, faculty, research and funding and how it might affect the future relations between the EU countries and the UK after 2019. In view of the new avenues opened after Brexit for higher education, research and innovation in the UK and the EU, it also addresses the current conditions and challenges of cooperation between Europe and Latin America and the Caribbean. The author, who is President of a birregional academic initiative, the Academic Permanent Forum for Latin America, Caribbean and the European Union (FAP ALC-UE), offers a summary of the main steps taken by this organization since 2012, which have led to the presentation of proposals to the political summits of Heads of State and Government of CELAC and the EU in Santiago de Chile (2013) and Brussels (2015). This is a grass-root movement constituted by members of universities and research centres in both regions whose main purpose is to put forward proposals for the establishment of a Common Birregional Area for Higher Education, Science, Technology and Innovation.