COSMOS
Erasmus Mundus Master's Program in Community Sport and Movement for Social Transformation
Project Funding: EU Erasmus+
Sports and physical activity cultures have a unique capacity to address the challenges of the 21st century associated with ongoing social inclusion and transformation processes at the individual, organizational, and societal levels. In particular, locally organized community sports and physical activity programs possess this positive capacity to a great extent. These accessible sports and movement hubs can offer individuals and groups of all ages and backgrounds an inclusive, safe, and supportive environment in which to be physically active, thrive, and feel a sense of belonging. Furthermore, community sports and movement cultures are cultural expressions that can provide a multitude of individual and social benefits—especially for marginalized and “at-risk” groups in society. Taken together, sports and movement cultures constitute an important platform for addressing, among other things, Sustainable Development Goals 3, 4, and 10.
This 15-month Erasmus Mundus Design Measure project therefore aims to jointly develop a fully integrated, two-year international Erasmus Mundus Master’s program in Community Sport and Movement for Social Transformation (COSMOS). The planned design initiative for this joint master’s degree program brings together an international consortium of six higher education institutions in Europe and Brazil. Through a collaborative and participatory process, we combine extensive academic and practical knowledge to address the urgent issues of social inclusion, transformation, and marginalization through community development, sports, and movement cultures.
By combining our expertise with that of our associated partners to co-create a vibrant learning environment, we aim to educate the next generations of professional leaders in the fields of community development, sports, and movement cultures. In doing so, we contribute to strengthening international exchange as a driver of innovation in the European Higher Education Area and help foster excellence and transnational partnerships among higher education institutions.
Contacts
Project Leadership
DSHS Project Team
Prof. Dr. Karen Petry Prof. Dr. David Jaitner
Prof. Dr. Claudia Steinberg Prof. Dr. Sabine Reuker
Prof. Dr. Bettina Rulofs
Project Partners
Suzanne Lundvall Heléne Bergentoft
Catherine Carthy Michael Hall
Arnošt Svoboda Ognjen Brborović
Simona ŠAFAŘÍKOVÁ Hana Brborović
Enrico Fuini Puggina Renato Francisco Rodrigues Marques
News from the COSMOS Project
On February 9 and 10, 2026, the international consortium gathered at the German Sport University Cologne (DSHS) for the kick-off meeting of the Community Sport and Movement for Social Transformation (COSMOS) project. As part of the EU-funded Erasmus Mundus Design Measure, the partner universities are jointly developing an international master’s program that enables students to study at several renowned universities simultaneously. The kick-off meeting was organized by the Institute for European Sports Development and Leisure Research and the Institute for Sociology and Gender Studies. The Institutes for Dance and Movement Culture, Sports Didactics and School Sports, and Pedagogy and Philosophy at the DSHS also served as co-hosts.
Together with partners from Palacký University Olomouc, the University of Gothenburg, Münster Technological University, the University of Zagreb School of Medicine, and the University of São Paulo, the program’s content and structural framework for the development of the joint international master’s program was established.
On November 27, 2025, the Erasmus Mundus Design Measure “Community Sport and Movement for Social Transformation” (COSMOS) officially launched.
The online kick-off event, featuring international partner institutions from the Czech Republic, Croatia, Ireland, Sweden, and Brazil, provided all participants with an initial overview of the project timeline, upcoming tasks and meetings, and the intended goals. In an interactive session, the partners also exchanged views on their understanding of “community sport” to lay the groundwork for a shared conceptual foundation.
As a special highlight, the newly designed logo for the COSMOS project was also unveiled.
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