In 1988, the Interfaculty Committee Agraria (ICA) was formed with the aim to facilitate co-operation between faculties of agriculture in European universities. The organisation was re-constituted as the Inter-university Conference for Agriculture and Related Sciences in Europe in 1996, the first in a series of modifications of the association’s name, mission and geographical scope. In 1999, the organisation adopted the name Interuniversity Consortium for Agricultural and Related Sciences in Europe.

Leopold Maerz addressing the inaugral conference in 1996 relaunching ICA set out The need for a collective a approach to be made by universities of agriculture and related sceinces in Europe.

In 2006, the ICA General Assembly chnaged the name to the Association for European Life Science Universities, the name under which the association is known today.  This latest change reflects ICA’s ambitions as a modern association addressing all disciplines relating to agriculture, forestry, food, natural resources, rural development and the environment. Thus mirroring the ongoing shift in scientific scope of ICA’s member institutions from the classical agricultural and related sciences.

ICA has its registered office in Ghent and a Secretariat normally located at the address of the President. As the President is subject to change, the address of the latter is itinerant, too.

Downlaod the ICA flyer

Past Presidents of ICA

         - 1996: Wouter H Douma, Wageningen University, The Netherlands

1996 - 2003: Rector Cees Karssen, Wageningen University, The Netherlands

2003 - 2007: Former Rector Leopold Maerz, University of Natural Resources and Applied Life Sciences (BOKU), Austria

2007 - 2008: Professor Maurice Boland, College Principal, College of Life Sciences, University College Dublin, Ireland

2008 - 2010: Dean Per Holten-Andersen, Faculty of Life Sciences, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

2010 - 2011: Philippe Choquet, President, Institut Polytechnique LaSalle Beauvais, Beauvais, France