In 1988, the Interfaculty Committee Agraria (ICA) was first formally registered in Belgium with the aim to facilitate co-operation between faculties of agriculture in European universities, although the asscoiation was craeted in 1987. 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 changed 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 circular bioeocnomy (agriculture, forestry, food, and the biobased economy), the sustainable use of natural resources, the protection of the environment and rural development. 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 currently located at the Czech University of Life Sciences (CZU). .
Past Presidents of ICA
1988 - 1990: Bruno Ostergaard, Danske Andelsselskaber, Copenhagen
1990 - 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
2011 - 2016: Dean Guido van Huylenbroeck, Faculty of Bioscience Engineering, Ghent University, Belgium
2016 - 2020: Professor Marek S Szyndel, Warsaw University of Life Sciences, Poland
2020 - 2023: Rector Magnificus Arthur Mol, Wageningen University and Research, The Netherlands
2023 - Rector, Vice Chancellor, Maria Knutson Wedel, Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, Uppsala, Sweden