Its membership comprises 500 universities or equivalent institutions of higher education in 36 countries. It provides a forum for discussions on academic policy and the institutional development of universities, including their role within European society. CRE organizes bi-annual conferences, training seminars for newly appointed university heads, and other meetings on issues of interest to its members. It also runs a number of inter-university cooperation programmes. Priority areas for the time being are comparative environmental law, resource economics, and public health.
Future plans involve launching environmental networks in other regions of Europe.