Colleagues from various European countries were invited to an international lecture series at the University of Duisburg-Essen to talk about trends in adult and continuing education. Looking back on this lecture series, we intend to examine different approaches to the term ?trend? as well as to outline results of current research in adult and continuing education. We will then give an overview of main arguments of the essays presented in the following. Finally, common trends in European adult and continuing education are drawn out.