According to the Wonkhe blog, we learned about a project conducted by the University of Lincoln, where the starting premise of the plan was: what purpose do universities serve? After research, they deduced that universities, being the hub of research, teaching activities, and knowledge exchange, should be uniquely positioned to aid society in adapting to 21st-century disruptions.
After an interview with Andy Haldane, the Chief Economist at the Bank of England stated, “I have suggested that one response to increased complexity, plurality, and uncertainty could be the development of multiversity rather than university.” “A transformed institution that can work across divides to support both the population’s lifelong reskilling and the issues of uneven adoption of technology by expanding the role of technology diffusion in their work with local businesses.”
The Challenges
Several grand challenges have offered new perspectives for the sector to think differently and come up with new ways to help support future generations. They include the following:
How do we nurture and develop a cooperative global society?
How do we find and share globalization opportunities to counteract discontent?
How do we develop leaders who look beyond the immediate?
How do we transition to and advocate for a greener economy and a sustainable way of life?
Renewed Purpose for Universities
Universities responsible for knowledge creation must take on the responsibility of supporting our nation and helping the next generation change the world. And the first step starts with solving the Adobe challenges.
Exchanging knowledge through collaboration
Knowledge is much more dispersed in the 21st century, enabling us to learn from our businesses and, through collaboration, come up with new knowledge to support institutions in developing and coming to terms with new technologies effectively. We also need to create and engage translators with skills who can bridge the languages of the wider world and the academy.
Going Above and Beyond With Research and Innovation
Inter-, multi-, and post-disciplinary knowledge is the key to solving intricate global problems. Hence, we need to transgress our boundaries to think about global and cross-sector collaboration. And focus on concepts of how leadership in business can work through research to slow things down in a fast-paced world so that we can come up with answers for big and long-term questions.
Addressing the Root Causes of the Sustainability Crisis
The decisions we make now, and in the next decade, will determine whether or not we are able to avert the worst-case scenarios regarding climate change, biodiversity loss, political polarization, and global security. In other words, the worsening sustainability crisis.
This is where educational and business leaders like Dr. Anneloes Smitsman come in: a highly acclaimed Dutch futurist, systems scientist, and award-winning pioneer in human development and system change. Many of you might even know her for the EARTHwise Constitution for a Planetary Civilization, which she recently launched to inspire solutions and collaborations that we need in modern society, and endorsed by a growing movement of organizations, networks, and universities.
She is the leader and CEO of the EARTHwise Centre, a non-profit company that provides education, capacity development, leadership, governance, research, and system design for a thriving world and future.
Through years of relentless research and pioneering work, Smitsman is unique in how she has significantly contributed through a wide range of fields, including education, leadership, systems science, regenerative economics, and more. This makes her an ideal role model to learn from. .
