Recording: Engagement Endangered

What is the future of university-community engagement in Australia?

Australian universities are hubs for our communities. As public institutions, it’s important that we actively support positive social change beyond the campus – contributing to communities both local and global through research, education and practice. Community-engaged research and learning offers universities the chance to step outside the ivory tower and exchange knowledge reciprocally with society.

2020 has presented a multitude of pressing challenges. From bushfires, floods and the climate crisis, to racial and income inequality, along with COVID-19. The pandemic has been disastrous, but could it be a catalyst for transforming the old model of the relationships that universities hold with communities?

University sector experts joined us to discuss how universities can continue to support communities and prioritise their needs in the face of ongoing uncertainty – when the very definition of a university in Australia is in dispute. Watch the webinar recording here.

For a quick reference to the issues discussed, artist Alan Chen has created a visual graphic of the event highlights:

Speakers

Professor Attila Brungs, Vice-Chancellor and President of the University of Technology Sydney
Professor James Arvanitakis, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Engagement) at Western Sydney University
Angela Barney-Leitch, Pro Vice-Chancellor (Indigenous Strategy) at Queensland University of Technology
Professor Stan Grant Jnr, Vice-Chancellor's Chair of Australian-Indigenous Belonging at Charles Sturt University
Facilitated by the Hon. Verity Firth, Executive Director of Social Justice at UTS.