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Do we need to reinvent democratic societies in Europe, the US and elsewhere where democracy seems to be “up and running”? And if so, how can the sector of higher education contribute? What would be the role of university leaders, professors, students and administration workers? Do we talk about a democratization of higher education institutions or about fostering interaction between these institutions and the societies they are part of in order to strengthen democratic culture and institutions on a local, national and global level – or both?

These questions might arise, when reading the title of the international conference “Reimagining Democratic Societies – A new era of personal and social responsibility?” which was held at the University of Oslo June 27-29, 2011.

The conference was organized by the Council of Europe; the US Steering Committee of the International Consortium for Higher Education, Civic Responsibility and Democracy; the University of Oslo and The European Wergeland Centre (EWC), in cooperation with the International Association of Universities and supported by the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research.

The aims and objectives of the conference were:

• To strengthen the role of higher education in furthering democratic citizenship

• To identify concretely the role that higher education can play in reimagining democratic  societies

• To stress the importance of the involvement of the different stakeholders: academic, administrations, students, local communities

• To develop further strategies to strengthen this role

The composition of the conference contributed to a broad variety of perspectives on the questions raised above – among the 150 speakers and participants were higher education leaders and representatives of public authorities from the United States and Europe with some participants also from other parts of the world as well as from NGOs. There were, thus, representation of different cultures of higher education involvement in civil society, civic culture and community affairs.

So, back to the central topic of the conference: how was the role of higher education in renewing and strengthening democratic societies interpreted?

To start with, some crucial questions on the present “state” of Western democracies were provoked by the conference title; Do we assume that democracy has already been realized and only needs to be kept alive or do we assume that democracy by its nature is an aspiration that by principle cannot be realized (and, thus, constantly needs to be reimagined)? Do we think and talk about one master version of democracy or multiple democracies? To narrow down the idea of democracy to only one model would turn the idea into ideology. Keeping democracy alive needs, therefore, constant debate and reflection – something citizens need to be trained for in educational institutions.

Other questions dealt with higher educational institutions as such – are they, with their inherited elitism and conservatism, the least well-suited institutions to promote democracy? Do we need to reinvent higher education in order to promote democratic societal change?

Some answers to these questions emerged throughout papers, workshops and discussions at the conference – the main lines of thought moved along four topics:

• The role of higher education facing today’s and tomorrow’s global challenges

• Social Cohesion, “New Work” and Citizenship

• Establishing democratic cultures within higher education institutions

• Involvement in the broader community/society

1.    The role of higher education facing global challenges
In his contribution, Jan Egeland, Director of the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs, placed the conference theme within overall global developments since the 1970ies. He pointed out that the number of armed conflicts and wars has decreased, and that democracy has been introduced in many countries ruled by dictators some decades ago. However, another development contrasts this positive image: today, we observe a growing gap in the distribution of wealth among individuals within societies as well as a growing distance between rich and poor societies. And these societies are more aware than ever, thanks to communication technologies available, about these inequalities and other possible realities. This results in social tensions and political instability. As a consequence, sustainable democratic and peaceful development requires a fight against poverty and social exclusion.

These observations coincide with a report recently delivered by the Group of Eminent People of the Council of Europe, “Combining diversity and freedom in the 21st Century Europe”, referred to by Sjur Bergan, Head of the Department for Higher Education and History Teaching, in his welcome speech on behalf of the Council of Europe. The report states that Europe experiences a raise in xenophobia and intolerance, threatening the core values of Human Rights, rule of law and democracy and recommends active steps to be taken to fight these tendencies – among other in all branches of education. 

Prof. Maria Helena Nazaré, President-elect of the European University Association, added further aspects to the diagnosis of the present: environmental and demographic changes will lead to an increase in but also a need for immigration in many Western countries. These phenomena will force societies to find solutions which assure inclusion of all members of society, regardless ethnicity, age or gender.

The tone of the conference was, thus, set by the question how higher education can equip students with knowledge, skills and attitudes that can make a major contribution to the development of a societal vision based equal rights, social justice and sustainable development. From this perspective, the notion of reinventing democratic societies seems not to be mistaken.

2.    Social Cohesion, “New Work” and Citizenship
Facing the strong focus on economy dominating educational policies and reforms during the last decades, universities have a dilemma: students want to be educated for the work-force (unemployment rates are increasing, competition for jobs is fierce), and demand high quality professional knowledge and skills. As a consequence, little time and resources are left for universities to act as agents of democratic change. Little attention is paid to letting students develop their vision of a “good life”. What is needed is a renewed vision of the aim of higher education, which would address students as citizens and professionals who take over social responsibility (civic professionalism).

Dr Eduardo J. Padrón, President of Miami Dade College and Chair of the American Council on Education, stressed the crucial impact access to quality education has for social cohesion and democracy. According to Padrón, it would be meaningless to separate the focus on participation in the labor marked from civic participation. If migrants and other underprivileged groups are denied access to higher education they are denied access to the middle class which is a major bearer of democracy.

This view was stressed by Dr Hilligje van’t Land, Director of Membership and Programme Development, International Association of Universities, who pointed out that institutional “cultures” of schools and universities preserve the unjust distribution of power and wealth in society. In order to contribute to more inclusive societies, higher education institutions need to open up for and actively attract students that traditionally are distant to academic culture (migrants, socially disadvantaged)

This led to a discussion about prevailing ideas on “high quality education”. There is a need to readjust the visions and criteria for “excellence” from marked orientation towards social responsibility. In order to do so, universities and colleges need to develop democratic cultures “within” as well as become active stakeholders in developing visions and action for sustainable democratic development at a local and global scale. Following the ideas of Prof Srbijanka Turajlić, former Deputy Minister for Higher Education of Serbia, higher education needs to become a space where “civic culture” is experienced, promoted and reflected.

3.    Establishing democratic cultures within higher education institutions
“Institutions (including universities) within a democracy need to be citizen-hold and citizen-driven”, this statement of Dr.Van’t Land was reflected in a number of plenary discussions and in a break-out session. Universities need to overcome their inherited conservatism and traditional hierarchies in order to become hubs of democratic culture. This requires structural changes, such as enhanced participation of all stakeholders in the development of vision and decision making. Especially, the relations between students and professors need to be build on values of mutual respect and a life-long-learning culture (in which also teachers are learners, even though more experienced ones). Democratic change within higher education institutions, thus, requires the development of a new “academic ethos” embracing the qualities of critical thinking, engagement and responsibility. 

One break-out session dealt with the question of appropriate didactical approaches and necessary curriculum changes – what do democratic styles of learning and teaching look like?

Some of the approaches presented were

• Student-centered learning – specific perspective on learning, focusing on questions more than answers, gives students opportunity to inquiry-based learning, learning out of interest

• Problem-based learning – starting from real-life problems and creating opportunities to respond to them

Such kind of learning culture represents a paradigm shift – not starting from what professors and universities think is relevant for students but relating learning to what is experienced as relevant to students. What was acknowledged as a challenge, though, was to avoid persuasive and manipulating frameworks: value-based education should invite and encourage students to reach highly informed views and develop reflected attitudes, it should not force/persuade them to hold specific views and values.


4.    Involvement in the broader community/society
This last point leads to the links between higher education and students’ community engagement or other types of involvement in social and political activities. How can universities allow students to make experiences and acquire a set of tools necessary in their lives as responsible citizens? “Taking the kids out of the classrooms” is one of the practices presented – offering students opportunities to get involved in activities supporting the underprivileged and poor in a community. This is based on the assumption that learning is at its best when learners can apply theoretical concepts and abstract reflections in concrete/real-life environments through activities and if they experience that they “can make a difference”. However, incentives are needed, such as credit points for students’ “application” of theoretical knowledge and academic skills in social and political responsible engagement.

It was, however, remarked that action and reflection need to be balanced: universities are unique spaces providing opportunities of “thinking through”. Students’ needs and interests might vary according to personality and position in life-circle (not all students are youngsters).

Outlook – the impact of the conference on the work of the European Wergeland Centre (EWC)
For the work of the EWC, the conference has been path-breaking. The EWC is a resource centre for Education on Intercultural Understanding, Human Rights and Democratic Citizenship which was established as an innovative initiative by the Norwegian Government and the Council of Europe in 2008. With its core target group being teacher trainers, teachers but also other educational practitioners (in non- and informal learning environments), the idea of creating links between higher education institutions and the communities they are situated in (schools being a part of these) has influenced EWC activities right from the beginning. Combining a focus on capacity building/training for educators and on research and development, the EWC deeply shares the vision of the conference “Reimagining Democratic Societies”, believing that higher education institutions can play a vital role in building tomorrow’s sustainable democracies by educating tomorrow’s responsible citizens.

This has, among other activities, been expressed in the “Educators’ Consultations”, in which “fresh” international research findings have been discussed with educational practitioners regarding the possible impact for learning and teaching “on the ground”. In these events, small steps towards the realization of the potential of higher education to contribute to awareness, reflection and the development of solutions for urgent societal challenges have been realized. The EWC wants to continue and join forces on this pathway.

The conference “Reimagining Democratic Societies” brought together the creativity, experience and engagement of many important players in the field, resulting in deep reflections, new ideas as well as personal and institutional relations – all this will for sure leave its traces in teaching and learning practices, active community involvement and future joint initiatives.

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[1] Thanks to Iyad Abualrub and Caroline Gebara for contributing their observations from the conference.
[2] http://book.coe.int/ftp/3667.pdf [viewed July 6, 2011].
[3] In 2011 the Educators’ Consultations deal with the findings of the International Citizenship and Civic Education Study (ICCS). See documentation under http://www.theewc.org/ucontent/educators.consultations.2011/ [viewed July 6, 2011].