Creating a more engaged future for higher education
Engaged Futures aims to align and embolden a network of people committed to more inclusive, collaborative and publicly engaged universities.
We invite organisations and individuals to join us as we build connections, take action, and reflect on our collective learning as we work to turn our Engaged Futures vision into a reality.
Introduction
Universities are facing profound challenges, from financial pressures to growing questions about their role in society.
Engaged Futures brings people from universities, communities, policy, and practice to work together to explore what kind of higher education sector we want for the future, and how we can work collectively to create the conditions in which it will flourish.
People are already developing new ways of working, moving away from inherited values that promote elitism and competition towards practices that strengthen relationships, build trust and create public value. Our task is to identify these promising practices, connect them and help them grow.
Our vision
Together, Engaged Futures contributors imagined a higher education sector that belongs to everyone and where everyone can belong.
A sector that is:
- inclusive, agile and connected to place
- open in how knowledge is created and shared
- committed to wellbeing, sustainability and social justice
- ethical in its use of technology
- able to build long-term partnerships
- willing to listen, learn and adapt
- trusted and valued by the public
Many universities already express these ambitions. The challenge is turning them into everyday reality.
What we've learned
The Engaged Futures vision above calls for a shift in the values, assumptions and ways of working that have shaped higher education over its history.
Six significant value shifts emerged:
Validator → Connector
From establishing authority over knowledge to connecting people, knowledge and ideas.
Transactional → Relational
From short-term exchanges to long-term relationships.
Competitive → Collaborative
From institutional and individual advantage to a shared endeavour.
Knowledge Silos → Integrative
From privileging established forms of knowledge to bringing different perspectives together.
Tanker → Flotilla
From large immovable institutions to ones that are more agile, porous and able to respond and adapt quickly.
These shifts provide a way of thinking about how today's decisions might shape tomorrow's higher education system.
From imagining the future to creating change
Engaged Futures and the people involved are now moving from visioning to action.
Over the coming months we will work together to:
- develop practical tools and resources
- support learning and collaboration
- encourage public-facing commitment to action
- contribute to a developing evidence base around change making work
- build a growing network of Engaged Futures Catalysts committed to enacting the vision within their own spheres of influence
Get involved
The future we want cannot be created by any one institution, organisation or network alone.
Are you interested in creating a more engaged, inclusive and sustainable future for higher education? If so, we'd love you to get involved.