UCEC 2012University-Community Engagement Conference

Rationale

Universities in the 21^st century are at an important crossroad. With a projected student population of 200 million by 2030, universities do have the potential of making a difference to local and global concerns. While universities have to produce graduates who have skills to operate effectively in a globally competitive environment, it is also widely recognized that its fundamental challenge is to provide an ethical knowledge base responsive to societal needs, and contribute to the common wealth (not just financial or economic wealth) and well-being of its entire people. Indeed the complexities of our unsustainable societies can present new opportunities (as well as challenges) for universities to reclaim their relevance and responsibility to society.

Themes, goals and declarations of international conferences on higher education in the past decade have indeed pointed to a perceived need for a new vision and paradigm of higher education underpinned by participatory development ideals and have called for university to critically examine itself in order to move beyond its traditional role of educating the younger generation through "teaching and research." Various attempts in different parts of the world have started to address these concerns. An effective and high-impact approach is the engagement of universities with communities, be they local communities, neighborhoods, industries, civil societies, government and non-government agencies. Engagement goes beyond mere outreach, as universities seek mutually beneficial relationships with communities to address community issues and needs with a commitment to sharing and reciprocity which embraces two-way partnerships.

Nevertheless, given the crisis-ridden world in which we now live, questions posed to universities in terms of their roles, responsibility, relevance and contribution to the creation of a sustainable future have never become more vital. The taken-for-granted goals and missions of universities based on the premise of supplying societies with "capable pools of human resource," may continue to hold if sustainable development goal is left untouched. Thus, we need the courage to ask: why are we producing more and more graduates with less and less social commitment and concerns in maintaining the balance in both human and natural ecology and what can we do to reinvent ourselves so that universities can become more relevant and responsive to the changing global challenges, and a determination to seek answers, while concretely plan to take action to become responsible partners in the social engagement and development process at multiple levels.

Universities with their vast resources and insufficiently-tapped capabilities have to make a critical step in becoming a genuine partner in creating a sustainable future. By engaging with communities, with respect and appreciation for mutual learning, participatory knowledge creation and social justice, communities will help universities navigate in the "blue ocean space", where faculty, students and administrators can develop as discerning citizens who can reflect on and interact in their world with integrity, understanding and commitment, while communities will learn to connect and co-create various kinds of knowledge and skills needed in their livelihoods and development with dignity.

Faculty of Social Administration, Thammasat University and Division of Industry and Community Network, Universiti Sains Malaysia are pleased to announce its joint conference on University and Community Engagement 2012 with the theme: "University-Community Engagement for Empowerment and Knowledge Creation" to be held in Chiang Mai Thailand from January 9-12, 2012. The conference aims at creating a venue where interested participants can contemplate on the central question of how universities can vigorously become an integral part of a global effort to create and maintain a just and sustainable world.