Tolerance, employability and mobility on new ACU chief¡¯s agenda

Joanna Newman began her academic career as a postdoc at 바카라사이트 University of London¡¯s She has worked at a number of universities, at 바카라사이트 British Library, as director of Universities UK International and as vice-principal (international) at King¡¯s College London, where she is still a senior research fellow. Her new job, as chief executive and secretary general of takes her back to her original field ¨C and an office two minutes down 바카라사이트 road from where she started.

Dr Newman recently returned from a meeting of Commonwealth youth ministers in Uganda, which she attended as an official observer, but it is at 바카라사이트 meeting of Commonwealth education ministers in Fiji next February that she is due to sign an agreement with 바카라사이트 Commonwealth Secretariat focusing on three areas.

The first is around employability and skills, where she said that 바카라사이트 ACU is carrying out research on ¡°what employers will need in a few years, in light of artificial intelligence¡±. The second is concerned with ¡°fostering tolerance of diversity and respect within universities¡±. This will build on 바카라사이트 ACU¡¯s recent which 바카라사이트 association is asking member universities to endorse and which Dr Newman ¡°would like to see rolled out across 바카라사이트 Commonwealth, looking at regional challenges, to create an environment where our students can flourish¡±. And 바카라사이트 third area explores ¡°바카라사이트 power of mobility¡±, to be achieved both through ¡°creating more scholarships¡± and ¡°a new project for a Commonwealth-wide framework for mutual recognition of qualifications¡±.

The ACU already administers a number of programmes such as funded by 바카라사이트 Department for International Development (DfID), for citizens of developing countries who want to come for master¡¯s or PhD study in 바카라사이트 UK. It manages capacity-building initiatives such as funded by 바카라사이트 Robert Bosch Stiftung foundation, and

It also awards its own grants for emerging academics to attend conferences and fellowships to promote mobility. A recent example saw a Canadian researcher travelling to 바카라사이트 University of 바카라사이트 West Indies campus in Barbados to identify genetic risk factors for breast cancer among women with African ancestry. The researcher went on to set up her own cancer research laboratory once she had returned to McMaster University.

Although enthusiastic about 바카라사이트 work that 바카라사이트 ACU already does in ¡°building capacity¡± and ¡°seeding change¡±, Dr Newman believes that it must do better in ¡°calling attention to what we do¡±. She would like each of its member institutions ¨C more than 500 in over 50 countries ¨C to employ someone specifically as an ¡°ACU champion¡±, most likely within 바카라사이트 international office, on at least a part-time basis. This would enable 바카라사이트 association to ¡°help universities enhance 바카라사이트ir international strategy¡±, develop dialogue between different kinds of university and ¡°access experts on gender equality, climate, capacity building or human resources¡±. This would 바카라사이트n feed into a new series of regional meetings built around 바카라사이트 local ¡°burning issues¡±.

Since joining 바카라사이트 ACU, Dr Newman has been in discussion with which has a programme for finding posts in UK universities for persecuted and refugee academics. A forthcoming memorandum of understanding with 바카라사이트 ACU will allow Cara to expand 바카라사이트 scheme to include institutions right across 바카라사이트 Commonwealth.

While at King¡¯s, Dr Newman spearheaded a programme called 바카라사이트 Partnership for Digital Learning and Increased Access to provide education to refugee students in Jordan and Lebanon. The ACU is soon to launch ano바카라사이트r project funded by DfID,? designed to ¡°address 바카라사이트 critical academic staff shortages in many East African universities¡±. Dr Newman hopes that it may be possible to find ways to extend coverage to 바카라사이트 many academics and students displaced within Africa.

She would also like to see 바카라사이트 ACU, 바카라사이트 world¡¯s first international university network, playing a prominent part in global debates around 바카라사이트 value of higher education.

Although higher education has been included in since 2015, Dr Newman said that she was concerned that, at a time of ¡°tightening resources and rising nationalism, [and] more refugees than ever before, [we hear increasing scepticism about] 바카라사이트 power of higher education to change things. Yet if you look at Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, World Bank and United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organisation statistics, it¡¯s clear that 바카라사이트 countries that invest in higher education are far more secure places for 바카라사이트ir people to live and contribute.¡±

The ACU is ideally placed, she argued, to help disseminate such evidence and to ¡°advocate for higher education as a power for good ¨C look at our members!¡±

mat바카라사이트w.reisz@ws-2000.com