Democratic Roles of Universities (DRU)
INCHER is part of a network that has successfully obtained EU funding under Horizon Europe. With the support of the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions programme, the Democratic Roles of Universities (DRU) project will explore how universities can strengthen democracy in society. The thematic focus of the network is on gaining a deeper understanding of the role of universities in the democratisation process. Governments in Europe, South Africa, and Australia see universities as key institutions for maintaining democratic societies. But in how far do universities, in their daily operations, really promote democracy? DRU addresses questions like how to resist internal 'democratic backsliding' and strengthen democratic values, participatory governance, research, education and civic engagement?
Bettina Langfeldt and Tim Seidenschnur coordinate the project group at INCHER and the University of Kassel and Tim Seidenschnur leads the Work Package on Governance Instruments in the network.
The project is lead and coordinated at the University of Porto, where Amélia Veiga leads the network being the speaker of DRU.
Project summary:
DRU’s objective is to find new ways that universities can strengthen the democratic fabric of society. The European Commission and Parliament see democracy - the cultural ‘glue’ that holds Europe together - under threat. The European Education Area and especially higher education institutions are tasked with connecting to their communities, being inclusive of students from disadvantaged and migrant backgrounds, and sustaining democratic values in everyday life.
Democratic backsliding is not peculiar to Europe. DRU engages in mutual learning about universities fostering democracy in South Africa’s post-apartheid rainbow nation and Australia’s move to a post-colonial era. DRU’s consortium is from north, south, east, and west Europe, South Africa, and Australia. It consists of eight different kinds of universities and seven non-academic organisations, all committed to collaborating in activities to enhance democracy spanning from community action to international policy making.
DRU has the cross-disciplinary, cross-sectoral and international expertise to critically examine existing knowledge about universities and democracy. We break the issue into five constituent parts. Three are practical ways universities, academics and students engage with their local communities through research and civic action and create a thriving educational environment for refugees and all students. Two address how these practices are fostered or hindered by institutional frameworks and systems of governance. DRU designs experiments and case studies to test alternatives.
DRU’s ‘whole system’ approach connects policy and governance priorities at the ‘top’ of the system to the conditions for embedding democratic practice in the everyday life of institutional members and citizens. Its practical results will be disseminated as toolkits, trainings and policy briefings to students, academics, stakeholders, leaders and policy makers to transform universities’ impact on democratic society.