HIGHER EDUCATION, INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE AND SOCIAL DIMENSION Sjur Bergan Council of Europe Nicosia, April 4, 2008

LIVING IN THE AGE OF THE ECONOMY?  Employment  Competitiveness  Use of resources  Purchasing power as a political issue  Economic performance

ONLY THE ECONOMY?  Four events end 2007: –Pakistan –Kenya –Hand over of EU Presidency from Portugal to Slovenia –Nobel Peace Prize to Al Gore and the International Panel on Climate Change  And one on April 4: –Assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King 40 years ago

SO IT IS NOT JUST THE ECONOMY  Environmental sustainability –Climate change –“An inconvenient truth”  Coping with diversity –Cultural –Linguistic –Religious –Living conditions  Social cohesion

HIGHER EDUCATION  Fundamental to developing democratic culture  Not a once in a lifetime experience  Provides individuals with opportunities  Allows societies to make the best possible use of the potential of its members  The contribution of HE to the economy is important, but does not exist in a vacuum

MAJOR PURPOSES OF HIGHER EDUCATION  Labor market  Democratic citizenship  Personal development  Knowledge base

HIGHER EDUCATION ON CAMPUS  Higher education is international… .. but is this reflected on campus?  A community of many nationalities or many national communities?

INTERNATIONAL INSTITUTION  Students and staff of all nationalities and cultural backgrounds interact easily  Your background does not determine your social life  Cultural differences are fully respected –By the institution –By its members  Campus: a venue of dialogue

HIGHER EDCUATION IN BROADER SOCIETY  Provide learners with a set of competences –must include ability and willingness to engage in intercultural dialogue  Develop attitudes and abilities  Show good practice –“Practice what you preach”  Actors in broader society: societal responsibility

INTERCULTURAL DIALOGUE AND DEMOCRATIC CULTURE  Require open minds…  …but also convictions  Willingness to question our own ideas, opinions and behavior…  …but also those of others  Intellectual curiosity

ULTIMATE QUESTION  Education: for what? =  What kind of society do we want? –Cf. Eugenio Tironi: El sueño chileno. Comunidad, familia y nación en el Bicentenario