Knowledge Hub

In this section, you will find detailed reports on community engagement in higher education in a European context, encompassing both European-level and national/system level analyses and recommendations, as well as key networks and organisations active in this area.

Country and system level reports

Reports on system-level challenges and opportunities for community engagement

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SUMMARY:

Policy recommendations for the enhancement of community engagement in higher education: national and system-level policy recommendations for Austria

AUTHORS: Franziska Lessky, Malika Karieva, Magdalena Fellner, Attila Pausits │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2023.

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SUMMARY:

Policy recommendations for the enhancement of community engagement in higher education: national and system-level policy recommendations for Catalonia, Spain

AUTHOR: Catalan Association of Public Universities (ACUP) │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2023.

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SUMMARY:

Policy recommendations for the enhancement of community engagement in higher education: national and system-level policy recommendations for Croatia

AUTHOR: Ninoslav Šćukanec Schmidt │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2023.

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SUMMARY:

Policy recommendations for the enhancement of community engagement in higher education: national and system-level policy recommendations for Flanders, Belgium

AUTHOR: Karel Verbrugge │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2023.

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SUMMARY:

Policy recommendations for the enhancement of community engagement in higher education: national and system-level policy recommendations for Ireland

AUTHOR: Lorraine McIlrath, Sarah Bowman and Giovanna Lima │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2023.

SUMMARY:

This document assesses the main challenges and opportunities and proposes policy recommendations for the enhancement of community engagement in the European Higher Education Area.

AUTHOR: Ninoslav Šćukanec Schmidt │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2023

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SUMMARY:

The publication examines how community engagement might become a central part of the higher education policy landscape in Europe in the next decade, proposing various policy options and policy recommendations, and how the TEFCE Toolbox could play a role in this process.

AUTHOR: Thomas Farnell, Anete Veidemane, Don Westerheijden │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2021.

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SUMMARY:

This publication describes how the TEFCE Toolbox was developed, explains its methodology and presents the results of its piloting, which involved 180 experts and practitioners from eight EU Member States.

AUTHOR: Thomas Farnell, Bojana Ćulum Ilić, Davide Dusi, Emma O’Brien, Ninoslav Šćukanec Schmidt, Anete Veidemane, Don Westerheijden │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2021.

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SUMMARY:

This report argues (based on a comprehensive review of the literature) that universities play a crucial role in responding to societal needs, and can further enhance their societal impact at local, national and international levels through community engagement.

AUTHOR: Thomas Farnell │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2020.

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SUMMARY:

As the main result of the TEFCE project, the TEFCE Toolbox is an institutional self-reflection framework that supports universities to improve how they address societal needs through partnerships with their external communities.

AUTHOR: Thomas Farnell, Paul Benneworth, Bojana Ćulum Ilić, Marco Seeber, Ninoslav Šćukanec Schmidt │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2020.

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SUMMARY:

This publication defines the concept of community engagement in higher education, maps existing frameworks for measuring community engagement and identifies the needs, gaps and opportunities for a new approach.

AUTHOR: Paul Benneworth, Bojana Ćulum, Thomas Farnell, Frans Kaiser, Marco Seeber, Ninoslav Šćukanec, Hans Vossensteyn & Don Westerheijden │ YEAR PUBLISHED: 2018.

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EUROPEAN LEVEL REPORTS

Reports on supporting community engagement in the European  Higher Education Area

European networks and initiatives

European level networks and projects to support community engagement

Network of science shops and community engaged pratitioners, comprised of over 80 international members. It fosters public
engagement with, and participation in, all levels of the research and innovation process.

www.livingknolwedge.org

UK-based centre supporting higher education institutions in public engagement by providing training, networking, learning and
self-assessment tools.

www.nccpe.ac.uk

Ireland-based network supporting civic and community engagement in higher education. The areas of activity include service learning, engaged research and innovation, volunteering, and creating a national framework for assessing the social impact of higher education civic and community engagement. https://www.campusengage.ie

A European network of institutions and experts which promotes service learning in higher education by providing guidelines and
examples of good practice.

https://www.eoslhe.eu/easlhe/

An association of European states dedicated to human rights. Through their focus on the democratic mission of higher education, the Council of Europe has been exploring the local mission of higher education, which considers how universities can best serve the communities of which they are a part.

https://www.coe.int/en/web/higher-education-and-research/democratic-mission-of-higher-education

An international network with members from 85 countries, composed of higher education institutions, research centres and networks related to innovation and community engagement of higher education, which helps higher education institutions and systems to achieve involvement in societies and have an impact on them.

http://www.guninetwork.org/

A UNESCO initiative which encourages partnerships among universities and academics, communities, the civil society, and the government i.e. the policy makers in order to create new capacities and solutions to sustainability-related problems and address social inclusion, cultural exclusion, public engagement and social responsibility of higher education.

http://unescochair-cbrsr.org/

An international association of civically engaged higher education institutions which advocates collaboration between universities and their communities in order to identify and address societal challenges.

https://talloiresnetwork.tufts.edu/

A global research network which supports the contributions of higher education to democracy on college and university campuses, their local communities and the wider society.

https://www.internationalconsortium.org/

A national coalition of US higher education institutions committed to the public mission of higher education, focusing on civic education and community development.

https://compact.org/who-we-are/

A network of US and international institutions supporting the engagement of anchor institutions in the community as agents of development, through partnerships and collaborations, conferences, publications, and tools. The emphasis is on addressing local needs, strengthening democratic values and philanthropy.

https://www.margainc.com/aitf/

A special-purpose classification for higher education institutions in the United States with commitments in the area of community engagement. The purpose of the Classification is to affirm that a university or college has institutionalised engagement with community in its identity, culture, commitments and practices.

https://carnegieclassifications.acenet.edu/elective-classifications/community-engagement

Global networks and insitutions

Global level networks and projects to support community engagement