Master Class on ‘Living in Harmony: Universities & Communities’

‘Learning to do’, ‘learning to be’, ‘learning to learn’
 
Are universities in India preparing students to become only good scientists, economists, lawyers, social science professionals, etc? Isn’t it equally necessary to nurture students to be active and responsible citizens, and build their capacities to live in harmony with respect for human and ecological diversity?

This is the critical question Dr. Rajesh Tandon, UNESCO Chair, raised at the Masterclass he conducted on 9 November 2016 on the occasion of the 12th FICCI Higher Education Summit. ‘Living in Harmony: Universities & Communities; Strategies for Successful Community University Engagement’ was the theme of the masterclass.

Speaking about Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), Dr Tandon outlined the important role of education, which can contribute towards achieving SDGs. He shared the basic ideas behind the concept of ‘Community University Engagement’, its principles and the various ways in which this can be realized.

Discussions centered around how higher education can be made socially responsible, sharing practical actions of how to do so. Dr Abhay Kumar, an active professor in Shri Ram College of Commerce, Delhi University has many successful stories of engagement with the communities to his credit. He shared some successful projects that ENACTUS has undertaken over the past few years. Dr Seema Singh, Associate Professor, Delhi Technological University (DTU) is passionate about ‘community engagement’ and ‘social responsibility’ of universities, and has been at the forefront of making DTU, an engineering institution, an ‘engaged university’ and mainstreaming Community-University Engagement (CUE) into the institution’s regular academic curriculum. In open discussions, community engagement as an exercise that should be driven by social motives, and not personal interests, was emphasised and endorsed by all participants.