Challenges and strategies for the internationalization of higher education in low-income East African countries [Scholarly Article - Higher Education, January 2023]

Title:

Challenges and strategies for the internationalization of higher education in low-income East African countries

 

Authors:

Mohammad Moshtari & Alireza Safarpour 

 

Published:

Higher Education, 23 January 2023

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10734-023-00994-1

Abstract:

As it becomes more crucial to push the boundaries of science to develop new technologies and important global initiatives, internationalization can be instrumental in helping underdeveloped countries overcome challenges such as poverty, climate change, and educational inequalities. Higher education institutions have always faced challenges in the process of internationalization, which have occupied scholarly attention in recent decades, but little research has been conducted on the internationalization of higher education in less developed African countries. This qualitative study aims to shed light on the challenges of internationalization of higher education in low-income countries in East Africa. After reviewing the literature and interviewing academics, the obtained data were thematically analyzed. The results suggested 12 main challenges, which were classified into four major categories. The challenges include a lack of clear policies and guidelines; the inefficiency of the organizational structure of internationalization; financial, infrastructure, and equipment problems; weaknesses in scientific, skill, and language competences; cultural differences; non-reciprocal relationships; and a brain drain. Finally, strategies for responding to these challenges with regard to the internal and external environments of higher education institutions were proposed. Among the internal strategies of higher education institutions are the development of clear policies and visions, planning for the development of human resources, and sustainable budgeting for internationalization programs. External strategies emphasize the development of national policies and laws based on contextual and environmental conditions, as well as interaction and participation in international meetings to expand communication and use the scientific and economic capacities of international agencies and institutions.

 

Digital transformation towards sustainability in higher education: state-of-the-art and future research insights [Scholarly Article - Environment, Development and Sustainability, January 2023]

Title:

Digital transformation towards sustainability in higher education: state-of-the-art and future research insights

 

Authors:

Laís Viera Trevisan, João Henrique Paulino Pires Eustachio, Bárbara Galleli Dias, Walter Leal Filho & Eugênio Ávila Pedrozo

 

Published:

Environment, Development and Sustainability, 5 January 2023

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10668-022-02874-7

Abstract:

The technological revolution has contributed to environmental and social issues around the world. However, in the context of higher education institutions (HEIs) – key stakeholders for sustainable development - there is a theoretical gap regarding systematic reviews on the topic. In order to address this need, this study explores how digital transformation (DT) can contribute to sustainability in HEIs by identifying the general state of the art, the theoretical perspectives in the field, and future research insights. A multi-methods approach was adopted, which consisted of a quantitative bibliometric review and a qualitative content analysis. Consistent with this approach, the Scopus database was used for the bibliometric analysis of 672 publications, which was conducted with the support of VOSviewer software. Subsequently, a content analysis of 72 publications was carried out using the software ATLAS.ti and Zotero. The findings suggest three areas of current research: ensuring sustainability competencies through DT, smart and sustainable campus approaches, and theorisation of sustainability in higher education through DT. The theoretical perspectives of the field were divided and discussed into seven main clusters. Lastly, five research lines for further studies on DT towards sustainability were identified. This study has both theoretical and practical implications since it may be the first literature review on this subject, providing theoretical insights to the academic community, guiding sustainability and digital practices in HEIs - through the identification of tools, approaches, and strategies - and then supporting the implementation of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

 

UNESCO IESALC (January 2023) - What have been the challenges and policy responses in Latin America and the Caribbean to advance towards SDG4 in higher education?

Title:

What have been the challenges and policy responses in Latin America and the Caribbean to advance towards SDG4 in higher education?

 

Published:

UNESCO IESALC,  24 January 2023

https://www.iesalc.unesco.org/en/2023/01/24/what-have-been-the-challenges-and-policy-responses-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean-to-advance-towards-sdg4-in-higher-education/

From the article:

To analyze how the region has acted and what the challenges are, UNESCO IESALC led the chapter Advances towards SDG 4 in higher education: challenges and policy responses in Latin America and the Caribbean, included in the recent UNESCO, UNICEF and ECLAC report The crossroads of education in Latin America and the Caribbean. Regional monitoring report SDG4-Education 2030.

 

AFRICA - Climate change and SDG education to target million youths [University World News, November 2022]

Title:

Climate change and SDG education to target million youths

 

Author:

Eve Ruwoko

 

Published:

University World News, 17 November 2022

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20221117073544235

 

From the article:

An estimated million African university students are set to benefit from a digital education programme on climate change and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in 2023-24. 

 

Makarere University, Uganda - Statistics week: Using data to improve agriculture

Title: 

Statistics week: Using data to improve agriculture

Author:

Betty Kyakuwa

Published:

Makarere University, 18 November 2022

https://news.mak.ac.ug/2022/11/statistics-week-using-data-to-improve-agriculture/

From the news article:

* The School of Statistics and Planning yesterday rewarded and recognized the contribution of some of its staff members.

* Speaking at the opening of the conference, Prof. Buyinza Mukadasi, who represented the Vice Chancellor, said it is important to use agriculture statistics to inform better planning that can cause transformation in the entire agriculture production chain.

 

Hokkaido University, Japan - ‘Zero Hunger’ SDG: How this university became a leader [University World News, June 2022]

Title:

‘Zero Hunger’ SDG: How this university became a leader 

 

Author:

Suvendrini Kakuchi  

 

Published:

University World News, 29 June 2022 

https://www.universityworldnews.com/post.php?story=20220620104642182

 

From the article:

Hokkaido University, one of Japan’s oldest national universities situated on Japan’s northern-most island amid large swathes of farmland and originally established as a college to promote agricultural productivity and food security in a cold climate, has emerged as world class in achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). 

Rethinking literacy from a lifelong learning perspective in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals and the International Conference on Adult Education [Scholarly Article - International Review of Education, 2022]

Title:

Rethinking literacy from a lifelong learning perspective in the context of the Sustainable Development Goals and the International Conference on Adult Education

 

Authors:

Ulrike Hanemann

Independent international literacy and education specialist, Hamburg, Germany

& 

Clinton Robinson

Independent Consultant in international education and development, Vancouver, BC, Canada

 

Published:

International Review of Education, 17 May 2022

https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11159-022-09949-7

 

Abstract:

Despite general agreement that a 21st-century learning society must also be a literate society, there is still a long way to go to achieve a broad consensus on how to achieve this within an explicit lifelong learning vision. The Seventh International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VII – June 2022) is an excellent opportunity to rethink literacy from a lifelong learning perspective in order to fully tap its transformative potential in the achievement of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). By using a theoretical framework of lifelong literacy, this article analyses the main challenges associated with applying the lifelong learning principle to literacy, in particular in the context of aligning CONFINTEA’s review and improvement of adult learning and education (ALE) strategies with SDG processes. The authors demonstrate that a limited understanding of literacy as part of lifelong learning still prevails, and that literacy promotion suffers from ambiguity and dissonances. They also provide analyses of literacy policies, strategies and programmes that have been successful in adopting a lifelong learning approach, drawing out some important lessons on how this can be achieved. In particular, the authors argue, more attention needs to be paid to the demand side of a literate environment and to motivation, enabling continuity of learning by making literacy part of people’s broader learning purposes. To contribute to the ongoing discussion on reframing literacy from a lifelong learning perspective in the context of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the potential development of a new “framework for action” during CONFINTEA VII, this article offers three fundamental considerations that should inform policy and strategic planning with regard to conceptual orientation, programmatic responses and institutional connections.

University of Aberdeen, Scotland, UK - University celebrates sustainability and research league table success

Title:

University celebrates sustainability and research league table success

Published:

University of Aberdeen, 28 April 2022

 https://www.abdn.ac.uk/news/15969/

 

From the news article:

"The University of Aberdeen's expertise in environmental research and its positive impact on society has been highlighted in two newly published and influential league tables."

 

UNITED NATIONS - The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021

Title:

The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021

 

Published:

United Nations (UN), 2021

https://unstats.un.org/sdgs/report/2021/

 

From the description:

As the pandemic continues to unfold, The Sustainable Development Goals Report 2021 outlines some significant impacts in many areas that are already apparent. The global extreme poverty rate rose for the first time in over 20 years, and 119 to 124 million people were pushed back into extreme poverty in 2020. 

 

Internationalisation by demarcating the role of higher education in sustainable development goals: The case of Israel [Scholarly Article - EJED, February 2021]

Title:

Internationalisation by demarcating the role of higher education in sustainable development goals: The case of Israel

 

Author:

Miri Yemini

 

Published:

European Journal of Education (EJED), 14 February 2021

https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/ejed.12443

 

Abstract:

Many policy makers and scholars consider higher education to be a key driver for states' implementation of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs); however, the impact of higher education in national SDGs adoption likely differs, based on features and characteristics of particular states. Hence, this study has two aims: (a) to analyse the public discourse on the engagement of the State of Israel with SDG implementation, focusing on the role of higher education in this process; and (b) to discuss the unique position of Israel in implementing and discussing SDGs, given the state's characteristic as a high‐income OECD country involved in an intractable geo‐political conflict that profoundly affects its society. Following an analysis of documents, I highlight the discrepancies between the potential role of higher education in implementing the SDGs and the role of higher education as articulated by the state and public discourse. Two significant discrepancies are found: first, the complete absence of Israel's national conflict in the discourse on SDGs reflected in formal documents published both by the state and by Israeli NGOs. Second, the misalignment between the structure and function of higher education in Israel in terms of internationalisation strategies adopted and the specific role ascribed to higher education within the SDG discourse.