University Futures – a global summit

University Futures – a global summit for Commonwealth university leaders

University of Adelaide 9-12 April 2006.

Early next month the executive heads of universities from five continents will come together for a summit meeting at the University of Adelaide at which they will bring their own unique perspective to bear on the key questions and challenges facing higher education today in the Commonwealth and globally.

University Futures will seek to place the universities at the heart of development and change in all regions of the Commonwealth. The Conference has been organised by the Association of Commonwealth Universities (ACU), the University of Adelaide, the Australian Vice – Chancellors’ Committee (AVCC), the New Zealand Vice Chancellors’ Committee (NZVCC) and will be attended by some 300 delegates from 35 countries from every part of the Commonwealth.

This is an important opportunity for the Commonwealth universities to seize the initiative in a whole series of significant policy areas.

It is the firm intention that the Conference communiqué will outline ways in which the universities of the Commonwealth will work together and with partners from both government, business and society to shape solutions to many of the world’s most pressing problems, and feed directly into the meeting of the Commonwealth Heads of Government in December.

The conference will hear from university, government and business leaders on such issues as: sustainable development, renewing the African university, civic engagement, free trade, regional economic development, social disadvantage, gender as a barrier to opportunity in university management, HIV/AIDS and the role of university leadership, and the role of the universities in shaping national strategies for science, technology and innovation.

University Futures will be opened on Sunday 9 April by a senior representative of the Australian Government, and the following day (Monday 10 April) a conference address, on the role of universities, will be delivered by The Hon. Steve Maharey, New Zealand Minister of Research, Science and Technology. There will be plenary addresses by the Hon. Naledi Pandor, Minster of Education in South Africa and Mr Mike Moore , former Prime Minister of New Zealand and former Director-general of the World Trade Organisation.

ENDS

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