The working method, which the members of the International Council have chosen to call ‟Global Dynamic Engagement” (GDE), is a further development of previous work on international action plans. The hope is to obtain a better holistic picture of our international engagement, which is essential both for individual faculties and for the central administration. International engagement comprises initiatives such as international exchanges between students and teaching staff/researchers, co-publication, network collaborations such as Universitas21 or EUGLOH, alumni issues, funding issues and cooperation with organisations and companies.
In our everyday activities, we seldom ponder the complexity and extent of our international work, but the University is active in many different regions around the world. Part of this work is common to the whole University and is managed by External Relations (ER), while other initiatives are implemented at the faculty level and vary in focus and scope.
In order to obtain a holistic picture, a first step in GDE is to chart the University’s activities, agreements and collaborations, region by region, both for activities implemented via the faculties and activities coordinated by External Relations. Initially, the GDE approach has focused on North America. We are now in the midst of the analysis stage and will report back with a clearer picture of both current and future activities specifically linked to North America.
Another important issue in the GDE work is the concept of “internationalisation at home”, which was back under the spotlight with the pandemic. It comprises activities such as virtual studies with various online courses. It is increasingly common for students from universities in different countries to attend certain shared course components via digital collaborations across university and national boundaries. Other examples of internationalisation at home involve local engagement in international organisations. This type of engagement is fully in line with the University’s sustainability ambitions.
In summary, the work on Global Dynamic Engagement aims to:
- highlight Lund University’s extensive global engagement in research, education and external collaboration
- increase the University’s presence in prioritised areas. These areas may vary over time.
- increase opportunities for students and staff to further develop the international environment at Lund University, including through better conditions for continued international recruitment of staff and students.
By working with GDE and continuously updating the University’s international activities on a regional basis, we will hopefully, as observed above, be able to work both more proactively and faster, but also in a longer term perspective, which is important in terms of competitiveness.
What GDE cannot respond to, on the other hand, is the tragic outbreak of war we are now witnessing in Ukraine. In the best case scenario, GDE can increase awareness within the organisation about how geopolitical changes and war also affect the University’s activities. From that perspective, it is essential to remind ourselves that Lund University continues to stand for democracy, academic freedom and international openness.
/ Kristina Eneroth
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This text is written for LU News no 5-2022.
