Blogs

Dear Friends,

As the new Chair of PASCAL, I want to wish each of you a happy holiday season - be it in the darker and wetter north or the warmer and sunnier south. The new year  brings with it  great prospects for our collaboration.  There is a vacuum for PASCAL to fill.  The 2012 conference in Brest was demonstration, if proof were needed, that our mission is timely, evidence-based, and forward-loooking. Tragically, Jarl Bengtsson died just at the time when we could celebrate the ten years of leadership he has given PASCAL. (An obituary will appear on the website soon). His wise counsel and good humor will be missed, but his values - our values - endure.  In some ways 2013 could be more difficult, globally, than 2012: the geo-political situation along the 30th parallel North is even more fraught with risk, and the long-term social consequences of the crisis will become more apparent.  Let's  bring the expertise and enthusiasm of PASCAL as a global network to bear on policy and practice, to develop the  Observatory and generate new projects.   

May you and your families enjoy continued good health.  With best wishes,

Josef Konvitz

China is experiencing its most severe economic downturn in decades, and revitalizing its economic model is critical to future prosperity — not only in China, but around the world.

The Preparatory meeting for the first UNESCO Global Learning Cities conference was held in Beijing on 1st December by UNESCO's Institute for Lifelong Learning, together with the National Commission of China for UNESCO of the Ministry of Education China, the Beijing Municipal Education Commission the Chinese and many other national and international organisations.

PASCAL was represented by its Co-director, Professor Michael Osborne. The conference will be held in November 2013 in Beijing.

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I want to make this as simple as possible.   I know you are the smartest people in the world.    If you were not the smartest people in the world you would not be here.  But I do not want to make you prove you are smart.   I do not want to ask you to figure out something complicated.  

I will give short answers to four simple questions:

1. Who are we?
2. Where are we going?
3. How will we get there?
4. What are some next steps?

Here are the short answers:

Friends,

Our news today is coming from Brest, from the meeting of the PASCAL International Observatory where Rajesh and Budd have both been invited to offer keynote remarks.  This is the first time that we have appeared at the same event since the UNESCO Chair has been established.  We are very grateful to the University of Western Brittany and Dr. Jean-Marie Filloque for inviting us and to PASCAL for making us feel welcome amongst them.

Budd and Rajesh
Co-Chairs
UNESCO Chair in Community Based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education