Notes from the first meeting of the PASCAL Learning Cities Networks “Reimagining Inclusive Economic Futures” (RIEF) on 28 Oct 2020

Mike Osborne, Director of PASCAL, introduced the meeting and explained that post-Covid, it was recognised that there was a need to re-energise the PASCAL Learning Cities Networks (LCN), and this was the first meeting for the “Reimagining Inclusive Economic Futures” (RIEF”) network. The PASCAL International Observatory works closely with the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities (GNLC) and has recently been running a series of joint webinars with UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning. PASCAL assists cities in developing their applications to join the GNLC and has a focus on the ways in which universities can support the development of Learning Cities. Mike invited all attendees to introduce themselves and to explain a little about the city, university, network or organisation they were representing.

Attendees:

• Mike Osborne, Director of Pascal
• Judith James, Joint Coordinator of Pascal Learning Cities Network “Reimagining Inclusive Economic Futures”
• Shilpi Roy, Nafisa Anjum and Maria Nishat Tasnim, Dhaka and Khulna, Bangladesh
• Palmira Jucevicienne and Robertus Jucevicienne, Kaunas University of Technology, Lithuania
• Orna Magor and Zimra, Modi’in Learning City and the Israeli Centre for Learning Cities, Israel 
• Peter Dewhurst, Derby University and Derby Learning City, UK
• Jac Torres Gomez, Wyndham Learning City, Melbourne, Australia
• Annie Tubadji, Swansea University, Wales UK
• Leone Wheeler, Australian Learning Communities Network
• Massimo Bardus, Università delle LiberEtà Fvg, Udine, Italy

Unable to attend on this occasion:

• Chris Shepherd, Joint Coordinator of Pascal Learning Cities Network “Reimagining Inclusive Economic Futures”
• Japheth Habinshuti, Kigali City Rwanda
• Diane Tabbagh, Wyndham Learning City

Jac is the Learning Community Officer in Wyndham Learning City, Melbourne, Australia. She has extensive experience in developing community learning and recently supported the very successful first Global Learning Festival. She welcomed the opportunity to develop a broad perspective on city and regional economic development, based on research and evidence. 

Kaunas Learning City, Lithuania, has been established over a long period and has a focus on technology, entrepreneurship and economic development. Palmira is a Professor of Education and Management, with expertise in Human Resource development and knowledge management. There is an interest to develop learning districts, recognising that people identify with their local area. Robertus is a Professor of Strategic Management and has been responsible for Development Strategies at city, regional and national level. Their interest is in the smart development of social cities- recognising the importance of learning, networking, and all social development aspects. Robertus designed the strategy which was very successful in the redevelopment and revitalising of the old town of Kaunas.

Annie represents Swansea University in the network. She a cultural and regional economist, dedicated to topics of socio-economic and knowledge inequality, ethnic and economic discrimination, diversity, altruism, religion, immigration and innovation. She is working on the reopening of the economy post-Covid and the associated cultural devaluation of human life (discrimination by occupational status), and a variety of related socio-economic and cultural inequalities. She is pleased to be part of this network and will be reporting directly to the University Senior Leadership Team (Pro-Vice Chancellors for Civic Mission and Research) about developments with PASCAL.

Massimo gave the regards of Pina Raso, the President of the Università delle LiberEtà Fvg, Udine, Italy, who many in the network know well, from European and International Projects. He explained that the Università delle LiberEtà is a Lifelong Learning Centre with a focus on adult education. It has a history of Learning City cooperation with Swansea University and, through an ongoing project, with Modi’in in Israel and Trieste, the capital of their region. He noted that Trieste has recently become a member of UNESCO’s Global Network of Learning Cities.

Leone is a PASCAL Board Member and the coordinator of the Australian Learning City Network. She also leads a PASCAL network, “Learning as a Driver for Change in Rural, and Remote Learning Communities.” Leone has vast experience in network development and will be called upon to advise us on the development of this network.

Shilpi, Nafisa and Maria work together on educational research, in relation to two cities in Bangladesh, Dhaka and Khulna, part of the RCUK-funded GCRF Global Centre for Sustainable Healthy Learning Cities and Neighbourhoods.  Working with two very different cities is very useful, as they can compare the difference in economic development within the same country context. Shilpi teaches urban planning in the University and is a member of the CSHLCN Network. She leads a research team which studies educational policies and opportunities in the two cities.  

Peter is Director of Strategic Projects at Derby University and has been instrumental in developing the Derby Learning City. Derby is an industrial city in the heart of the UK, with large employers such as Rolls Royce and Toyota. Derby has been significantly impacted by the Covid pandemic and now also Brexit.  In Derby educational attainment is low, although Derby University is working hard to address this. Derby has been awarded the “Social Mobility University of the Year.”

Orna led Modi’in to become the first Learning City in Israel and she is Head of the Multidisciplinary Learning centre in the city. Orna has also established and leads the Israeli Centre for Learning Cities. She has worked with UNESCO and PASCAL for a long time, especially with Udine in Italy. They promote Lifelong Learning, are in a project with Udine and Trieste and will be twinning Learning Cities with Trieste. Zimra is a researcher with a focus on the Learning City of Modi’in.

Judith James, one of the Joint Coordinators for the network, gave a PowerPoint presentation, which was discussed. 

Orna explained that in order to develop an understanding of economic and business development, there is a need to involve politicians in the process. They are focusing on models of development of soft skills, social cohesion and self-empowerment, investing in the potential of each citizen.

It was pointed out that we could be informed by the work of the Institute for Economic Affairs.  Mike Osborne commented that the genesis of the learning region idea coming from regional economists¹, with a focus on creating a learning ecosystem that encourages inward investment.

Annie pointed out that there may be a new kind of inequality of knowledge and highlighted the growing importance of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and how IT skills such as coding will be essential in the ‘new normal’. Mike expressed concern that the intersection of learning cities and smart cities had demonstrated a relative lack of focus on learning in smart city development².  

Massimo described the impact of the pandemic on their work in delivering lifelong learning, explaining that it has exposed the great digital divide, with many learners unable to participate due to lack of internet, of hardware or of skills. This is the greatest inequality in their experience, as it limits access to learning and developing new skills. Previous work on entrepreneurial learning had revealed few opportunities in Italy for this.

Digital exclusion impacts on more than learning, it impacts increasingly on work and social cohesion. Annie pointed out that exclusion and disadvantage may lead to protest or individuals may become victim to a different reality, presented in social media. This is a new kind of inequality, the inability to differentiate and analyse information.

Nafisa pointed out that in Bangladesh there is a difference in class access to learning. She felt that we need to improve the resilience of places, which is related to the past of the city.

Orna explained that we need new models to meet these new challenges, as a result of Covid. We have in the box thinking- we know what has been done and we can redefine the city assets. Then there is out of the box thinking- how can we use entrepreneurial thinking to match our assets to the new situation. In Modi’in they are focusing now in two main directions- soft skills- reskilling, upskilling, empowering citizens to address challenges. Then the second is to be more ‘smart’ in the use of resources and to really focus on the needs- of those in the workplace and of individuals and families. There is not an issue with poverty in Modi’in, but there are issues of employability. However, in the Israeli Learning Cities network, there are some examples of cities that may have issues of poverty.  

We considered the importance of developing economic resilience and also individual resilience. Peter explained that in the UK there is a saying ‘Build Back Better’. He felt that collectively the network has a lot of knowledge which need to be brought forward in order to reimagine a new way of working and rewarding work. It could be said that at present there is a situation of ‘inequality by design.’

Shilpi pointed out the diversity of the cities they are working with and how they have different economic challenges. Khulna is a post-industrial town without a stable economic base. There are second-generation unemployed people who do not have an appropriate skills base for new employment opportunities, there is a real skills gap. There are LLL opportunities through NGOs offering training and financial support, but there is a need to explore the landscape and the existing ecosystem and identify the gaps. Dhaka is a dynamic city with a high growth rate and a stronger economy. However, it also has a high sprawl rate and many people attracted to the city are working in an informal economy in production roles. Most of these roles are not sustainable and many have lost their jobs - as a result, there is outward migration with people moving back to their villages, where the skills they have learned in the city are of no value.  In this case, wellbeing is being overlooked. There are also climate migrants in all cities without tangible assets. How can they absorb this shock and adapt?

Maria reported that there is a transformative process in her city, in the formal economy sector which is sustainable. Nafisa felt that exclusion is high in the formal learning system and there is a need for research to quantify this. The citizens will need to adjust to these shocks and this concept of developing resilience may be new in developing countries.

It was agreed that each participant will prepare 4 slides to create a portrait of their cities.

Create a Portrait

(4 slides about your city)

• Create 2 slides with researched facts that define your city or are ‘concerning’ about your city
• Create one slide with your vision for change, relating to one of the four aims of the network
• Create one slide about how the city works (or not) with higher education

Next Meeting: Thursday, November 26^th at 9am UK time. 

¹“Sustainable learning cities: inclusion, equity and lifelong learning” - http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/221575/

²“Locating the fourth helix: Rethinking the role of civil society in developing smart learning cities” - http://eprints.gla.ac.uk/159064/