Report of the First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities 11th – 20th March 2013
REPORT OF THE FIRST ASIAN VISITING SCHOLAR & EXPERT'S KNOWLEDGE SHARING VISIT TO AUSTRALIAN UNIVERSITIES
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Contents
Page
1. Introduction
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2. Agenda
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3. Presentations A. Leading Community Engagement at an Institutional Level B. ASEAN Perspectives on Engagement: Highlighting Models and Best Practice
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4. Moving Forward: AUN USR&S@AsiaEngage and Engagement Australia Synergies and Potential Collaboration
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5. Conclusion
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Appendix Applause for Visiting Scholars and Experts Program from Flinders University
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1. INTRODUCTION Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran Kaur Gill was invited by Engagement Australia to be their first Asian visiting scholar from 11th to 20th of March 2013. This invitation, which is part of Engagement Australia’s Visiting Scholars and Experts Programme, was initiated under the leadership of their Chair, Professor Pierre Viljoen, and coordinated by their Executive Officer, Dr. Jan Strom. This long standing and successful ‘member only’ program is designed to build engagement depth, skills and capacity while increasing knowledge and understanding around specific and diverse areas of scholarship and practice from other parts of the world as well as through exchanging good practice within Australia. Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran is responsible for advancing engagement in Asian higher education in two senior executive positions: firstly, as the DVC (Industry & Community Partnerships) at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (The National University of Malaysia – UKM); and secondly, as the Executive Director of AsiaEngage where she leads a dynamic and rapidly growing engagement network of universities. She was joined by Dr. Hamidah Yamat, Ambassador for Industry & Community Partnerships UKM and Head of Programme (Masters), Faculty of Education UKM and Ms. Prabha Sundram, Manager, University-Community Partnerships UKM. The overarching aim of Prof Saran’s visit was to share her knowledge and perspectives on engagement so as to assist Engagement Australia’s member universities to develop and promote a stronger and more sustainable culture of engagement within their own universities as well as across Australian higher education. Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran began her Australian visit on the 11th of March in Perth, with a Breakfast Symposium for 40 members of Western Australian universities and community groups hosted by Engagement Australia. Following the breakfast symposium, Prof Dato’ Dr. Saran toured Australia as part of the 2013 Visiting Scholars and Experts program, where she and her colleagues were hosted by Edith Cowan and Curtin Universities (WA), Flinders University (SA), University of Southern Queensland and CQUniversity (Bundaberg, Rockhampton and Mackay campuses). During her tour, Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran promoted high impact community engagement projects and programmes that are being carried out in ASEAN and Asia that Australia can take lessons from while also learning from the Australian experience. In several universities, she also led workshop sessions which focused on four key areas; the role and functions of University-Community and Industry Engagement Offices, the Governance systems and management structure for integrating University and community engagement across research, education and service, schemes, modalities and criteria for promotion systems for academics and fund generation and funding support for university and community engagement. Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran’s interactive sessions were attended by university academics, executives and senior management personnel, as well as those who are active or seeking to be active in universitycommunity engagement activities from business & industry, community and local government and higher education – academic and professional staff as well as students. During the tour, Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran reiterated that industry and community engagement is not new in many universities, but what is new are efforts to coordinate and systematize and professionalise this area as compared to the traditional mainstays of research and innovation and academic and student affairs. This will incorporate issues pertinent for the institutionalization, the implementation, the monitoring and review to ensure quality, the evaluation of impact, the First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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recognition and promotion criteria and the necessary interventions needed in terms of capacity building. This was the main message articulated in both of her presentations, which were titled “Asian Perspective on Engagement: Highlighting models and best-practice” and “Leading Community Engagement at an Institutional Level.” She also reiterated UKM’s commitment in creating the multiplier effect and synergies in Community and Industry Engagement across ASEAN and Asia through regional platforms. UKM hosts the secretariat of two networks- the Asia-Talloires Network of Industry and Community Engaged Universities (ATNEU) and the ASEAN University Network's Thematic Network on University Social Responsibility and Sustainability (AUN USR&S). In addition, UKM works collaboratively with the ASEAN Secretariat and the Ministry of Youth and Sports to lead in the development and implementation of the ASEAN Youth Volunteer Program (AYVP). All three entities work in partnership across ASEAN and Asia through the regional alliance called 'Asia Engage'. All these networks/programme under AsiaEngage aim to create mutually beneficial partnerships between the Research, Education and Volunteerism missions of higher education with industry and community stakeholders across ASEAN and Asia.
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2. AGENDA The following agenda depicts the general format of the visit programme at the participating universities (Edith Cowan and Curtin Universities (WA), Flinders University (SA), University of Southern Queensland and CQUniversity - Bundaberg, Rockhampton and Mackay campuses), and flexibility was provided as to the areas selected for their respective sharing of best practices and capacity building sessions.
9.00-9.30am
Delegation to meet with Head of Campus
9.30-10.00am
Registration
10.00-10.10am
Welcome & Introduction
10.10-10.40am
1st Presentation by Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran Kaur Gill ‘Leading Community Engagement at an Institutional Level’
10.40-10.50am
Q&A
10.50-11.10am
Morning Tea
11.10-11.40am
2nd Presentation by Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran Kaur Gill ‘ASEAN Perspectives on Engagement: Highlighting models and best-practice’
11:40am–12.30pm
Group discussions Group 1: Role and functions on University-Community and Industry Engagement Offices Group 2: Governance systems and management structure for integrating university and community engagement across research, education and service Group 3: Schemes, modalities and criteria for promotion systems for academics, recognition and rewards for University& Community Engagement Group 4: Fund generation and funding support for University& Community Engagement
12.30-1.10pm
Presentation of group discussion outcomes
1.10-2.00pm
Lunch
2.00-2.45pm
Delegation Campus Tour
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3. PRESENTATIONS A. Leading Community Engagement at an Institutional Level Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran Kaur Gill I must thank Engagement Australia for the title of the presentation but I personally would not assume to be “Leading Community Engagement” – I am not sure yet if I have earned it. If I look back at my efforts over the last five years, I would describe them more as planning, strategising and plodding with tenacity and perseverance and with plenty of patience and prayer, to drive community engagement forward institutionally, nationally and regionally. Whilst preparing this paper, I came across an amazing book on The Art of Collaboration which was based on the 15th century Chinese Admiral Zheng He who ‘braved unchartered waters in his voyage to the Western Ocean in the 15th Century and victoriously generated goodwill by building the desired sustainable long-term collaborative relationships in every territory he visited.’ I do not assume to be anywhere close to Admiral Zheng He in terms of strength of bravery and adventure but would like to adopt his best practice of the Art of Collaboration and in the same way as Zheng He did, forge collaborative partnerships as I travel on this exciting journey across this wonderful country of yours, Australia. As the first Asian Scholar invited by Engagement Australia to participate in this prestigious Visiting Scholar and Expert Program, I look forward to working with all of you, to exchange knowledge and experiences, and to generate goodwill amongst ourselves and help us develop and strengthen this collaborative relationship between Engagement Australia and AsiaEngage. Community Engagement across Australia, Malaysia and ASEAN Many universities in ASEAN, as well as Australia and in many other parts of the world have worked in the area of community and industry engagement for a very long time – this is not new. But what is relatively new and more difficult are efforts to coordinate, systematize and professionalize engagement. This will incorporate issues pertinent for the institutionalization, the implementation, the monitoring and review to ensure quality, the evaluation of impact, the recognition and promotion criteria and the necessary interventions needed in terms of capacity building. Universities face tremendous challenges as they strive to implement all that has been mentioned. The reasons for this challenging situation have been attributed by Goddard and Puukka, 2008 and Goddard and Vallance, 2010, as: “the lack of support across national and institutional systems, a gap between strategic plans and operational systems, lack of funding streams and promotional recognition and lack of capacity building to develop qualities essential for engagement.” I agree with all that has been articulated as challenges and will now take you through how we have dealt with some of them at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (referred to as UKM in this presentation), a Research University. This will trace the journey of coordinating and systematizing First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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industry and community engagement at UKM and how we have developed a regional alliance to share and provide solutions that could be adopted at the ASEAN and Asian levels. UKM’s Governance Eco-System for Engagement If a university wants to drive this area forward seriously, then there has to be a clear governance system developed for this and there has to be space and visibility for this area at the senior management level of a university. Let me share Malaysia’s experience with you. On the 1st Sept 2007, the Ministry of Higher Education in Malaysia established a new senior management portfolio, that of Deputy Vice-Chancellor for Industry and Community Partnerships. This is for the four research universities in Malaysia. The aim of this was to systematically and gainfully reduce the gap between the “ivory towers” and that of community and industry stakeholders. When I was first appointed as Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Industry and Community Partnerships) there were no guidelines as to how this portfolio should be driven.
The Clarification and Definition of Community and Industry Engagement There were two matters that emerged very strongly early on – the first was the need to clarify and conceptualise what industry and community partnerships is all about so that we all have a clear understanding and direction of how we should work towards it. The second was the need to establish a clear governance system and structure. In the beginning, I was continually told that my portfolio will deal with the third mission of the university – that of service. “Service” as the third mission of the university, separate from research and teaching and learning, focuses on an act of helpful activity- to do someone a service, what is involved in volunteerism; and this is extremely valuable for ensuring that we give with our hearts, hands and minds back to society. This is a very important third mission but the richness of what community and industry engagement can offer would not be maximised if it was located only in the third mission. Russel Botman, the first black President of the University of Stellenboch, states that it is a challenge “to rid ourselves of the old paradigm of “community service” that keep us captive and to arrive at a more reciprocal concept that emphasises partnership and mutual benefit.” (Botman, H. R. (2010). Hope in Africa: Human Development Through Higher Education Community Interaction, Talloires Network Bellagio Conference). The philosophy that needed to be adopted and that was very clear from the very beginning was that community and industry engagement (if carried out well) has to be integrated across research, education and service to maximise its potential and enrich the core missions of the university. The term 'Service' is not broad enough to sufficiently encompass and capture the diverse range of
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activities and initiatives which involve engagement with industry and communities which encompasses the richness of knowledge exchange, carried out with various multi-sectoral partners, enriching multi-disciplinary endeavours, through respectful discussion in mutually beneficial ways. This area of industry and community engagement should not be regarded as the third mission – its value is maximized through integration by supporting and enriching the core missions of the university – research, education and service (volunteerism).
Governance System and Structures, Policy and Implementation which Direct and Support University-Industry/Community Partnerships at UKM We move now to UKM’s Governance Eco-System for Engagement that we have developed after five years in the job. My appointment increased the number of Deputy Vice-Chancellors to 4. This is to support the Chief Executive of the institution – the Vice-Chancellor. At UKM we are led by a very dynamic woman leader – Prof Sharifah Hapsah Shahabudin, the VC. The three existing Deputy Vice-Chancellors or Deputy Presidents are DVC of Academic and International Affairs, DVC of Research and Innovation and DVC of Student and Alumni Affairs. I am the DVC of industry and community partnerships. Herein lay the challenge. Given that the core missions of the university are driven by three other Deputy Vice-Chancellors - it is crucial therefore, for clear governance systems and operational guidelines to be developed to facilitate effective and efficient engagement across the portfolios, underpinned with strong understanding, respect and cooperation. To facilitate this, the approach adopted was that the DVC of industry and community partnership’s role is to support and strengthen the core missions of research, education and service through innovative industry and community engagement partnerships. The DVC of Industry and Community Partnerships office is made up of three strong depts. – the Industry-Liaison Office, the University-Community Partnerships Office and the Chancellor’s Foundation (which deals with fund generation). Policy and guidelines developed at top management levels need to be implemented at the faculty level across the university. To ensure this happens, each faculty has appointed an academic as Head of Industry and Community Partnerships. These offices work closely with the Vice Chancellor and other DVC’s (academic, research and student affairs), Faculty Deans, Institute Directors, and other senior UKM staff, and together, we provide direction, coordination and support to staff and students in working together to achieve the UKM industry and community engagement vision. Having the position of Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Industry and Community Partnerships) is one part of the equation, the other part of the equation is to get the work done. When I first assumed this First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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responsibility, I had the opportunity to visit the UK and met with Sir David Watson who was the ViceChancellor of the University of Brighton and who drove Civic and Community Engagement at Brighton and beyond. His advice to me was, “in this area of forging partnerships more than any other, was not to adopt a philosophy of “delegating and abdicating.” You need to see the process of developing partnerships with external stakeholders through until it is ready to be implemented by the respective offices with clear guidelines, roles and responsibilities delineated.” (Verbal communication, 2008). This is not to say that Engagement takes place at only one central point, engagement with external stakeholders can take place at multiple entry points – it could be through my offices, through research centres, through the faculties and through individual academics. But it would be the role of this senior management position and its offices to not only create opportunities but also to coordinate and systematise, monitor and review and professionalise industry and community engagement across the university. Style of Leadership The second challenge that emerged was the style of leadership. “What does it mean to lead in this portfolio?” Given that it was a supportive role that one had to play, one did not have clear lines of authority over any stakeholder. Instead, to obtain the buy-in, one had to convince and persuade academics and industry, NGOs and community of the value of this field, one had to show them what we could do for them. It was not a situation of “Do as I say” Instead it was “work with us and we would be able to add value and strength to what we will be able to do for you and society.” We had to show them how working with us can bring tremendous value to their research and teaching and learning – we have succeeded on a number of occasions and once they appreciated this, the pathways were entrenched to a future of engaged journeys. The word that best describes the nature of leadership in this field is that of stewardship, which has been taken from a recent World Bank report. The Deputy Vice-Chancellors of Industry and Community Partnerships have to “to exercise stewardship to coordinate and handle actors and interactions not under their full control but critical to the performance of the sector.” (The World Bank: 2012) They need to lead in the development and application of multi-stakeholder collaboration and to do this, it is essential to be sincere and giving and to be able to develop trust and forge relationships so that they have confidence in the “steward” and this applies to all levels of partnerships across the multi-sectors.
Policy Guidelines for Effective Stakeholder Engagement Engagement with external stakeholders, if done well, brings tremendous visibility and enhances the profile of the institution. But when done badly, creates negative and sometimes irreparable damage to the institution. When an academic deals with a member of industry or community, he or she does not represent himself or herself individually. Instead you represent the institution and it is the First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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name of the institution that you carry with you. Therefore, acquiring competencies to work effectively and with sensitivity with external stakeholders is absolutely critical. The education of internal stakeholders (academics and students) on effective engagement is very important. As a start for this, we have developed two policy papers – the first is the Guidelines for Carrying out Sustainable and Productive Industry and Community Engagement at UKM, which covers pretty much what has been presented so far and more, and the second is a detailed Engagement Policy Guidelines Document which sets out clear management processes, systems and procedures to develop meaningful, sustainable, considerate & productive interactions with both internal and external stakeholders. The processes delineate guidelines for various stages in the continuum of engagement including Engagement Planning, Preparation and Negotiation, Finalizing Engagement, Implementation, Monitoring and Reporting and Gaining feedback from external partners. It is important for higher education institutions to have standard operating procedures, systems and processes that are clear to everyone in our pursuit of effective engagement with both industry and community players. Promotional criteria The major challenge for institutions of higher learning is not preaching to the converted but persuading those driven by traditional promotion criteria that there is value, relevance and excitement in engaging with community and industry partners to enhance research, teaching and service. Initiating, developing and sustaining relationships with external stakeholders is very rewarding but time-consuming and takes academics away from their core business of being an academic as it is framed with present promotional criteria. Until and unless we can work into promotional criteria the value of these efforts of building up relationships and the valuable outcomes, it will just be confined to those who are passionate and committed and it will be an uphill struggle to create impact across the university. Therefore there is a need to work out clearly how this can be done for each of the key components of research, education and service with clear examples so that it promotes greater understanding, acceptance and application in the academic environment. We have included this in the Guidelines Policy Paper. This then takes us to the reward system and criteria for promotion for catalysing university-industrycommunity collaboration. There were two ways that we could have approached this: one is by developing - through promotion criteria - a third strand for industry and community engagement and developing indicators for this. We decided against this as it would have put it in direct competition with the other two strands of education and research. We wanted to maintain our philosophy of working in cooperation and First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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support with the others and therefore felt that it was important to integrate industry and community engagement as it supports research, education and service and not to regard it as a separate stream. Therefore, we have 50% for research, 30% for education and 20% for service with industry and community engagement supporting all three, thus for each component you have criteria and indicators that provides recognition of industry and community engagement. After a challenging journey that took more than 2 years since July 2010, we have finally got approval of this integrative model for promotion. All academics now have two streams through which they can be promoted – the research stream and the teaching and learning stream. They cannot be promoted on service but it is compulsory for them to participate in this. We have developed minimum levels of achievement and maximum criteria of excellence for each. Scholarship of Engagement and Capacity Enhancement To ensure that this field is taken seriously and is not considered a soft option, it is essential that the scholarship of engagement for community based research, teaching and learning and volunteerism is developed. Ahmed Bawa (2007) supports this by stressing that, “An important challenge therefore is to understand how to shape programmes of community-based engagement so that they are philosophically and conceptually located within the core functions of the university. This would be different from supporting them from the edge, and requires moving them to the centre. The one way of doing this is by placing community-based engagement firmly within a knowledge production framework so that the kinds of knowledge production and knowledge dissemination in community-based engagement activities are in competition with ‘high’ knowledge – knowledge that forms the basis of a traditional university.” (Ahmed C. Bawa, 2007:59) Academics who work in this field must ensure that their community engagement is research-driven and publications are of quality and they can be rewarded in terms of promotion based on the publications that have emerged out of all the wonderful work that is being carried out with multiple stakeholders to solve integral problems of communities. We encourage all those involved in community engagement initiatives to publish in discipline-based journals that have a high-impact value – if not in Q1 journals, at least in Q2. It is necessary to do this as this is the way to centralise the knowledge that is generated in the field of community engagement and for it to attain academic legitimacy.
Capacity Building Another integral area that had to be seen to was capacity development especially for the field of engagement. This is not something that all can be involved in naturally – the following are the areas that could support capacity development – social participatory research, skills and competencies for effective stakeholder engagement, examining the social impact of community engaged projects in terms of the extent to which they enhance the quality of life of the target community through social, First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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economic, environmental, health, education or technological development; Skills and competencies to access funding for industry and community engagement amongst others. As part of capacity building, we recently organized a platform for all in the university to present work related to community engagement that they have been involved in. The response was overwhelming and we had academics who were amazed at what their colleagues were working on and that they never knew of before. Being able to provide forums where good practices can be shared and learnt from is an integral part of capacity development. But it is also important to make them aware of criteria and indicators that need to be achieved to ensure that their work is productive and sustainable and helps improve the quality of life of the community. At various forums that my colleagues and I have attended, we have always been asked to share the knowledge and experience that we have gained over the years. We then felt that it was valuable to take this to the regional level to create the multiplier effect and synergies in community and industry engagement through regional platforms. Creating multiplier effect and synergies in Community and Industry Engagement across ASEAN and Asia through Regional Platforms UKM has gained the confidence and trust of many international organisations and is suitably positioned to create the multiplier effect across ASEAN. One opportunity came about when UKM worked with the Talloires Network to set up a regional partnership, the Asia-Talloires Network of Industry and Community Engaged Universities (ATNEU) at UKM and this was established in January 2011. The Talloires Network is a network of over 200 universities in 59 countries around the globe that has a passion for university social responsibility and civic engagement. Following on from this, UKM’s bid and proposal to be secretariat of the ASEAN University Network’s thematic network on USR&S was endorsed in July 2011 by the AUN Board of Trustees at their meeting in Luang Prabang, Laos. The Malaysian Minister of Higher Education, being a strong advocate of the benefits of university-industry-community collaborations, has presented the ATNEU proposal to the Malaysian Ministerial Cabinet where it has been endorsed by the Prime Minister and cabinet Ministers. The next opportunity came at this very meeting in Luang Prabang, Laos. The Asean Secreatariat approached UKM to submit a proposal to lead in the development of the ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme. In October 2011, at Hanoi, we presented the proposal and the ASEAN member states through the ASEAN Secretariat endorsed UKM to develop and implement the ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme (AYVP). With two secretariats and a programme, we felt that we needed to create an identity – therefore we created the regional alliance of “AsiaEngage”. All these networks/programme under AsiaEngage aim to maximise strengths and create mutually beneficial partnerships between the Research, Education and Volunteerism missions of higher education with industry and community stakeholders across ASEAN and Asia. AsiaEngage was formally launched in May 2012 at our regional conference
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organized in partnership with the Talloires Network, the ASEAN University Network and the Ministry of Higher Education. The conference report is with you.
Conclusion Before I end, I would like to share with you what I gained from the Beijing Forum, held from the 2 nd to 4th November 2012, at the University of Peking. I had the privilege to hear the former President of India, Dr. APJ Abdul Kalam present the keynote address on “The Evolution of a Peaceful and Prosperous Planet Earth”. I draw your attention to it specifically for one key message – where he says that we need to work on global platforms made up of a network of universities, private sector and communities – researching and synergizing core competencies to find knowledge-driven solutions in a multi-national manner. His message provides the much-needed affirmation and validation of all that we have been working towards. This echoes what had been advocated at the Engagement Australia Conference held in Brisbane, in July last year, where I expressed that it would be extremely valuable given our geographical, historical and cultural proximity to explore ways in which Engagement Australia and AsiaEngage together with our industry, NGO and community partners, could generate and share new knowledge to create solutions to solve problems faced by communities in the areas of the environment and climate change, rural development and poverty eradication, education and technology development and others. As we do this, we should also further the mission of community engagement by professionalizing the field through research, publications and capacity building. Let us be trailblazers for ASEAN-Australian partnership in this AGE OF COLLABORATION. _________________________________________________________________________ ADDITIONAL INFORMATION Promotional Criteria for Industry & Community Engagement Integrated across Research, Education & Service We need to show academics how they can achieve their research and publications KPIs and yet work at ensuring their knowledge is applicable and benefits communities. To quote from Furco (2001) “service learning needs to be connected to faculty’s research and scholarly agendas, be tied to the university’s research mission and be integrated into the discipline-based, academic work of departments.” (Furco, 2001) If community engagement is to be taken seriously, then it has to be integrated into the mainstream research and publications agenda.
In Research, recognition is given for: - Leadership in collaborative research, knowledge exchange partnerships and consultancy with various partners (industry, foundations, NGOs, community) - Generating funds and endowments for collaborative engaged research in the university’s niche areas of excellence
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In Teaching & Learning, academics are recognized for: - Developing innovation in curriculum and co-curriculum in collaboration with industry/NGO/govt. agencies - Undergoing attachment in industry/NGO/govt. agencies, thus enhancing the quality of teaching and learning based on the outcome of the attachment - Generating funding support from industry/NGO/govt. agencies to support activities that enhance the teaching & learning In Service, recognition is accorded for providing service through productive and sustainable knowledge-driven volunteerism initiatives that enhance the quality of life for communities, and empower communities through capacity building initiatives for the development of community champions. The projects may involve multi-sector stakeholders (academic staff, non-academic staff and/or students, NGOs and community, industries and foundation or government agencies) and may be at university, national or regional levels.
Research Grants for Industry & Community Based Research It is important to carry out research to be able to obtain evidence based data to be able to determine impact and possibly behavioural change with regards the interventions of community based teaching and learning and volunteerism. To encourage this, we have instituted a research grant for initiatives that have demonstrated value and social impact called the “The UniversityCommunity Research Grant.” Seed funding is provided by UKM for research projects that demonstrate the following criteria: Engage with the community in collaborative research through consultative process or community profiling to identify needs and challenges of the community. Demonstrate sustainability by securing matching contribution from private sector stakeholders (foundations/industries/philanthropists) through their CSR mission. Demonstrate clear and measurable outcomes in terms of research output and the impact on community development and empowerment Demonstrate positive impact on teaching & learning through the development of community-based competencies in students, or the integration of core project elements into the curriculum From the early days, one of the features that we have found is that a number of academics regard the community as a research site. The approach taken by them is “I come from a university and know what is good for you and therefore would like to carry out research on this area.” What this has raised is the essential need to carry out capacity enhancement so that academics gain knowledge of the “know-how” of community engagement to ensure that their work is collaborative, considerate, respectful and extends from consulting and discussing with the communities at the very initial levels of planning for research-driven community development and eventually leading onto the empowerment of communities. There is a need to break academics from the notion that universities are the sole custodians of knowledge and that they have just as much to learn from communities and various other multiple sites of knowledge generation than they have to give. We First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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focus a lot on the term knowledge transfer, it is essential in this partnership era to start using knowledge exchange. It breaks the universities away from the idea that they are the sole custodians and developers of knowledge, and exemplifies that they have just as much to learn from the communities and the larger society (Gill, S.K. in the Draft Report of 2nd Asia-Europe Education Workshop - Knowledge Societies: Universities and their Social Responsibilities, 2011) Documentation and Coordination of Community and Industry Engaged Initiatives One of the important aspects of institutionalisation is being able to capture past and existing work that has been carried out at the university. This mechanism is required so that all these initiatives can be recorded in a centralized system and the results can be monitored through the clear criteria and indicators to enhance impact and sustainability of the industry and community involvement in the University. This would also enable us to provide the necessary capacity development and interventions that can further enrich engagement across research, education and service. This led us to develop a computer resource management (CRM) system called Industry Community Engagement System (ICEsystem). This system is valuable in that it enables us: • To measure the level and quality of industry and community engagement in Faculties and Institutes as well as the whole university. • If needed, to allow us to provide necessary intervention (capacity building , resources,) to enhance the quality of ICE. • To generate information for the reward and recognition system for academic/non-academic staff with regards to the industry and community engagement (Performance Evaluation, Engagement Awards and promotion criteria). • To increase the visibility and disseminate information of industry and community engagement initiatives within the university as well as to internal and external media. When this system was first implemented, it was a challenge to get the academics to fill in the relevant data. But now that the system is linked to their annual appraisals and promotional opportunities, we do not face this problem anymore – there is strong motivation for them to fill in the system themselves. To further enhance the functionality of the ICEsys as a central engagement database of projects and stakeholders, we are now working on adding an e-Application component to the ICEsys – whereby details of all industry and community engagement projects will be channeled into the system for feedback by the University-Community Partnerships Office prior to implementation. The feedback will based on clear criteria and indicators such as projected positive impact on research output, teaching & learning, student development & community empowerment, and sustainability. We are also developing a database of all stakeholders that UKM has been involved with (industry, NGOs, govt agencies) which can be linked with the ICEsys. This is because it is important when we approach a particular industry, for us to already know the history of engagement with that particular
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industry – it wouldn’t do for us to go to them not being aware of who they have worked with and when. External stakeholders have also expressed that they would like to see greater coordination and professionalization of engagement with industry within the University. It will help us project a more professional image and a coordinated approach in our collective dealings with external stakeholders. In addition, it would also benefit academics if they wanted to approach an organization and could know in advance who had already worked with them and with whom specifically. This “Partners in Engagement Management System” would allow us to coordinate, monitor and evaluate engagement, and help the university project a more professional image and a coordinated approach in our collective dealings with external stakeholders.
References Bawa, C.C. (2007) 'Rethinking the Place of Community-Based Engagement at Universities' in L. McIlrath. and I.M. Labhrainn. (2007) (eds) Higher Education and Civic Engagement: International Perspectives, Ashgate: Aldershot, 2007, pp. 55-64. Botman, H. R. (2010). Hope in Africa: Human Development Through Higher Education Community Interaction. Talloires Network Bellagio Conference, Italy Furco, A. (2001), Advancing Service-Learning at Research Universities. New Directions for Higher Education, 2001: 67–78. doi: 10.1002/he.15 Gill, S.K. (2011). In the Draft Report of 2nd Asia-Europe Education Workshop - Knowledge Societies: Universities and their Social Responsibilities. Innsbruck, Austria Goddard, J.B. and J. Puukka (2008): The engagement of higher education institutions in regional development: an overview of the opportunities and challenges. Higher Education Management and Policy 20(2): 3-33. Goddard, J. and Vallance, P. (2010) Universities and regional Development, in Pike, A., RodríguezPose, A. and Tomaney, J. (eds.), Handbook of Local and Regional Development. London: Routledge. Hum, Hoon Sin (2011). Zheng He's Art of Collaboration: Understanding the Legendary Chinese Admiral from a Management Perspective. The Institute of Southeast Asian Studies, Singapore. ISBN: 9789814379663
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B. ASEAN Perspectives on Engagement: Highlighting Models and Best Practice Prof. Dato’ Dr. Saran Kaur Gill The process of sharing best practices is in itself a best practice. It is a process in which we are all continuously engaged in, as we strive to collaborate together to create goodwill and to promote a stronger and sustainable culture of knowledge exchange and engagement in higher education across the region. The Best Practices and Models that I will present to all of you from the ASEAN region begin with the model of institutionalization of community engagement at Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia. Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia (UKM), Malaysia Best Practice of Community Engagement at the Institutional Level Industry and community engagement is not new in many universities, but what is new are efforts to coordinate and systematize this area as compared to the traditional mainstays of research and innovation and academic and student affairs. For any relatively new area to be regarded seriously in a university, it has to be institutionalized. We have worked through very challenging circumstances over the last five years in our journey to institutionalize industry and community engagement across the university. This has involved working out governance systems for engagement with external partners, at senior management levels, and across faculties and the various other components essential for institutionalisation. We will discuss more about this later after you have had your group discussions and I will share and exchange with you our experiences.
Creating multiplier effect and synergies in USR for Asia through international platforms After we worked out the various areas that coordinated and systematized the way in which we approached community engagement in the university, we kept receiving numerous requests to share our experiences. We then saw the need for replicating our Community Engagement strategic model and sharing our experiences through creating a multiplier effect across the region. This was what drove us to develop AsiaEngage. One opportunity came about when UKM worked at establishing the secretariat of the Asia-Talloires Network of Industry and Community Engaged Universities (ATNEU). The Talloires Network is a network of over 200 universities in 59 countries around the globe that has a passion for university social responsibility and civic engagement. In addition, UKM’s bid and proposal to be secretariat of the Asean University Network’s thematic network on USR&S was endorsed by the AUN Board of Trustees at their meeting in Luang Prabang, Laos in July 2011. Subsequently, we worked closely with the ASEAN Secretariat to develop a proposal to plan for and implement the ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme. This was successfully endorsed by all ASEAN Member States in October 2011. These initiatives are strongly supported by the Ministry of Higher Education and the Ministry of Youth and Sports and have been presented at the Malaysian Ministerial Cabinet for government endorsement. First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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With two secretariats and a programme, we felt that we needed to create an identity – therefore we created the regional alliance of “AsiaEngage”. All these networks/programme under AsiaEngage aim to maximize strengths and create mutually beneficial partnerships between the Research, Education and Volunteerism missions of higher education with industry and community stakeholders across ASEAN and Asia. AsiaEngage’s Call for Evidence Survey of Community Engagement to Member Universities On 28th November 2012, the AsiaEngage Secretariat sent out a “Call for Best Practices Survey” to 22 member universities. It was clear from the data that we received that there are varying levels of development with regards community engagement across ASEAN. Some of our member universities have just realized the importance and value of this area and are keen to start with developments but need guidance as to how this can be done; there are others, like our member universities in Indonesia where the government has long supported this, and they have institutionalized community engagement within the higher education eco-system across the nation; and yet others, who work at institutional levels, and through their mission statements reach out to communities to forge meaningful partnerships. Select Best Practices of Community Engagement Projects across ASEAN What I am going to be able to do is to provide you with Select Best Practices of Community Engagement across ASEAN – these would be from Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines and Malaysia. These would be practices in which the methodology and approach has been based on the following principles: i. ii. iii.
iv. v.
Research is an integral part of engagement with communities – research-driven community engagement Cascading Model Academics apply their expertise but are cognizant of the fact that they are not the sole custodians of knowledge and work closely with communities to share and gain knowledge - principles of respect and Knowledge-Exchange Multi-sector partnerships which address and jointly solve problems faced by communities Need to develop community champions and build up confidence in the community for them to proceed and progress with the solutions jointly developed
Thailand: We begin by highlighting the Viharn Pra Chao Pun Ong Conservation Project by Chiang Mai University, Thailand, which won the 2008 UNESCO Asia-Pacific Heritage Awards for Cultural Heritage Conservation. Viharn Phra Chao Pun Ong (viharn of the one thousand Buddhas) at Pongsanuk
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Temple in Lampang Province, Thailand, is a sacred and highly revered building for the Pongsanuk community that was seriously damaged during World War II. In November 2004, a sustainable conservation plan was developed by experts from Chiang Mai University, with local community participation. This innovative project uses a “Participatory and Interdisciplinary Practice through Experience and Knowledge” approach which was developed by academics in the university to help the local community understand the significance and value of their cultural heritage which then leads them to supportively participate in sustainable conservation. Collaboration between the various stakeholders - government agencies, NGOs, academic, students as well as the local community – is a critical factor which has contributed to the success of this project. Students involved in the project learn conservation technics and methodology, participate in conservation training courses and then teach the local community how to conserve their heritage. The project has also inspired some university students to conduct their own research on heritage conservation. The next project that I would like to share is a good practice in Engaging Communities through Research. This project was presented by Dr. Silaporn Buasai, Deputy Director of Thailand Research Fund, at the 1st AUN-USRS Steering Committee Meeting in October 2012. Dr Silaporn shared 2 innovative modalities practiced in Thailand. The first modality, initiated in 1997, is called CBR or Community-Based Research, which works primarily at the “village” level and aims to enhance the learning process of the community through a solution-oriented approach to solve the community’s problems. The key characteristics of this best practice is that the research problems are initiaited by the community, the community members act as active researchers, and the university works with the community through participatory action research in search of solutions. Thus the role of the university is in its capacity as a reseach node and an advisor, to provide academic service and produce knowledge from “ground” experiences of the community. A CBR example is a project on a water pump in Ubon, a northeastern province bordering Mae Khong River. The villagers had difficulty pumping water up from Mae Khong River every dry season as the water level was usually 30 meters lower from the bank. The villagers posed this question and worked with engineers. Academic engineers, however, failed to invent a pump that could pump water so high without causing power breakdown. The villagers finally searched among their local wise men, developed a prototype, consulted the engineer, tested and improved the model which they called "Air Wear". The model worked well. But what is more important is that the villagers felt confident about their ability to do research and find appropriate solution to their problem. Although this example is about technology, CBR in fact does not emphasize the discovery of technology. Rather, it focuses on helping local people discover their potentials. The second modality is known as ABC or Area-Based Collaborative Research, which promotes the role of universities in local development. Initiated in 2007, ABC is a strategic research design that aims to bring multiple stakeholders to collaborate through research to solve problems at the provinicial level in Thaland. One example is the ABC project for poverty alleviation, which is the nation’s largest action research project involving over 40,000 people from GOs, NGOs, academics and community, and spanning 17 of Thailand’s 77 provinces. This project successfully applied First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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strategic research design to promote collaboration among diverse provincial partners in development towards community empowerment and poverty alleviation through a bottom-up planning model, budgetary integration and change in knowledge culture. The following explanation was provided by Dr. Silaporn Buasai: As for ABC, the case of Pitsanulok, a northern province some 400 km. north of BKK, could be an example. We introduced a "household account" as a tool to help villagers realize about their debt situation and its cause. At first they resisted, arguing that many agencies had come before us and had told them to record their income and expenditure, but nothing had changed. However, through the strategic research design, we incorporated multiple stakeholders in the village fora where data from household accounts could be compiled and hence brought certain type of expenditure to local attention. Villagers became aware of common problems and through the fora which served as their learning classroom, they gradually came to see the root cause of their debt, i.e., the lack of good farm planning and management. The inability to control cost for their farm production was very typical. Some farmers confessed after seeing their maize production cost that they could see that if they went on growing maize, their debt would pile up even before they started planting. So they changed. They started looking for alternative crops, some changed to growing passion fruits, while some to flowers. Some find ways to reduce the cost of fertilizers. Here, more academic research could come in to help find alternatives. Overall, most of the farmers joining in this project could relieve their debt burden within 3 years. Indonesia: A good example of a community engagement project which is integrated into the curriculum is the Kuliah Kerja Nyata (K2N) Project at Universitas Indonesia (UI). K2N is a student community service course with 3 credits offered at UI, with the objective of developing students’ soft skills, fostering a sense of belonging to the Indonesian archipelago, promoting sensitivity, awareness, independence, and volunteerism, whilst empowering communities in the remote and border islands of the nation. Under this program, students are divided into groups with a maximum of 30 students per group and sent for one month to remote areas in Indonesia, such as to Kalimantan, Papua or remote islands in the Pacific, to help local communities. Students need to meet the selection criteria such as essay writing skills, interviews, assessment of health and physical condition, and subsequently undergo survival training before they head to the remote islands. For the K2N program, UI established cooperation with Indonesia’s Navy Forces and a private university in the area closest to the K2N initiative, to facilitate student supervision. The students are transported to locations at outer and remote islands by Navy Ships, and stay in a village in the remote island under the supervision of UI’s lecturers as well as lecturers from the closest private university. There, the each student group carries out specific community empowerment projects based on the assessment of the area and village resources, such as providing special education which was not offered in formal education; developing economic productive activity based on local resources; developing eco and culinary tourism and enhancing quality of life by implementing village sanitation and safe drinking water. Singapore: Next is the Gourmet Guru project by Nanyang Technological University, Singapore. The main objective of this project was to help low-income homemakers earn a living by imparting their family recipes of traditional dishes to keen students. It aimed to turn homemakers into culinary teachers by creating opportunities for low-income women to become gainfully employed. Gourmet Guru First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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collaborates with a Family Service Centre in West Singapore by employing chef graduates from the Centre to become cooking instructors at the Academy. It even works with a distinguished publisher, Marshall Cavendish, to publish a set of cookbooks from the cooking lessons, with part of the sales revenue paid to the homemaker-cooking instructors. There is no state funding; all monies come from the university’s operating budget and external resources. Gourmet Guru was both an internal as well as external success. Internally, NTU SIFE developed a signature program that not only helped students who were involved gain multi-level exposure with the various partners they had to work with, but also inspired others. In 2011, ‘Gourmet Guru’ won the Mayor’s Imagine Fund Ignite Award for the most inspiring youth project and the SIFE Spirit Award. In 2012, Gourmet Guru garnered NTU SIFE the Nanyang Award for Teamwork. To date, Gourmet Guru has helped supplement the participating homemakers’ household income by an average of 12%, with the highest earner bringing in $3100. A total of 31 homemakers benefited from the project and earned a sum of $13,800 by June 2012.
Philippines: ‘Blueplate’ for Better Learning”, initiated by Ateneo De Manila University, in the Philippines is a daily in-school feeding program that targets 4000 of the most undernourished elementary school children in four Quezon City public schools. This good practice in engagement began as part of the university’s efforts to facilitate intervention in response to the challenge of malnutrition and hunger affecting a significant number of public school students in the Philippines. One of the remarkable achievements of this program is the formulation of low-cost nutritious meals for the school children. These meals are cooked by parent volunteers in a central kitchen located in one of the four public elementary schools, and are then distributed to the needy students. The role of the University has been critical in knowledge-generation, through the creation of a template and structured system for a large-scale feeding program that can be replicated in other places, as well as through oversight and overall management of this program. The Blueplate programme provides opportunities for University students to get to know the realities and challenges of Philippine public schools communities. Multi-disciplinary students from the University are involved in this programme. For example, students from the Ateneo Graduate School of Business study the operational aspects of the project, leading to its operational refinement, whilst students of the Law School help to push for the approval of an ordinance in Quezon City that can help financially sustain the project and its replications through the commitment of local government funds to such projects. The students of the School of Medicine and Public Health help by taking the anthropometric measurements of the beneficiaries, and data shows that after six to eight weeks of the program, 50% of the participating school children already reach normal Body Mass Index (BMI) levels. I will now introduce to you some of the initiatives that have been carried out at UKM. There are many and we have published them in a book “The Power of Engagement.” UKM’s Environmental Track for Knowledge-Driven Volunteerism One of the eight niche research areas in UKM is that of the environment and sustainable development. We have over time developed a number of exciting programmes that deal with the environment and climate change across various faculties at the university, and have now coordinated these programmes into UKM’s Environmental Track for knowledge-driven volunteerism
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and community engagement. The Environmental Track at UKM comprises 3 exciting programmes, namely the Green ROSE Programme, Eco-system Discovery Journey (EDJ) Programme and the S.E.E. Nature Programme. The start was when we worked with industry to set up an endowment for the UKM-YSD Chair for Climate Change. The aim of this Chair is to develop the local scientific knowledge of tropical climate change systems which are essential for ascertaining how nations and communities in the region would be able to address and mitigate their future problems. Through a cascading model, the Chair also facilitates the creation of a corps of Climate Change Ambassadors amongst the university students who then work with primary school children. Researchers will educate university students to become change agents who can raise awareness, develop knowledge and direct behavioural changes to manage climate change in this young community as they believe that it is these children who can be change agents in school, influencing their friends and at home, influencing their parents and siblings. This has been named the Green ROSE Programme which is developed under the university’s Climate Change research niche headed by Professor Dr. Sharifah Mastura, and has to date been conducted in 14 primary schools nationwide, impacting almost 800 school children and involving about 80 UKM student volunteers. The Green ROSE Programme is championed by UKM’s Faculty of Social Sciences & Humanities and driven by its Dean, Professor Dr. Hazita Azman. The programme begins with a 3 day Training of volunteers on the Green ROSE modules and a 3 day Induction session at the selected school. This is then followed by a series of up to 16 school intervention visits (1 day each), spread over a period of 3 months, where the volunteers work with the school children for 2 -3 hours per week to inculcate climate change awareness through innovative and creative hands-on activities. This aims to raise awareness of young children on climate change issues and adaptation. Student volunteers are trained by academics to mentor school children through a cascading model, to become change agents who can raise awareness, develop knowledge and direct behavioural changes to manage climate change within their community. Next on the Environmental Track is the Eco-system Discovery Journey (EDJ) Programme. The land on which the University’s Bangi campus is currently built upon was once gazetted as a forest reserve, making it one of the oldest rainforests in Malaysia at more than a hundred years old. A total area of 350 hectares of the remaining forest reserve is still forested, comprising a lowland dipterocarp forest that is rich in biodiversity. Appreciating this, Dato’ Shararuddin Mohd. Ismail, Fellow at UKM’s Institute for Environment and Development (LESTARI), developed a bespoke eco-volunteer programme to help UKM students as well as members of the public understand the role of the forest within the overall setting of the university. The main objective of the programme was to introduce the unique forest setting including its rich flora and fauna to the campus community particularly to the undergraduates and graduate students. The programme also illustrates the ecology and the role of forest in the overall eco system management of the campus. Student volunteers form a core group that aims to spread the spirit of environmental volunteerism among the UKM community and act as facilitators to school children and members of the public who First Asian Visiting Scholar & Expert's Knowledge Sharing Visit to Australian Universities March 2013
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want to take a tour of UKM’s rainforest. With the opportunity for hands-on field experience, the programme is a novel way for school children and the local community to experience the forest up close. This is done through the development of learning modules that visitors to the forest are able to use to learn more about role of the forest as a carbon sink area. The programme follows a structured methodology where volunteers take a 3-day preliminary course conducted by academics as a basic introduction to nature. This is followed by a series of 3-day “train the trainers” workshops that cover integrated Environment modules (Forest, Water, Waste Management, Air, Soil, Beach cleaning/activities, Energy) and a Leadership programme to motivate and train volunteers on how to survive in a jungle, all conducted at various forest reserve sites located close the university. Then comes the community outreach component, where the volunteers work over several weekends with school children and the public at the selected sites to develop an awareness of rainforest biodiversity and spark an interest in conservation. Led by UKM’s Faculty of Science and Technology under the supervision of its Forest Reserve Coordinator, Dr. Wan Juliana Wan Ahmad, and with the support of the Malaysian Nature Society (MNS), the UKM-MNS S.E.E. Nature Programme focuses on environmental education of the younger generation, one of the important first steps towards preservation of our environment. The inaugural 18-day programme took place at the Kuala Selangor Nature Park and the pilot initiative involved 24 multi-disciplinary student volunteers from UKM’s Friends of the Garden Club in 2012. With the input of MNS, an NGO that is directly involved in conservation and awareness, two modules-biodiversity assessment and environmental education outreach-were prepared. The aim of the programme was to expose the participants to observatory skills and field work techniques of identifying selected species in their natural habitat, and the concept of environmental education and nature interpretation. Through this programme, a successful educational module was developed to enable the students to become effective facilitators who would then educate young school-going children and members of the public on the natural environment in the next phase of the project. For the Environmental Track, the programme involves an intensive 20 day session at the Malaysian Nature Society’s nature conservation site. The abbreviation “S E E” refers to Seek, Educate and Embrace Nature, and the overarching aim is to inculcate awareness of nature, provide outreach to the community as well as develop a love for the environment among youth volunteers. Volunteers undergo a 2-3 day nature volunteerism training and induction programme on campus before being stationed at an MNS nature site for a period of 15-18 days. Here, the volunteers learn to collect data on various aspects of biodiversity unique to that site and develop educational modules based on this data, all jointly facilitated by UKM academics and MNS practitioners. Through this cascading model, these volunteers are now to ready to facilitate school children, community members and public in educating them about conservation and preservation. ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme: The volunteer who is passionate about the environment may complete the Environmental Track, and then for those who are good and have potential to develop strong leadership qualities, we can select them for participation in the ASEAN Youth Volunteer Programme hosted at UKM. We are developing the inaugural programme called “The Development
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of ASEAN Eco-Leaders through Volunteerism and Community Engagement� which will be in August 2013. Through all of these initiatives, we aim to inculcate a love for nature conservation, raise awareness on concerns related to climate change, and provide environmental knowledge that can empower youth volunteers to make a difference to the surrounding communities in the nation and region.
Conclusion The innovative and diverse best practices presented in this paper reflect the dynamics of the relationship between ASEAN universities and their surrounding environment, and break down the barriers between academia and community to build partnerships based on mutually valued university and community competencies. This exemplifies the strength of community engagement in uniting diverse stakeholders towards the common mission of contributing to community development. At UKM, all those who champion and participate in such initiatives stand testimony to the university’s commitment as a community-engaged research university. As the first Asian Scholar invited by Engagement Australia to participate in the Visiting Scholar and Experts Program, I also look forward learning from all of you, to exchange knowledge and experiences, and to generate goodwill amongst ourselves and help us develop and strengthen this collaborative relationship between Engagement Australia and AsiaEngage.
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4. MOVING FORWARD: AUN USR&S@ASIAENGAGE AND ENGAGEMENT AUSTRALIA SYNERGIES AND POTENTIAL COLLABORATION
This next section raises key messages elicited from the group discussions that provided voice to the participants involved in community and industry engagement at the various meetings organized by both Engagement Australia and AUN USR&S@AsiaEngage. These key messages provide direction for establishing synergies and potential collaboration between both Engagement Australia and AUN USR&S@AsiaEngage. 4.1 Key messages from Group Discussions during the Australian Visiting Scholar Tour (11-20 March 2013):
There is a need for a clear Governance systems and management structure for integrating university and community engagement across research, education and service, both at institution (internal as well as external) and ministry levels. There is a need to clearly define ‘engagement” so that the area of industry and community engagement is not regarded as merely the third mission but instead has to be integrated across research, education and service to maximise its potential and enrich the core missions of the university. There is a need for a national policy on engagement so as to provide sustainable funding support for University& Community Engagement There is a need for appropriate motivation and recognition in the form of schemes, modalities and criteria for promotion systems for academics, as well as recognition and rewards for University& Community Engagement There is a need for sharing of skills, knowledge and good practices for capacity building to develop industry & community engagement champions amongst staff and students, and to develop the Scholarship of Engagement. There is a need to upscale and embed industry and community engagement across faculties in research institutes in universities, and across the region.
4.2 Key outcomes from the 1st AUN USR&S Steering Committee Meeting (15-16 Oct 2012):
There is a need to develop systems and processes for quality engagement within the university and with external stakeholders. Universities have to define it in connection with the university’s mission. The challenge is to develop and institute appropriate mechanisms for community engagement at an institutional level.
There needs to be clarity of conceptualisation of the various terms used in this field: the difference between community engagement, civic engagement and service with regards to the definition of community engagement in the ASEAN context.
There is a need to include community and industry engagement in promotional systems for academic staff and credits worked out for students involved in community and industry engagement initiatives. This will require recognition and support from the top management
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of the universities. In addition, it is very important for a study to be carried out on the status quo of the promotional criteria to see how many universities across ASEAN have included industry and community engagement in their promotional systems and also the manner in which it has been included. 
There is a need to identify and promote good practices and community engaged research as well as to show the impact on the community and what needs to be done after research is conducted. This evidence based data helps convince future donors of the value of the work and also contributes to the development of the scholarship of community engagement. There is a need for capacity building to develop the scholarly writing required to develop the scholarship of engagement.
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There is a need to work out criteria and indicators to identify experts and once identified, create a database of current experts in the field of community engagement. There is also a need to develop a scheme for attracting experts in the areas of community and industry engagement from across the globe to provide for capacity building in the various areas essential to drive forward productive and sustainable community and industry engagement, supporting research, education and service.
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There is a need for collaboration with strategic partners nationally and regionally to develop knowledge exchange partnerships which are mutually beneficial. This is through the sharing of experiences, resources and ideas with diverse stakeholders to combine resources for the benefit of national and regional communities. These collaborations should be formalised with the scope and mode of cooperation identified, delineated and clear roles and responsibilities worked out for meaningful, productive and sustainable collaboration between the relevant strategic partners.
It can be seen that the challenges faced and the development work that needs to be carried out resonate strongly across both the regions. Given our proximity and close educational, economic and trade ties, it will be necessary to collaborate with honesty and sincerity to establish mutually beneficial partnerships that will benefit communities through multi-stakeholder engagement across both ASEAN and Australia.
5. CONCLUSION: Therefore in conclusion, it is strongly recommended that AsiaEngage through AUN USR&S collaborates strategically with Engagement Australia to share expertise, resources and ideas, develop capacity and replicate good practices in the above key areas to drive forward regional and international university-industry-community engagement across research, education and service.
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Appendix: Applause for Visiting Scholars and Experts Program from Flinders University April 16, 2013 Furthering the engagement agenda Flinders University’s key strategic priority of ‘building supportive communities’ has been underscored with the University’s hosting of its fourth visiting scholar, Professor Saran Kaur Gill, under Engagement Australia’s (EA) 2013 Visiting Scholars and Experts program. The EA program builds engagement depth, skills and capacity while increasing knowledge and understanding around specific and diverse areas of scholarship and practice. The program helps staff learn from engagement experiences, theories, practices from other parts of the world as well as providing a forum for exchanging good practises within Australia. Professor Gill is advancing engagement in Asian higher education in two senior positions; the Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Industry & Community Partnerships) at University Kebangsaan Malaysia (The National University of Malaysia – UKM),Executive Director of AsiaEngage where she leads a dynamic and rapidly growing engagement network of universities. AsiaEngage is committed to regional community-industry engagement and its ultimate power in transforming not only higher education, but communities as well. Ms Penny Crocker, Head of Flinders Southern Knowledge Transfer Partnerships said her office was delighted to facilitate Flinders academics and professional staff with opportunities to hear from, and share experiences with Prof Gill in a series of workshops and one-to-one meetings. ‘This type of professional learning opportunity for staff particularly those involved in community engagement (outreach) and in international roles provides opportunities to learn via exemplar case studies and to have one –to- one conversation about the latest developments in community engagement both in Australia and internationally ”, she said. The workshops and meetings created space and time to learn and share ideas on ‘leading community engagement at an institutional level’ and ‘ASEAN Perspectives on Engagement, highlighting models and best-practices. Professor Janice Orrell, Adjunct Professor with the School of Education, said Professor Gill’s session and meeting her in person was “an academic highlight moment for me making the time in the workshop well worth spending. This workshop was an interval in my academic life where I had time to profitably reflect on the place of universities in society and on the ethical, moral and practical stance they need to adopt in working and relating with industries and communities. While this was not a new topic for me, I found that Professor Gill’s presentation asked and answered critical and practical questions about the implementation and impact of taking a systematic institutional approach to Universities partnerships that helped me to move forward in my own thinking. Professor Gill’s capacity to move easily from ideology to policy to practice, by illustrating points of integration and alignment is inspiring. Her framework for knowledge driven and outcomes based engagement that is integrated in both the education and research missions of the university is profoundly useful for Flinders”.
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