Theme 5: How higher education institutions respond to COVID-19, build resilience through research and knowledge creation, and find solutions to global challenges.
Thematic lead: Ian Rowlands
Co lead: Faye Taylor
Peer Reviewer: Dr Cristina Devecchi, Dr Godrey Steele nd Dr Likius Daniel
Lead Organisation: Association of Commonwealth Universities
Background
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, universities have been extremely active, meeting multiple stakeholders’ needs for the short-term, medium-term, and longer-term. They have also been key contributors to broader discussions about how the post-pandemic ‘rebuild’ -- by society broadly -- can be done in ways that serve to meet the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.
The research theme is as follows: How higher education institutions respond to COVID-19, build resilience through research and knowledge creation, and find solutions to global challenges.
Objectives/Key Research Questions
To advance this research theme, the following three research questions have been developed and presented to researchers:
What have universities done in response to Covid-19?
- Teaching changes/innovations
- Research contributions
- Community contributions
- Operational changes
What are the key challenges and opportunities facing universities in a post-COVID world?
What are stakeholders’ expectations of universities in a post-COVID world?
*Picture courtesy of The Commonwealth Secretariat