Global effort for the Humanities

Nieuws | de redactie
21 november 2014 | Networks of universities officially joined forces today in the ‘Leiden statement’ committing to strengthen the social sciences and humanities. Dutch Education minister Jet Bussemaker welcomed the effort. “we will have to open the borders between academic disciplines and other sectors.”

Under the initiative of the League of European Research Universities (LERU), networks from Asia, Australia and North-America placed their signature under the so called ‘Leiden Statement’ which is committed to:

• ensure that the SSH disciplines continue to receive effective support within their institutions and play an explicit role in forming institutional curriculums;

• increase recognition of the importance of SSH disciplines within their countries and regions by highlighting the contributions of these disciplines to national and global wellbeing;

• ensure that the benefits of SSH research and education programmes flow without unnecessary constraint to the wider community in order to maximise the return on the investments in SSH research, scholarship and education made by governments, the business sector, donors, and students;

• promote strong funding and support of SSH research;

• facilitate international cooperation in the SSH fields to foster a deeper, shared understanding of the commonalities and differences that contribute to the world’s social and cultural realities; and

• advance global research collaborations including interdisciplinary approaches to global societal challenges in partnership with the natural and life sciences and engineering.

On behalf of the Dutch government, Education minister Jet Bussemaker, who earned a PhD in Political Science herself, welcomed LERU’s initiative. “The issues that we as a society are facing – for example in regard to education, poverty, the climate and security – are becoming more and more complex.”

This is why the solutions will have to come from multiple angles. From computer science, chemistry and medicine. But also from the philosophy, the arts and the social sciences. This means that we will have to open the borders between academic disciplines and other sectors. […] I hope the statement we just signed will serve as an impetus to work together to ensure that research in the social sciences and humanities earns the respect that it deserves.”

The speech of Education minister Jet Bussemaker can be read here


«
Schrijf je in voor onze nieuwsbrief
ScienceGuide is bij wet verplicht je toestemming te vragen voor het gebruik van cookies.
Lees hier over ons cookiebeleid en klik op OK om akkoord te gaan
OK