Higher Education for and beyond the Sustainable Development Goals

Tristan McCowan is Professor of International Education at the Institute of Education, University College London, UK. His research interests centre around higher education and international development, with particular focus on Latin America and Sub-Saharan Africa.

This book analyses the role of the university in working towards the Sustainable Development Goals. In contrast to the previous Millennium Development Goals, higher education is seen to have a crucial role in this new agenda. Yet how can the university fulfil these weighty expectations, and are the dominant trends in higher education supporting or undermining this vision? This book draws on the idea of the 'developmental university', a model characterised by its porous boundaries with society and commitment to teaching, research and community engagement in the public interest. The author examines case studies from Latin America, Africa and other regions to analyse how this model can be revived, countering recent trends of marketisation, status competition and unbundling. The book also considers alternatives to the developmental model drawing on indigenous knowledge systems, looking beyond the SDG framework to the creation of a new form of society. This timely volume will be of interestand value to those working in the field of sustainable development, and to students and scholars of comparative education, international development and higher education studies. 

Examines how the university can contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals

Chapter 1. Introduction.- PART I.- Chapter 2. The role of education in development.- Chapter 3. The anatomy of the university.- Chapter 4. The developmental model.- Chapter 5. Three global trends: status competition, commodification and unbundling.- PART II.- Chapter 6. Access.- Chapter 7. Quality.- Chapter 8. Impact on the SDGs.- PART III.- Chapter 9. Limits of the developmental model.- Chapter 10. The post-development university