NEWS

From February 17 to 21, the international conference "The Role of Hig­her Edu­ca­tion in Pea­ce­buil­ding" was held at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, organized by The Aurora Universities alliance.

The conference aimed to create a discussion platform on how Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) should respond to global challenges and support educational initiatives that promote a culture of peace.

Participants included representatives from various countries, including international experts, academics, peace practitioners, policymakers in higher education, and students from The Aurora Universities alliance and its partner institutions.

The conference featured keynote sessions, panel discussions, roundtables, workshops, and thematic sessions covering topics such as:

• How HEIs can best utilize their mission (teaching, research, and the third mission) to support conflict prevention, transformation, and peace processes.
• What lessons can be learned from professionals involved in peace processes to help HEIs better fulfill their role as peace agents in conflict-affected societies and beyond.

Within the framework of the ongoing ERASMUS-EDU-2023-CBHE project "Curriculum Reform for Promoting Peace Education in Georgia, Ukraine, and Moldova" (PeaceEdu) at Ilia State University, Professor Sofiko Lobzhanidze from the Department of Educational Sciences and PhD candidate Lia Tvlidiani presented their research "Peace Education in Georgia's Educational Space: Current Situation and Perspectives."

Throughout the conference, multiple discussions took place on the future development of the PeaceEdu project and opportunities for new collaborations.

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