Seminar series Academic Freedom part 3: Responsible Internationalization, Academic Freedom and the war in Gaza

In the third week of December, the third part of the seminar series on academic freedom will be arranged. The seminar will be held in English, in O213 at Campus Östersund.

The seminar is also broadcast live.

This seminar will discuss an urgent and deeply troubling issue: the role of universities in conflict zones and the threats faced by academics and educational institutions.

The seminar's focus on responsible internationalization reflects a growing understanding that universities do not exist in isolation; they are part of a global network of knowledge exchange and social responsibility.

Academic freedom is a cornerstone of this mission, yet it is under siege in conflict zones around the world, most acutely in Gaza today and in the seminar the question of how the international academic community can respond responsibly to such crises.

How should universities respond when their colleagues abroad are threatened, when educational infrastructures are being erased, and when the principles of academic freedom are violated?
What can we learn from scholars at risk from other contexts, such as Turkey and Ukraine?
How can institutions engage in responsible internationalization that goes beyond research collaborations to active solidarity and advocacy in defense of academic freedom?
How can academic institutions, from faculty and students to administrators, act as stewards of freedom and protectors of knowledge, particularly in times of conflict and crisis?
What responsibilities do universities bear in advocating for their peers in places like Gaza, where the pursuit of education has become an act of courage and resistance?

Program:

13.15 Welcome and introdutction, Anders Fällström, Vice-Chancellor and Anna Olofsson, Pro Vice-Chancellor

13.20 Helena Lindholm, Professor in peace and conflict studies, Gothenburg University and member of the Mid Sweden University Board

13.40 Ayse Serdar, Associate Professor in Sociology, Turkey and former SAR scholar at Mid Sweden University, 

13.50 Hedvig Lärka (Gothenburg) and Elliot C. Mason (Uppsala), a network of workers and students in Swedish academia for Palestine (WASSAP)

14.00 Short break

14.10 Katarina Giritli Nygren, Professor in Sociology and Angelika Sjöstedt, Professor in Gender Studies, Femact and the network by students and staff for Palestine at Miun

14.20 Panel discussion

14.50 Summing up

15.00 Postseminar with refreshments

The seminar series on academic freedom is organized by the Research Council at Mid Sweden University.