In this issue - Dialogues of difference - academics from across the Commonwealth consider why and how universities should broaden their intellectual horizons to include a wider range of perspectives.
The ACU Review magazine celebrates the extraordinary work of member universities across the Commonwealth and their contribution to the world around them. Each issue explores a different theme, chosen to highlight the value of higher education to society and to reflect the rich diversity and shared challenges that characterise the ACU's global network.
In this latest issue, academics from across the Commonwealth consider why and how universities should broaden their intellectual horizons to include a wider range of perspectives. Featuring a fascinating collection of articles written by ACU members from across our unique international network, it asks us to turn a critical eye on the dynamics of power and privilege that dictate why we assign higher value to one form of knowledge over another.
Introducing this latest issue, our Chief Executive and Secretary General, Joanna Newman, notes, ‘It is the dominance of western ways of knowing – rather than western knowledge itself – which comes under scrutiny here. The focus is not on ‘erasing’ western knowledge from our curricula, but on decentring it; taking a critical look at that which may hitherto have been uncritically accepted.’
She adds, ‘This means accepting that knowledge itself – often viewed as somehow ‘pure’ and objective – is in fact bound up with social structures and hierarchies. It requires us to acknowledge that our intellectual horizons may have limits beyond which we cannot see – or do not look.’
The ACU Review magazine is available to read on our website. To share your feedback or find out more about featuring in future issues, email review@acu.ac.uk
