The role of universities in creating a democratic Europe

Higher education plays a crucial role in developing a democratic culture that upholds fundamental values, such as academic freedom, institutional autonomy and the participation of students and staff in higher education governance. Democratic culture is understood as the set of attitudes and behaviours that enable institutions, laws, and elections to be democratic in practice. Developing and maintaining this culture of democracy is a European understanding at the heart of the Council of Europe’s Education programme. Indeed, signing the European Cultural Convention of 1954, whose purpose is to strengthen, deepen and further develop cooperation in education and culture between its signatories, is a condition for acceding to the European Higher Education Area (EHEA). These fundamental values have long been taken for granted but recently they returned to the European ministerial higher education agenda because they are under greater threat than at any time since the launch of the Bologna Process.

The Council of Europe, an intergovernmental organisation of 46 members, has established a strong role in higher education policy, including on the fundamental values and the democratic mission of higher education. The PhD project includes a secondment to the Council of Europe to review its work on higher education over the last 20 years. The project will explore the role of universities in creating a democratic Europe and the role of the Council of Europe in (re)conceptualising the EHEA fundamental academic values.