Higher Education and the Global Agenda: Alternative Paths to the Future

14th IAU General Conference. Higher Education and the Global Agenda: Alternative Paths to the Future. 13-16 november 2012. Location: Inter American University of Puerto Rico, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Contact: Phone: +33 1 45 68 48 00. Email: i.devylder@iau-aiu.net.
The upcoming IAU General Conference will examine the role higher education and research have or are playing in the ‘global agenda’, and how they can become even more critical partners in these efforts.
With the many deadlines which the international community has adopted to meet planetary challenges, notably the Millennium Development Goals approaching in 2015,  a lot has changed over the past few years and the respective roles higher education and research do and have to play to address these are constantly being revisited.
Universities are important repositories of humanity’s hope for a sustainable future. Through teaching/learning, research and community services, their contribution to resolving local and global challenges of poverty and inequality, nutrition, health, environmental degradation and not least, education, is essential. By focusing many projects on issues such as equitable access and success in higher education, the Education for All initiatives, sustainable development, new ways of thinking about internationalization, the social responsibilities of higher education institutions, among others, the IAU is addressing some of the Global Agenda. 
The General Conference will serve to stimulate greater involvement and participation by universities in these issues and act as a catalyst for finding new ways to achieve these basic but essential goals. This major event in the life of the Association will offer participants:
- A thoughtful and stimulating Thematic Programme
- Informative and interactive Business Sessions on IAU activities
- IAU Members in good standing have the opportunity to be a candidate and to vote in the elections for the 2012-2016 IAU leadership: IAU President, Administrative Board.
The most global forum for networking with colleagues worldwide. Please mark the 13 to 16 November 2012 dates in your agenda and come and participate in the IAU General Conference next year!
More information on the different conference and business sessions will be made available in December.  Logistical details and registration fees will as well be published online soon and you may already wish to look into visa issues, should you wish to attend and run for elections or vote. 
The Inter-American University of Puerto Rico, celebrating its 100th Anniversary and the International Association of Universities look forward to hosting you in San Juan, a historic and vibrant walled city, one of the busiest ports in the Caribbean.