Projects

Since its inception PASCAL has been involved in a number of important cross-national studies focussed on the PASCAL interests of lifelong learning, university engagement in regional development and, learning cities.  Details of our major projects will be found in the page menu.

These have been funded from a variety of sources.  

Most have been collaborative studies with local cities, universities and agencies in many countries.  

We make efforts to feedback the outcomes and lessons learnt in these studies both to the local project participants and more widely through reports and publications. 

Services

PASCAL is not a consultancy firm that provides 'off the shelf' technical solutions. Rather, we aim to work with cities, regions and organisations to provide locally targeted inputs to enhance their development policies and practices.  Through our network, we draw on expertise from around the world to respond to local challenges.We work with regions to build long-term working relationships that foster evidence-based policies and practices. 

PASCAL Associates provide project support to cities, regional governance organizations, and higher educational institutions grappling with the challenges associated with global change.  PASCAL customizes the following regional development services for particular contexts:

• Regional assessment and benchmarking;
• Applied research, research monitoring, and evaluation;
• Community change programming;
• Strategic planning;
• Training and facilitation.

Products

PASCAL brings together material in a growing number of publications, available as commercial publications in well known book and journal series, or on this website. These publications, edited by PASCAL members and Associates, bring together papers from our conferences and significant research and ideas relating to key themes within the PASCAL remit.

Books

PASCAL has published a number of books based on developing the proceedings of its conferences. The majority of these books have been published with the National Institute of Adult and Continuing Education in Leicester, UK, with a further books having been published by Routledge, Jamtli Förlag and  Manchester University Press. These books are as follows:

Duke, C., Osborne, M. and Wilson, B. (Eds.) (2005) Rebalancing the Social and the Economic. Learning Partnership and Place. Leicester: NIACE

Duke, C., Doyle, L. and Wilson, B. (Eds.) (2006) Making Knowledge Work. Leicester: NIACE.

Osborne, M., Sankey, K. and Wilson, B. (Eds.) (2007) Social Capital, Lifelong Learning and the Management of Place: An international perspective. London: Routledge

Doyle, L., Adams, D., Tibbitt, J. and Welsh, P. (Eds.) (2008) Building Stronger Communities: Connecting research, policy and practice. Leicester: NIACE.

Longworth, N. and Osborne, M. (Eds.) (2010) Perspectives on Learning Cities and Regions: Policy, Practice and Participation. Leicester: NIACE.

Schuetze, H. and Inman, P. (Eds.) (2010) Community Engagement and Service – A Primary Mission of Universities. Leicester: NIACE. 

Kearns, P., Kling, S. and Wistman, C. (Eds.) (2011) Heritage, Regional Development and Cohesion. Östersund: Jamtli Förlag

Preece, J., Ntseane, P.G., Modise, O.M. and Osborne, M. (Eds.) (2012) Community Engagement in African Universities. Leicester: NIACE.

Carlot, C., Filloque, J.-M., Osborne, M. and Welsh, P. (Eds.) (2015) The Role of Higher Education in Regional and Community Development and in the Time of Economic Crisis. Leicester: NIACE

A major new book series related to the PURE project was launched in 2013 with Manchester University Press with the following books published to date:

Duke, C., Osborne, M., and Wilson, B. (2013) A New Imperative: Regions and Higher Education in Difficult Times. Manchester University Press, Manchester. 

Hall, B.L., Jackson, E.T., Tandon, R., Fontan, J-M. and Lall, N. (2013) (Eds.) Knowledge Democracy and action. Community-university research partnerships in global perspectives. Manchester University Press, Manchester. 

Clover, D. and Sanford, K. (2013) (Eds.) Lifelong Learning, the Arts and Community Cultural Engagement in the Contemporary University. Manchester University Press, Manchester.

Inman, P. and Robinson, D. (2014) (Eds.) University engagement and environmental sustainability. Manchester University Press, Manchester.

ebooks

Reports from Catania Conference and Glasgow conference in preparation

More titles will follow soon.

Papers

PASCAL has published a series of analytical and policy briefings. 

Hot Topics

One of PASCAL's central services has been to periodically provide substantial papers exploring key issues within its remit which seek to consolidate thinking and understanding.

24 of these Hot Topic papers have been produced up to this point, beginning with Jim Cavaye's Social Capital: a Commentary on Issues, Understanding and Measurement in 2004; each of these Hot Topic papers is listed below.

Policy Papers and Briefings

PASCAL Observatory Policy Papers are shorter briefing papers written by PASCAL members which offer an original take on issues of key policy interest.