The persisting global financial crisis prompts new waves of reflection on longer-term trends and shifts of influence and power in an increasingly ‘globalized’ and still neo-liberal world. The economic domination of the West is declining, the power of Asia rapidly increasing. North to South transfer of models and practices from Europe to Asia is fraught with problems, but assumptions about linear progress and modernity remain pervasive. Cultural, demographic, and historical diversity are the essential context for effective understanding and policy-making; within Europe, throughout the Asian region, and between these two continents.

The ideas of lifelong learning and the learning region, including the engagement of universities in local region development, have been formulated and advocated by western based intergovernmental organisations (IGOs) and partly applied in the West, especially Europe, for several decades. They have suffered severe, partly neo-liberal, impoverishment making them less fit to build long-term sustainability. Their attempted transposition to the Asian region demonstrates the challenges implied, and the obstacle of assumed western superiority.There is, however, great potential for open-minded reciprocal inter-regional learning between these large continental as well as small local regions.

The City of Melbourne is running Melbourne Knowledge Week from 28 November to 2 December 2011 inclusive. The purpose of Melbourne Knowledge Week is to celebrate and showcase the city’s applied knowledge assets, networks and capabilities.

Event details
Thursday 1 December 2011
12.30 pm—2.00 pm

RMIT City campus, The Chancellery
RMIT Building 20, level 2
Court Room 3
Enter via building 1, 124 La Trobe Street

Speaker
Chris Duke, Visiting Professor
RMIT and Pascal Observatory

Free event. All welcome.
Please RSVP for catering purposes
by Friday 25 November to:
[email protected]

European Union Centre at RMIT
Building 5, Level 2 Bowen Street
GPO Box 2476, Melbourne VIC 3001
Australia

Tel: +61 3 9925 8214
Fax: +61 3 9925 8220
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.rmit.edu.au/eucentre

The European Union Centre at RMIT is funded through a grant from the European Union and RMIT University