Democracy as being practiced, learned, and experienced within the University

Show notes

What does it mean to live, practice and learn democracy at university? This conversation connects institutional autonomy with the everyday experiences of students, faculty and staff. Topics include: - Academic freedom and the need to protect spaces for disagreement and critical dialogue. - Affirmative action and quota policies: widening access while supporting students to stay and succeed. - Indigenous, Quilombola and Afro-Brazilian participation, and recognition of different knowledge traditions. - Democratic governance: representation, parity-based committees and tensions between elected leadership and governing councils. - The changing role of teachers, from transmitting information to guiding the construction of knowledge. - Research, community outreach and international cooperation as expressions of the public university’s social role. The discussion draws on Brazilian public university experience while considering broader challenges facing higher education in Latin America.