Higher education in the education system is one of the axes of CRES+5

The follow-up event to the III Regional Conference on Higher Education for Latin America and the Caribbean (CRES) 2018, called CRES+5, will be held from March 13 to 15 in Brasilia. The theme of Axis 1 is “Higher education as part of the educational system in Latin America and the Caribbean”. All, 12 axes will support the debate at the Conference. 

CRES+5 will be an opportunity to analyse the achievements of higher education in Latin America and the Caribbean and, at the same time, to establish priorities for the next Regional Conference on Higher Education in 2028.

The discussions held under Thematic Axis 1 of CRES+5 propose that higher education should not be considered or managed as an isolated instance of the education system, but rather as a stage in coordination and co-construction with all other levels of formal and informal education. Understanding education as a process of continuous training, seeking effective articulation in transformative national and regional educational systems, highlights the need to evaluate the changes and advances that higher education institutions (HEIs) must make to fulfill this integrating role. 

In this sense, the different pillars of HEI activity – training, research and extension – must actively contribute to public policies, prioritizing the fight against the profound inequalities and inequities affecting Latin America and the Caribbean, which have been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic. The aim is to promote inclusion, social justice, human dignity, interculturality and sustainability.

In addition, in order to build this integrative model of higher education, the active and plural participation of teachers, researchers, students, non-teaching workers and the educational community is necessary in the construction and implementation of strategies to transform HEIs. These and other priorities make up the reflection of Axis 1 in its mission to think about and carry out higher education in an integral and integrative way with the educational system and social reality. 

Participants – The activities of Axis 1 are led by the Working Group (WG) formed by: Axel Didriksson T., senior researcher at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM), at its Institute for Research on University and Education (IISUE), and coordinator of the UNESCO University and Regional Integration Chair; Enrique José Mammarella, rector of the National University of the Litoral (Argentina); María Beatriz Luce, Professor of Educational Policy and Management at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS) and Director of the Board of Directors (2019-2023) of the National Association for Graduate Studies and Research in Education (Anped); and Marcela Arellano Ogaz, Director of Institutional Integration at the Duoc UC Professional Institute in Chile.

Base Document – The draft base documents resulting from the activities of the WGs responsible for each thematic axis of CRES+5 are now available. The fourth preparatory meeting for the Conference will take place in Havana, Cuba, on February 7 and 8, and will discuss the drafts of these documents.

The regional call for contributions to CRES+5 is still open. Higher education institutions, organizations and networks in Latin America and the Caribbean can participate (via a specific form) in the collective construction of the Conference’s follow-up meeting, with comments or documents that reflect their considerations of the main challenges facing higher education in the region.

The contributions received were reviewed by the experts responsible for each of the 12  thematic axes of the Conference, who evaluated their relevance for inclusion in the preparation of the base document corresponding to their respective thematic axis.

The follow-up meeting to CRES 2018, called CRES+5, is being organized by MEC, through Sesu and Capes, in collaboration with UNESCO IESALC. Rectors, directors, academics, workers, students, higher education networks, associations and professionals, research centers, unions, representatives of governmental and non-governmental organizations and all those interested in higher education in the region are invited to this meeting.

Among the preparatory activities for the CRES+5 follow-up meeting, different instances of open and participatory debate were organized in the region as part of the methodological construction process of the event. Throughout 2023, in-person meetings were held in Córdoba (Argentina); Puebla (Mexico); and Asunción (Paraguay). In addition, preparatory virtual public consultations were held to debate and collect information on the 12 thematic axes of CRES+5, as well as to contribute to the organization of the Conference. The fourth preparatory meeting will be held in Havana, on February 7 and 8, 2024 within the framework of the University Congress 2024.

Registration for CRES+5 can be made until February 13, 2024 using the form available on the respective website. More information about the Conference can be obtained through the website or email cres5@unesco.org.

CRES – The 3rd Regional Higher Education Conference 2018, held in Córdoba (Argentina) in June 2018, adopted a Declaration and an Action Plan 2018-2028. Furthermore, it committed to holding a follow-up meeting five years later, CRES+5, aiming to promote a participatory process to highlight the progress achieved, as well as remaining challenges and emerging issues, especially in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic crisis. 19. CRES+5 will be an opportunity to analyse the achievements of higher education in Latin America and the Caribbean and, at the same time, establish priorities for the next Regional Conference on Higher Education, in 2028.

MEC Social Communication Advisory, with information from Sesu and IESALC-UNESCO