Beyond the Western Lens: Pathways to Decolonising Higher Education
The Conference builds on a decolonial approach which asks us to examine how the legacy of colonialism still shapes what is recognised as valid knowledge, whose perspectives are prioritised, and how universities reproduce these patterns. It encourages us to question the dominance of Western knowledge systems while recognising and valuing a wider range of histories, worldviews, and ways of knowing.
Rather than simply adding new perspectives to existing structures, a decolonial approach invites deeper reflection on how curricula, teaching practices, and institutional policies are designed, and how they shape who feels included and represented. Yet this perspective remains significantly underrepresented in European Higher Education.
This gap has implications for curricula, pedagogy, institutional policies and practices, and for fostering a shared sense of belonging in an interconnected world. At a time of global crises, migration, and growing cultural interdependence, the limitations of relying on a single knowledge tradition are increasingly visible.
We invite the university communities across Una Europa to come together for discussion on decolonial knowledge and practices. By fostering dialogue across disciplines, roles, and regions, the Conference invites participants to challenge their prior knowledge and practices, amplify various ways of knowing, and collectively explore concrete pathways toward decolonial inclusion in higher education institutions.
The Conference places particular emphasis on perspectives from outside Europe and the West, while welcoming contributions from all transnational and diasporic contexts.
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