PURPOSE & SCOPE
While globalization at the hands of capitalism and neo-liberalism continues to lead us on
unsustainable pathways, it seems that few of those who talk about the future of the University can
refer to its pedagogical and cultural aspects while keeping an eye also on its sociology, political
economy and its policy context (Marginson, 2004). This series of conversations aims to confront this
challenge.
This series is based on the perspective that the conventional tripartite university paradigm of
teaching, research and service reinforces an artificial separation of activity which is no longer
appropriate, if it ever was. Our complex world requires a different paradigm for the University – one
in which the connectivity of the biosphere is reflected in the structures and functions of the
institution.
With the Decade for Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2015) underway, the rise of new
journals such as the International Journal for Sustainability in Higher Education, and issues of
existing journals being devoted to the topic (see “Sustainability: Taking the Long View,” Planning for
Higher Education, the Journal of the Society for College and University Planning), and as we
welcome Dr. Mamdouh Shoukri as York’s new President, this series presents York University with a
timely opportunity to question what we are learning in and from learning environments such as the
conventional University campus, and reflect on broader notions of learning, design and place.
The first part of the Series explores key issues in university planning, design and policy followed by
more focused conversations on the pedagogical potential of York’s natural, organizational, social
and built environments. We learn a great deal from the way our institutions are structured, their
patterns of consumption and production of waste, and their relationships with local, regional, and
global actors. Concepts like the “hidden,” “shadow,” “null” and “unconscious” curriculum call
attention to the pedag