The civic university and the city

John Goddard

Emeritus Professor of Regional Development Studies

NESTA Provocation

Leading and managing the Civic University: participating institutions

• Newcastle• University College London• Amsterdam• Groningen• Aalto• Tampere• Trinity College Dublin• Dublin Institute of Technology

We must ask not just what the University is good at, but what it is good for.

Putting academic knowledge, creativity and expertise to work to help make a difference to real-world challenges.

Delivering benefits to society as a whole(Local, regional, national, global)

These are our 3 societal challenges:

• Changing Age

• Sustainability

• Social renewal

Reinventing the civic university

Why Cities?

What are anchor institutions?

• Large locally embedded institutions, typically non-governmental public sector, cultural or other civic institutions that are of significant importance to the economy and the wider community life of the cities in which they are based.

• They generate positive externalities and relationships that can support or ‘anchor’ wider economic activity in the locality

• ‘Anchor institutions do not have a democratic mandate and their primary missions do not involve regeneration or local economic development. Nonetheless their scale, local rootedness and community links are such that they can play a key role in local development and economic growth representing the ‘sticky capital’ around which economic growth strategies

can be built’ (Work Foundation) • Institutions that are of the city not just in the city

Universities as anchor institutions

• Universities (and teaching hospitals) archetypal anchor institutions. Two key features of universities:

1. Main location in comparison with private firms fixed within the current home city – notwithstanding possible expansion to other nearby or far away campuses- where they have considerable sunk investment in buildings and strong identification with the place.

2. On past experience relatively immune to institutional failure or sudden contractions in size and a source of stability in local economies. Helping buffer against the worst effects of periodic downturns. Particularly important as anchor institutions in weaker economies.

The University and the public good

• “We treat our opportunities to do research not as a public trust but as a reward for success in past studies”

• “Rewards for research are deeply tied up with the production of academic hierarchy and the relative standing of institutions” BUT

• “Public support for universities is based on the effort to educate citizens in general, to share knowledge, to distribute it as widely as possible in accord with publically articulated purposes”

The public value of the social sciences

“ Use of the adjective ‘public’ not only implies fundamental questions about accountability but also poses additional queries about to whom we as social scientists should feel accountable…Public social science has both a research and teaching agenda and involves a commitment to promote the public good through civic engagement”

John Brewer : The Public Value of the Social Sciences (2013)

The university IN the city

Newcastle University and Northumbria Employment Impact

Newcastle  + Northumbria FTE

Direct Employment 7,833

Knock on employment impact in the NE

6,790

Knock on employment impact in rest of the UK

2,337

Total 16,960

The university and the development OF the city

Place making

Business innovation

Social development

15

The way we innovate is changing

Elberfelder Farbenfabriken vorm. Friedrich Bayer & Co

Open innovation

Social innovation

Innovation in servicesUser innovation

Bell Labs, Holmdel, NJ

16

Why is it different?

Different knowledge

Different entrepreneurs

Different selection mechanisms

Different ways of allocating capital and people

17

Relevant partners: some old, some new

1. Local authorities2. Public service organisations (NHS,

schools...)3. Charities and social enterprises (role

of social finance)4. “Civic” universities5. National bodies (ODI, TSB, Nesta)6. And more

Social innovation

1. A social demand perspective in terms of the needs of vulnerable groups traditionally not met by the market

2. A societal challenge perspective through which societal problems are addressed through new coalitions and where boundaries between the economic and social blur

3. A systematic change perspective where social innovation in re-shaping society itself

The quadruple helix

• “Quadruple Helix (QH), with its emphasis on broad cooperation in innovation, represents a shift towards systemic, open and user-centric innovation policy. An era of linear, top-down, expert driven development, production and services is giving way to different forms and levels of coproduction with consumers, customers and citizens.” (Arnkil, et al, 2010)

• “The shift towards social innovation also implies that the dynamics of ICT-innovation has changed. Innovation has shifted downstream and is becoming increasingly distributed; new stakeholder groups are joining the party, and combinatorial innovation is becoming an important source for rapid growth and commercial success. Continuous learning, exploration, co-creation, experimentation, collaborative demand articulation, and user contexts are becoming critical sources of knowledge for all actors in R&D & Innovation” (ISTAG 2010)

Tensioned themes

Thomas Bender on the University and the City

• “ I propose that we understand the university as semi-cloistered heterogeneity in the midst of uncloistered heterogeneity (that is to say the city…). Because of this difference, relations between the two are necessarly tense, and they cannot be assimilated into one another. To do so, either practically or conceptually, is to empty each of its distinctive cultural meaning and falsify the sociology of each” (Bender 1988)

The localism challenge

• “Local public agencies (like councils) often find the authority structure of universities opaque and diffuse; this is a barrier to collaboration. While the relative autonomy of faculty from the university administration is a virtue, and the tendency of academics to view the hierarchy of their discipline as more important than the hierarchy of university leadership is inevitable, it still leaves the problem for universities of how – as institutions – to mobilise to meet shared challenges and pursue overarching objectives”.

http://www.matthewtaylorsblog.com/

Business models of the university

• The entrepreneurial university model with a strengthened steering core, enhanced development periphery, a diversified funding base and stimulated academic heartland (Burton Clark 1998)

• The triple helix model of universities, business and government with semi-autonomous centres that interface with the external environment supported by specialist internal units (e.g technology transfer offices) and external intermediaries (e.g technology and innovation centres) (Etzkowitz et. al . 2000)

• Strong focus on science, technology and business and a neglect of the humanities and social sciences, place based communities and civil society

TEACHING RESEARCH

The ‘un-civic’ university

‘THIRD MISSION’ ACTIVITIES

Rankin

gs Excellence

Funding targets

FOCUS OF MANAGEMENT

AND LEADERSHIP

THE ‘CORE’

THE ‘PERIPHERY’

Hard Boundary between enabling

and non enabling environments

The Civic University

Enhancement

TEACHINGRESEARCH

Transformative, responsive, demand led

actions

ENGAGEMENT

Socio-economic impact

Widening participation, community work

Soft

Boundary

THE ACADEMY

SOCIETY

Seven Dimensions of the ‘Civic University’

1. It is actively engaged with the wider world as well as the local community of the place in which it is located.

2. It takes a holistic approach to engagement, seeing it as institution wide activity and not confined to specific individuals or teams.

3. It has a strong sense of place – it recognises the extent to which is location helps to form its unique identity as an institution.

4. It has a sense of purpose – understanding not just what it is good at, but what it is good for.

5. It is willing to invest in order to have impact beyond the academy.

6. It is transparent and accountable to its stakeholders and the wider public.

7. It uses innovative methodologies such as social media and team building in its engagement activities with the world at large.

The ‘Civic University’ Development Spectrum

Embryonic Emerging Evolving Embedded

Dimension X

The spectrum describes the ‘journey’ of the institution against each of the 7 dimensions of the civic university towards the idealised model. It accepts that a university may be at a different stage of development on the different dimensions. This is intended to provide guidance in building a deeper understanding of where the university is currently positioned and help in future planning, and is NOT intended to be used as an assessment or ranking tool.

The connected city and region

No boundary spanners

Focus on supply side, transactional interventions

Ineffective or non existent partnership

Lack of a shared understanding about the challenges

Entrepreneurs ‘locked out’ of regional planning

The disconnected region

PUBLIC SECTOR

Lack of coherence between national and regional/local policies

Lack of political leadership

Lack of a shared voice and vision at the regional/local level

PRIVATE SECTOR

No coordination or representative voice with which to engage

Motivated by narrow self interest and short term goals

Dominated by firms with low demand or absorptive capacity

for innovationHIGHER EDUCATION SECTOR

Seen as ‘in’ the region but not ‘of’ the region

Policies and practices discourage engagement

Focus on rewards for academic research and

teaching

Generating intellectual and human capital assets for the

region

HIGHER EDUCATION SECTOR

Developing coherent policies that link territorial

development to innovation and higher education

PUBLIC SECTOR

Investing in people and ideas that will create growth

PRIVATE SECTOR

Evidence based policies that

support ‘smart’ innovation and growth

Analysis of evidence and intelligencefor planning

Building the

infrastructure

for growth

Skills development, commercialisation of research

The ‘connected’ region – strong partnerships based on shared understanding of the challenges and how to overcome them

Universities and urban challenges in England

Sustainable development

Health

Culture

The evidence base

• Case studies of four English cities – Bristol, Manchester, Newcastle and Sheffield

• Two ‘old’ and two ‘new’ universities in each city.• Three urban challenge themes comparing Newcastle with one other

city via documentary analysis and interviews with key actors in the universities and the city

• Sustainable development – Newcastle and Manchester• Health – Newcastle and Sheffield• Culture- Newcastle and Bristol• On line survey of a 1:3 random sample of academics across all

disciplines in six universities (Newcastle, Northumbria; Sheffield, Sheffield Hallam; Bristol, University of West of England) regarding the impact of their research (700 responses or 30.0%)

Research Impacts

In which of the following areas do you think your research is having either a primary or secondary impact? (n=711)

Contri

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Techn

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Educa

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Info

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Health

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Helping

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Contri

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cono

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Enviro

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Inter

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richm

ent

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

NA/Skipped %No impact %Secondary %Primary %

Which of the following types of group or organisation do you think are either primary or secondary beneficiaries of your research? (n=711)

Taugh

t Stud

ents

Resea

rchers

your

disc

ipline

Resea

rchers

othe

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ipline

Non H

E educ

ation

Health

care

serv

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Nation

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Inter

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overn

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rgs

Local

gove

rnmen

ts

Non-d

epart

mental

publi

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ies

Large p

rivate

firm

Small/m

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priva

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m

Profes

siona

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ups/a

ssocia

tions

Third s

ector

Genera

l pub

lic0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

NA/Skipped %Not %Secondary %Primary %

Is the intended impact of your research concentrated in any particular geographical place(s) or region(s)?

Med

icine

Biolo

gica

l

Phys

ical

Math

Compu

ter Sc

ience

Engin

eerin

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B, M, +

E

A, P, +

BE

Socia

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Law

Human

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Art / D

esig

nNAFS HSS

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5

10

15

20

25

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35

40

Yes %

Is the intended impact of your research concentrated in any particular geographical place(s) or region(s)?

Overal

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Bristo

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UWE

NCL uni

North

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Sheff

uni

SHU

Pre 9

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Post

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Bristo

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Newca

stle

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5

10

15

20

25

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35

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Yes %

Universities and sustainable cities

Newcastle Science City

• “ There are cities in England that have great areas of science and we recognise this, but it won’t be of any use to anybody unless it has an economic and social impact. ... The strategy is to have a place where you can demonstrate tangibly what the theories are about: so linking industry, and academia, and entrepreneurship, and the local population. And making sure that, in the case of Science Central, all this works together as a kind of extended part of the city, but also a demonstration of what Science City is about.”

• [Interviewee, Newcastle Science City Ltd, 08/02/10]•  

Newcastle Science Central

• “ In the Energy and Environment [science city theme], what you had really was a disparate set of activities; you know where individual academics are engaged with relevant private and public sector players for their specialism, but not a lot of integration really. And the integration is still something of a holy grail. But I think, actually, having the development site on Science Central offers us the opportunity to finally do some of that for real. And some of it is [already] happening, at the level of for instance, having ARUP [the big civil engineering consultancy] involved in the technical aspects of the master-planning now. I feel we’re genuinely in a situation where there’s two-way learning going on with ARUP, because we’re able to use Science Central as a conversation piece”.

• [Interviewee, Newcastle University, 05/03/10]

 

The Urban Laboratory

• “The notion of treating our city and its region as a seedbed for sustainability initiatives is a potent one… the vision is of academics out in the community, working with local groups and businesses on practical initiatives to solve problems and promote sustainable development and growth’

• “This necessitates that we proceed in a very open manner, seeking to overcome barriers to thought, action and engagement; barriers between researchers and citizens, between the urban and the rural, between the social and natural sciences, between teaching research and enterprise”

Newcastle University researcher

Manchester Low Carbon Economic Area

• “One of the central pieces [in the LCEA] is this low-carbon laboratory, where we will be recognising and exploiting the fact that we have two universities, a health trust and a city council, plus a number of private sector partners, all in the same vicinity, all working together. And so what we’re very keen to create there is an evidence base approach to a lot of work that’s coming forward, using the intellect that is in the universities, and using technology; to capture what’s going on now, to capture it during the change, and to capture it again post the change”.

• [Interviewee, ARUP consultancy, 12/05/10].

 

Manchester Corridor

• “There is some interest, I think, in the way ... the EcoCities brand, which is gaining some purchase around the region, now could actually provide a larger context for the Corridor work. ... I’m potentially really excited about it because I think this idea of the Laboratory, provides us with a real spatial focus. It gives a kind of material context to those relationships. I mean everyone’s got an interest in what happens on Oxford Road, so it gives you a reason to come together.”

• [Interviewee, The University of Manchester, 18/08/10]

Universities and healthy cities

Newcastle University & NHS

• “Our single biggest engagement programme, bar none, is our clinical engagement programme with the NHS. ... It dominates numerically and financially every other thing that we do. ... There’s huge understanding inside the relevant parts of the academy about what makes them tick, what’s likely to go down well with them, and what won’t go down well with them”.

[Interviewee, Newcastle University, 19/05/09 (2nd interviewee)]

• We are absolutely reliant on the clinicians to get good data on every birth in the region, every pregnancy, every outcome. Without meticulous attention to detail by doctors and midwives, you wouldn’t have a dataset worth analysing. ... So we’re reliant on them, but they also get regular data fed back to them on their outcomes, and that is gold dust to them, in terms of clinical audit. So it’s a two-way relationship; they’re reliant on us, we’re reliant on them, and it’s mutually beneficial.”

[Interviewee, Newcastle University, 03/03/10 • “

The NHS and Newcastle University

• The relationship is more than just partnership; it’s inextricably linked. Without a range of key academics, who, if they don’t deliver on their side of the fence, our business suffers. If we don’t deliver for some of the academic objectives, and research objectives that are set by the University ... they suffer too. We’re joined at the hip ... because we’re in the research and innovation game together, we’re in the training and education game together ... . You can’t pick and choose on the relationship”.

[Interviewee, Newcastle upon Tyne Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, 26/06/09]

 

Sheffield :Work based learning

• “We’re continually revising our curriculum, in partnership with our stakeholders - the strategic health authorities, the acute trusts, the PCTs - in order to be that one step ahead in terms of anticipating the need. ... We are very much wedded to work-based learning delivery, and particularly when you’re talking about some of these groups - part-time, postgraduate [students] – our unique selling point is around that you come here to learn, but actually you learn by using your day-job, and so the assignments are actually around projects that will take your organisation forward as well as yourself ”.

• [Interviewee, Sheffield Hallam University, 21/07/10b]•  

Universities and creative cities

Creative Practise

• “I think what we are attempting to do is to try and crack that nut that a lot of fine art departments have to crack, which is how do you work in a professional practice environment that’s recognised by students and postgraduates, but also works to the needs of a research culture ... . What kinds of resources do you need? ... Really the model you want to put forward is a sort of relationship of art and the city; so very metropolitan, very urban. It’s not on campus, its right in the middle of town”.

• [Interviewee, Northumbria University, 22/11/11]

Bristol Watershed and Pervasive Media Studio

• “Watershed is a cross-artform venue and producer, sharing, developing and showcasing exemplary cultural ideas and talent. We are based in Bristol, but place no boundaries on our desire to connect with artists and audiences in the wider world.

• Watershed and the Pervasive Media Studio (a city-centre research space) occupy the first floor of a historic Grade II* listed building at the entranceway to Bristol's Harbourside.

• The Pervasive Media Studio, brings together a network of over 100 artists, technologists and academics to explore the future of mobile and wireless media.

• A creative technologies collaboration between Watershed, University of West of England and University of Bristol. Based in the heart of Bristol, we bring together creators from diverse backgrounds to research and produce new experiences”.

• http://www.watershed.co.uk/about/about-us/

Academia & the Bristol Pervasive Media Studio

• “we as acdemics are really planning for five to ten years ahead, people in business are usually planning for the next quarter or the next six months or the next year. There are different temporalities, and one of the things that we can do is try to use our expertise to catch some of the things that they don’t really have time to reflect on, or have the analytical purchase on, and play it back to them, and help them enrich their own process”.

• [Interviewee, University of the West of England, 24/10/11] •  

The studio perspective

• “I think one of the benefits of working with academics is that they provide a kind of stability in the way we work. ... There is a space in the middle where they can collaborate which is the work that might come out in 2 to 3 years. And then there’s the horizon work, which the academy is in a much better place to look at, because it hasn’t got the commercial constraints. ... But the studio acts as a kind of gearing mechanism to try and help those timescales, agendas, cash flows, find each other and work together.”

• There is a 5 year collaboration agreement between the three [organisations] at a corporate level, which we are calling a creative technologies collaboration. So it’s for research, innovation and teaching in what we are broadly calling creative technologies; so that cross- over space between creative content and digital computing. This mixed up space that none of us quite understand. ... So it is an active collaborative space, which adds value to what the universities can do in their own faculties, on their premises, on their own.”

Conclusion: what does this all mean for public policy?

Policy implications – looking back

• Dearing “HE is now a significant force in regional economies as a source of income and employment, a contribution to cultural life and in supporting regional and local economic development… As part of the compact we envisage between HE and society each institution should be clear about its mission in relation to local communities and regions”.

• Dearing clearly recognised that this ‘compact’ was wide ranging, had a strong local dimension and was one where the university’s contribution to ‘the economy’ could not be separated from the wider society in which it is embedded.

Lack of local demand for and supply of students

Demise of regional funding streams

Nationally driven policies and funding for innovation

Lack of demand and capacity in local SMEs

CONTRIBUTION OF UNIVERISITIES TO SOCIO-ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT OF CITIES

University

Recruitment vs widening participation