Summer/Winterschool 6 - 21 December 2014 in South Africa: You can apply now!

The Kosmopolis Platform of the University of Humanistic Studies (the Netherlands), in cooperation with HIVOS (Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries), the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice at the University of the Free State (South Africa), the Global Centre for Pluralism (Canada)  and  Glocal University (India) welcomes applicants for the 2014 International Summer School on Pluralism, Development and Social Change. 

The Summer School Program brings together activists, academics and social practitioners from South Africa, India, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Kenya to exchange knowledge about pluralism and social change and reflect on its implications for social practices and academic research.

When: 6 -21 December 2014
Where: Hosted at Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice at the University of the Free State in South Africa.

The deadline for application is 27 October 2014.

We welcome applications from

1. Staff of Civil Society-based Organisations, social change activists and policy makers from  Hivos Head- and Regional Offices and partner organisations in Southern or Eastern Africa, India or Indonesia
2. Staff of Civil Society-based Organisations of the Global Centre for Pluralism partner organizations in Kenya
3. Graduate students from (1) the University of Humanistic Studies (only MA), (2) the University of the Free State and (3) Glocal University, India with current (or recent) relevant work -  and study experience in civil society practices of social change
   

General information

The program will be conducted between 6 – 21 December 2014 and hosted by the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice at the University of the Free State in South Africa. It involves a 16 day full time program of lectures, excursions, seminars, literature study, discussion, guided individual - and small group work and assignments. The maximum group size will be between 20 – 24 people. Selected participants are required to prepare a pre-summer school assignment. The course will be completed with a group presentation and a design for a pluralism workshop which participants conduct after they return home.  Upon successful completion, participants will receive a Kosmopolis/University of Humanistic Studies Certificate in Pluralism,  Development and Social Change.

The summer school aims to

• Bring together a diverse and international group of participants who are interested in social change and wish to enhance their critical understanding of social theory of change, practices of pluralism and the politics of difference at local and global levels
• Intensify links between development practitioners and scholars in order to (1) enrich both their knowledge bases with new perspectives, insights and skills, and (2) stimulate the creation of international networks of civil society initiatives around issues of social change and pluralism
• Facilitate international dialogue on theories and practices of pluralism and professional and personal experiences with cultural- and other forms of diversity and difference, leading to a critical international comparative analysis of pluralism approaches in various social, political, economic and ecological contexts
• Integrate theoretical and practice-based knowledge of all participants and help them to translate it into new insights, strategies, policies and/or practices for pluralism
• Create a learning environment in which participants simultaneously learn about as well as simultaneously live with difference in a pluralist, international and intercultural setting. Critical reflexivity, reading and writing, dialogue, experiential learning, active participation and skills training are central to the program.

Participants of the Winter/Summerschool in South Africa, July 2012

Brief information about the content of the Program

The last few decades witnessed significant changes across the world, mediated by technological revolutions, economic liberalisation, political upsurges, the rise of new identity politics, aspirations of regime change, grave concerns about ecological crises and movements for a broader understanding of ‘gender’ equality, including the rights of the LGBT persons. In an increasingly interconnected world, societies and communities become more diverse and complex, that is: more plural. Theories and practices of ‘pluralism’, or ‘living with difference’ and how they relate to social change, are central in the program. We depart from the idea that pluralism can enhance an ethos of democratic engagement and that differences can be a creative source for social change.

We focus on three interrelated and intertwined perspectives:

1. worldview/religious perspectives which focus on how states, societies, NGOs and religious communities themselves, address challenges of religious co-existence as well as new meanings and manifestations of secularity
2. social-political perspectives which address the social tensions, inequalities and conflicts that often accompany diversity and difference
3. ecological perspectives which refer to diverse ways in which humans interact with their environments by drawing on pluri-cultural values and their modes of symbolic awareness of the human–earth relationship.

The summer school program brings together activists, academics and social practitioners from South Africa, India, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Kenya to exchange knowledge about pluralism and social change and reflect on its implications for social practices and academic research.

Costs

The summer school is co-funded by all participating universities and institutions. The funding includes room and board for all selected candidates during the summer school, as well as participation in the program, including the excursion. The program will also fund your international travel/ – and visa costs. You (or your organization) are obliged to take out medical insurance cover for the duration of the summer school and need to submit proof of this.

How to apply

Application forms can be downloaded HERE.
Applications should be submitted online via ONE of the coordinators mentioned below. Please make sure that you send your application to the coordinator of your own country/sector. Candidates are selected by local coordinators in dialogue with the central coordinator at the University of Humanistic Studies in the Netherlands.

The deadline for application is 27 October 2014
Selection results will be published online on the 31 October

More information can be obtained from:

1. The Netherlands: University of Humanistic Studies Master students: more information can be obtained from Dr. Caroline Suransky via c.suransky@uvh.nl . Please send you application form to c.suransky@uvh.nl
2. Hivos Staff: more information can be obtained from Dr. Caroline Suransky via c.suransky@uvh.nl and/or Ms. Ute Seela at useela@hivos.org. Please send you application form to c.suransky@uvh.nl
3. South Africa: University of the Free State Honours, Master and PhD students: more information can be obtained from Mr. JC van der Merwe via vdmjc@ufs.ac.za Please send you application form to vdmjc@ufs.ac.za
4. India: Staff and Graduate Students Glocal University: more information can be obtained from  Prof. Sitharamam Kakarala via k.sitharamam@gmail.com  Please send you application form to k.sitharamam@gmail.com
5. Kenya: Staff of GCP partner organizations: more information can be obtained from Dr. Mark Tschirgi via mark.tschirgi@pluralism.ca Please send you application form to mark.tschirgi@pluralism.ca

The Kosmopolis Platform of the University of Humanistic Studies (the Netherlands), in cooperation with HIVOS (Humanist Institute for Cooperation with Developing Countries), the Institute for Reconciliation and Social Justice at the University of the Free State (South Africa), the Global Centre for Pluralism (Canada) and Glocal University (India) welcomes applicants for the 2014 International Summer School on Pluralism, Development and Social Change.