(EDITORIAL from the Korea Herald on Sept. 23)

Role of universities

Institutes of higher learning - especially research universities - from around
the world have been under dual pressures since the arrival of the global economic
crisis a year ago.

Signs of recovery are seen here and there, but universities
remain a low priority in the distribution of resources by governments and
still-struggling donor corporations.
This week in Seoul, a symposium of leaders from international and Korean research
universities heard top scholars and administrators reveal how their schools have
suffered through the year under reduced government subsidies and private
endowments which forced them to postpone various globalization schemes and cut
down on research expenditures. Applications for master's and Ph.D. programs
declined while large percentages of graduates failed to find jobs.
At the same time, research universities came under mounting pressure from the
state and society to provide magical solutions to the problems they face under
the economic crisis of unseen magnitude. Universities thus had to shift resources
from the studies of basic science to applied fields for the purpose of making
visible contributions to national recovery efforts, according to presentations at
the 2009 International Presidential Forum of global research universities
organized by KAIST.
Participants from North America, Europe, Southeast Asia, China and Japan
exchanged opinions and visions on institutional management in times of financial
crisis, as well as innovation in education and research and the roles of
government, universities and industry in the development of sustainable
technologies. They were in accord on the need to accelerate globalization on the
academic level to tackle the problems facing mankind through borderless
cooperation and competition.
With their country showing a rapid pace of recovery, universities in Korea are in
a better situation than many of their overseas counterparts, especially
considering the substantial government outlays for research and development in
"low carbon, green growth" projects that are largely dependent on research
universities. The more the government seeks their direct contributions, the
harder universities should try to increase transparency and accountability in the
use of taxpayer money, so as not to betray the nation's trust in them.
The university presidents' forum introduced a number of pioneering research
projects the world's major universities have undertaken in the common endeavors
toward "green (sustainable)" development. The Technical University of Denmark,
for example, is developing wind power generation with generous government support
under the ambitious goal of supplying 80 percent of the nation's energy needs.
Kumamoto University of Japan is building a "green city" with clean energy and a
clean environment in cooperation with the local government. Likewise KAIST's
online electric vehicle and mobile harbor projects are among the government's 20
growth engine projects.
In the wake of the global economic crisis, academia, government and industry find
themselves in closer ties as they share new concepts of innovation and
development in a common quest for growth. The tripartite cooperation has new
significance in the recovery process. To achieve any development objectives, the
other two partners must prioritize the funding of universities.
(END)