The Open Society University Network (OSUN) is a new educational network that integrates learning and the advancement of knowledge across geographic and demographic boundaries, promotes civic engagement on behalf of open societies, and expands the access of underserved communities to higher education.
On January 23, 2020 at the World Economic Forum in Davos, the founder of the Open Society Foundations Mr. George Soros has announced the establishment of the OSUN, as a global collaboration of Universities advancing the promotion of liberal education, personal autonomy, and free society. EHU partners the cohort of educational partners of OSUN together with 23 more Universities across the world.
Mission of OSUN
- Foster critical thinking, open intellectual inquiry, and fact-based research to strengthen foundations of open society amid an authoritarian resurgence
- Educate students to address tomorrow’s global challenges by getting to know other societies from the inside
- Expand access to higher education at a time of growing inequities
- Counteract polarization by promoting global research collaboration and educating students to examine issues from different perspectives and advance reasoned arguments
- Bolster efforts by universities in challenging environments to build their own capacity through global partnerships to make greater contributions to their societies
Network courses
OSUN Network Courses are virtual international exchanges that unite students and faculty from several universities located in different parts of the world in the inverted classroom, sharing faculty and conducting joint research projects in which people from many universities collaborate. The goal of the courses is by challenging students to examine the ideas and practices of being a global citizen in the 21st century. Among the joint courses offered to EHU students in AY 2019/20 are:
- Freedom of Expression
- Global Citizenship
- Civic Engagement
- Nations and Nationalism
Debates
Annual Global Civic Engagement conference “Get Engaged – students action and youth leadership”
Under the auspices of the Central European University, Get Engaged Conference brings together students from across the Bard International Network to develop community leadership skills and collaborate on solutions to local and global challenges.
Various cohorts of EHU students represent their civically and on-campus oriented projects in terms of this conference Since 2014, EHU is continuously expanding its participation in Bard Network activities also as a constant participant of the Get Engaged conference. Conference workshops focus on: Leadership, Public Speaking, Networking, Social Media, Community Partnerships, Innovation and Creativity, Fundraising and Grant Writing, and Emotional Intelligence.