The Brac University joined a global network of teaching and research foundation named the Open Society University Network (OSUN), founded by American billionaire George Soros.
The network was launched on January 23 by Soros, at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, where he pledged $1 billion to facilitate the integration of critical thinking, and open intellectual inquiry with higher education.
Prof Manzoor Ahmed, professor emeritus at Brac University, confirmed the university’s partnership with OSUN.
“This collaboration may help the research and training at the university, and will counteract the ideas of extremism and radicalism among the students,” he told Dhaka Tribune. “Liberal and secular values will be promoted through the activities of this network.”
He further said: “We have worked with them before, in the university’s early childhood development program. Brac founder Sir Fazle Hasan Abed and George Soros were close friends, and Soros was impressed with Sir Fazle’s ideas.
“I think the students’ extracurricular activities will be developed after exchanging views with other universities that are part of OSUN. We also have a plan to develop a unique curriculum in terms of research and teaching method through this network,” he added.
During his announcement of the initiative at Davos, Soros reportedly called it “the most important project of my life,” aiming to build on the work of his Open Society Foundations (OSF), which has invested billions into pro-democracy and human rights projects around the world.
What is OSUN?
The Open Society University Network (OSUN) is a novel model of global higher education aimed at combining learning and knowledge creation across the world, and providing underprivileged communities – especially refugees and displaced people, like the Rohingyas – with access to higher education, according to George Soros.
OSUN is built on the accomplishments of several major initiatives in higher education supported by the Open Society Foundations (OSF), also founded by Soros.
Along with the OSF, the Central European University and Bard College are also co-founding OSUN and will run the network. OSUN programs will begin this year.
According to OSUN website, this initiative aims to “integrate curricula, teaching, and research across partner institutions, embed civic engagement into the learning environment and the creation of knowledge to prepare students to become engaged citizens, create new pathways for underserved communities into higher education, and create a dynamic ecosystem of long-term partnerships that will generate innovation and amplify the impact of individual institutions.”
List of OSUN educational partners
1. Al-Quds University/Al-Quds Bard College of Arts and Sciences, Palestine
2. American University of Bulgaria
3. American University of Central Asia, Kyrgyzstan
4. Arizona State University, US
5. Ashesi University, Ghana
6. Bard College Berlin, Germany
7. Birkbeck: University of London, UK
8. Brac University, Bangladesh
9. European Humanities University, Lithuania
10. Fulbright University of Vietnam
11. Sciences Po Paris, France
12. SOAS University of London, UK
