UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Registration is now open for faculty, staff and administration with global interests to attend the Times Higher Education Innovation & Impact Summit, which will take place virtually April 19-22. Penn State is co-sponsoring the summit, titled “Cultivating resilience, changing the world.”
“The world looks to the Times Higher Education Impact Rankings as a source for identifying universities that build positive societal change, and I’m pleased that last year Penn State ranked third in the United States in their Impact rankings,” said Penn State President Eric Barron. “I’m also delighted that Penn State is joining our partners at the University of Auckland to sponsor the virtual Times Higher Education Innovation & Impact Summit, which is devoted to innovation and research impact as we begin to move beyond a global pandemic. I look forward to the outcomes of this innovative international collaboration.”
Times Higher Education describes the event as its “most ambitious so far.” According to a release sent to the sponsoring institutions, “COVID-19 has threatened the very survival of research universities, but it has also clearly demonstrated their vital role in responding to the current pandemic and future existential challenges. Maybe more than ever, governments are relying on research institutions to provide solutions to the challenges that we all face. The summit will bring together higher education leaders and investors to explore these topics and discuss how the impact of universities may be increased."
Phil Baty, chief knowledge officer at Times Higher Education, said, “THE is thrilled to be joining forces with Penn State, and a partner university almost 9,000 miles away on the other side of the world in Auckland, for a truly global and fully-inclusive, virtual gathering.
"The ambitious four-day event, spread across multiple time zones, will bring university academics and administrators together with policymakers and corporations from all continents, to share information, insight and inspiration on what I believe is the most pressing issue faced by universities today: their role in society and their responsibility to help make the world a better place," added Baty.
The summit will also feature the exclusive live reveal of the THE Impact Rankings 2021, which will include more than 1,000 institutions around the world, demonstrating the rapid acceptance/recognition, adoption and significance of this unique new measure of university impact against the most critical goals for the safeguarding of life on Earth.
Penn State is co-sponsoring the summit with the University of Auckland, Penn State’s partner institution in New Zealand, with whom the University has shared a partnership and several rounds of joint seed funding since 2018.
"The importance of the global research community working together to respond to the multiple and varied challenges that impact around the world has never been more keenly felt. The role of universities is crucial at this time and our shared knowledge allows us to make advances that have local, national and international reach and significance," said Professor Dawn Freshwater, vice-chancellor, University of Auckland.
"The COVID pandemic has highlighted the need for international collaboration led by world-class universities; this virtual summit will be a conduit for this sharing of ideas," she added. "The announcement of the THE Impact ratings during the conference is of particular interest to the University of Auckland, which has ranked first in the world both years since the ranking was introduced in 2019. We are pleased to be co-hosting this summit, modelling the collaboration that we all know is the way of the future."
Early-bird registration for the summit is £199 (about $280 USD) and runs until March 26. Regular university-affiliated registration after March 26 is £299 pounds (about $420 USD).
For more information about the summit and to register, visit Times Higher Education’s website.