This is a vital topic for the world of today, a world that is characterised by major scientific and technological progress and which offers great promise for this reason whilst also being highly materialistic. This world is undergoing profound and increasingly rapid changes that create major challenges for all societies and cultures. One of these challenges is finding common values in the world of today, as all societies and cultures are now interdependent and interchange different aspects. Thus, values are not permanent heritage, set in stone.

 

The Algerian writer Mohammed Arkoun said that “values should be continuously revised as they lose meaning over time”. Values need constant critical questioning, particularly at a time when society, and the environment in which we live, is evolving rapidly. I have quoted an Algerian Arab writer as many works on these topics give the impression that this idea is only found in the Western world, that in the Islamic, Arab world everything is fixed and set in stone. Arkoun’s works are very important in this respect, and coincide perfectly with the views of Western thinkers on this topic. Therefore, it is interesting to compare, for example, Arkoun’s opinion with that of Paul Ricoeur: “values are half way between the lasting convictions of a historic community and the incessant reassessment required due to changes in the period and in circumstances that lead to the emergence of new problems”. I believe that this is a vital topic for coexistence in the globalised world in which we live.

 

 

Of course: they can and must be involved in this.

 

 

Partly, yes. The World Report on Education, which was coordinated by Delors many years ago, stated that education in general and higher education in particular is a “hidden treasure”, which represents an attainable utopia that can provide solutions for the future. This is the role of universities. This is the issue. Universities can and should critically interpret values. Some universities do this more than others. However, the problem is that the mission of universities covers two areas: teaching and research. Higher education has been linked to employment, to the market. Now, we have realised that some consequences of this association are negative, as teaching is too closely linked to the market. The role of the university is to use research to find solutions for the future and to teach students to react to the current context, to adapt and ask themselves about the meaning of aspects of our environment.

 

There is currently much discussion about a “clash of values”, but this clash does not exist: it is a theory with specific ideological objectives. The current problem is not a clash of values, but the lack of common values. It is essential for universities to find these values. This is important for security and for peace.

 

What type of values? Firstly, I would like to point out that we already have a theoretical basis for developing our values. We have, for example, the United Nations’ Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), UNESCO’s Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity and the Agreement on Cultural Diversity, among other texts. The values that today’s society needs are at the heart of UNESCO’s mission, for example, the values of justice, equality, liberty, and respect for cultural diversity. Higher education should help UNESCO to overcome and analyse the deep feelings of some groups, societies and cultures that frequently lead to violence, a lack of understanding, rejection of others, etc.

 

 

This is a topical subject that is dealt with effectively sometimes, whilst at other times it is addressed for reasons that are unrelated to the essential problem. This understanding of others is called the dialogue of cultures, of civilisations, of people and of religions. Many civil society institutions and universities are working to achieve this dialogue. The Alliance of Civilisations report, a Spanish initiative endorsed by the United Nations, is also related to this. A high level group has been formed to reflect on how to achieve this dialogue and the group’s recommendations have been published. Their report highlights that the education sector is essential for working on a dialogue between cultures. In other words, education, and higher education in particular, is of central importance.

 

 

The question is not what a lecturer can do. Instead it involves a reconsideration of curricular systems. Higher education needs to be reformed, to adapt to this worrying context of the world today. Then, universities will be able to reconsider their curricula, their educational systems, in a general way. The humanities need to be given the importance that they deserve and that they used to have in education. They have been gradually marginalised, as science and technology have taken over. Science and technology are very important, as we are in a knowledge society, but it is also vital to reconsider the teaching of humanities.

 

In this framework, teaching of history, philosophy, religion, education and citizenship are important, but should be reconsidered so that they can contribute to a culture of peace.

 

Education is needed on human rights, on sustainable development, on learning how to respect the environment and on cultural diversity. This will pave the way for peace and security in the world. Universities play an essential role in this area. However, the truth is that they have not been involved enough to date.

 

 

Above all, we should overcome the idea that universities are still the only repositories of knowledge. Now, the Internet, for example, has opened up many opportunities for accessing knowledge. Universities should be reformed to continue to develop the mission for which they exist, taking into account a series of realities related to globalisation. Universities are now nuclei of cultural diversity, microcosms of the diversity and plurality of the world in which we live. Therefore, they are an appropriate environment for this dialogue, this knowledge of others and this understanding of others. The reform of universities, including the reform of curriculum systems, requires training for teachers, who should act as bridges in all disciplines. Not all lecturers have the right training to achieve this.

 

 

This leads us to the following conclusion: the world of today needs a new social, cultural and human contract. It needs new ethics. All of which should be aimed at disseminating the idea that we belong to the same human family, that we have a common destiny. If we work in this line, we can ensure a better future for humanity and build a better world in which humans occupy the central position. The great moments of the great cultures have coincided with the times at which people themselves are at the centre of concerns.