The urban space: from community to diversity media

The more heterogeneous a society gets, the more diverse its media sector becomes. Whilst large media outlets cater for the general public, community media respond to the interests of a more tightly knit readership. Computer geeks read magazines authored by computer geeks. Single parents post entries on blogs for single parents. Senior citizens listen to radio broadcasts produced to reach out to senior citizens. In this vein, ethnic and religious communities publish for internal audiences.

 On the flipside of this development, media products of minority or immigrant communities increasingly attract the attention of other segments of society. Especially better educated, widely travelled and open-minded members of the majority population do not merely want to know what is written about minorities but also what is written by them.

Turning our spotlight onto the Viennese community media scene, one can observe both trends. Some outlets explicitly address a clearly defined community with information mostly relevant only thereto. Others, however, claim their voice in the general public discourse. This is based on the assumption that minority issues are at the same time majority issues. A city belongs to all people living therein and is being shaped by all its inhabitants, irrespective of ethno-religious belonging or socio-economic stratum.

Vienna has seen numerous media projects who critically promote this intersection of majority and minority. Once a month, I have the pleasure to find an extremely well-crafted magazine of this type on my desk – Wina: Das jüdische Stadtmagazin (www.wina-magazin.at). For many decades, various Jewish community media have (re-)emerged in Vienna. Understandably, many of those outlets have been directed at a Jewish readership, whereas others predominantly reported on Jewish history or acts of hatred against Jews. Wina would not turn a blind eye to these crucial topics either, but what makes it particularly worthwhile reading is the underlying concept of being an urban magazine in a diverse city. Insightful portraits of Viennese Jews and non-Jews, travel guides with a kosher touch of cities across Europe, sceptical op-eds, and the transformation of Jewish life styles inside and outside Israel are but a few of Wina’s multifaceted features. The magazine’s very name - the Hebrew name of Vienna written in German transliteration - epitomises this approach.

Sitting in one of the city’s fancy cafés for Sunday brunch and watching people from different walks of life browsing Wina’s newest edition illustrates the idea of what a community magazine in a diverse urban space could look like. (EK)

Homogene Hochschullandschaft?

Weiterbildungen in den Bereichen Hochschuldidaktik und Hochschulmanagement sind eine willkommene Gelegenheit zum Erfahrungsaustausch mit Kolleginnen und Kollegen anderer Einrichtungen und dienen als Korrektiv, um die eigene Praxis zu überprüfen. Die Teilnahme an diesen Veranstaltungen durchbricht meine Routine an einer äußerst internationalen Fachhochschule - nahe an den wissenschaftlichen, politischen und wirtschaftlichen Entscheidungszentren einer Hauptstadt, die in den vergangenen beiden Jahrzehnten spürbar offener und kosmopolitischer wurde.

Österreichweite Fortbildungen für Hochschulpersonal muten aus dieser Perspektive wie Ausflüge ins Grüne an, ja wie Exkurse in Erfahrungswelten, die viel stärker durch regionale Verankerung und kulturelle Selbstverständlichkeiten geprägt sind. Auch dort gibt es ein paar internationale Studierende - Incomings im Erasmus-Semester, sogenannte NC-Flüchtlinge aus Deutschland, vielleicht auch unter ordentlichen Hörerinnen und Hörern Biografien, die nicht mehrheitlich herkunftsösterreichisch sind. Trotzdem scheint es dort Verständigungsgemeinschaften zu geben, die eine ganz ähnliche Sicht der Dinge teilen, wo divergierende Wahrnehmungen nicht erst mühsam ausgehandelt werden müssen. Das hat praktische Auswirkungen auf hochschuldidaktische Überlegungen, Methoden der Leistungsevaluierung, Formen vertraulichen Coachings. Ich ertappe mich ständig bei der Frage, ob denn dieser oder jener Tipp auch in interkulturellen Gruppen anwendbar sei, während die anderen Seminarteilnehmenden doch bestenfalls Studierende aus mehreren österreichischen Bundesländern zu betreuen hätten; hauptsächlich Mittelschichtkinder mit vergleichbaren Bildungsbiografien und Lernstilen obendrein.

Die Versuchung, die Hochschullandschaft am Land als homogen, übersichtlich und leicht steuerbar zu betrachten, ist groß und sie führt zu verkürzten Sichtweisen. Während in Ballungszentren Praktika, Traineeships und mehr oder minder qualifizierte Nebenjobs ums Eck zu finden sind, müssen Studierende in strukturschwachen Gegenden höhere Mobilitätsbereitschaft aufweisen und vielfach nach der Graduierung abwandern. Auch Lehrende und das Management werden zu kreativen Lösungen angehalten, wenn Forschungspartner, Bibliotheken, Fachvorträge oder Zugänge zu politisch Verantwortlichen im Einzugsbereich der eigenen Hochschule dünn gesät sind. Und sobald beispielsweise Drittstaatsangehörige ein Studium oder eine Lehrtätigkeit an einer derartigen Einrichtung aufnehmen, potenzieren sich zumindest anfangs Integrationsschwierigkeiten: weniger Deutschkurse, weniger spezialisierte Anlaufstellen, weniger muttersprachliche Ansprechpersonen oder Unterstützungsnetzwerke.

Auch im Hochschulbereich funktioniert die klischeehafte Gegenüberstellung städtische Vielfalt vs. ländliche Einfalt nicht. Es sind andere Herausforderungen, denen sich Einrichtungen des tertiären Sektors in der Peripherie stellen müssen. Ist die kulturelle Heterogenität in meinem beruflichen Umfeld größer, so ist es allerdings auch die Breite des Angebotes. Von Weiterbildungen mit Teilnehmenden aus ganz Österreich nehme ich konkrete Inhalte und methodische Werkzeuge mit; zunehmend werde ich aber auch für Hochschulmanagement und Lehre außerhalb meines Wiener Referenzpunktes sensibilisiert. (EK)

Book averseness (?!)

We have sort of become addicted to the idea of using the Internet when looking for any source of information, while ignoring a simple fact: We are trusting generalized information which grows daily without control. This is seen as both the glory and the weakness of the Internet.

Roger Ebert once said: ‘Doing research on a web is like using a library assembled piecemeal by pack rats and vandalized nightly’.

As a supervisor of Bachelor Works and Master Theses, I have become familiar with the attitude of many students, who would rather avoid the using of books when carrying out a research, and prefer Cyberspace instead. One creates the impression that many are not aware of the true difference between research on the Net and traditional library research. Despite the fact that the Net is a tremendous source of information, this information as such needs to be used very critically and carefully.

But what became of books?

Brilliant ideas, inventions, discoveries, imagination and much more have been turned into simple letters that matter. The entire panorama of our world, being that present or past becomes varied, interesting, and breathtaking, while our mind keeps running and our reflections are constantly being strengthened. It’s books which sharpen our intelligence, improve our vocabulary, promote our knowledge, and spark our imagination and creativity.

For thousand years books have been fundamental for acquisition of knowledge. While searching on the Internet for an answer, you might find 100.000 of them, while in a book you aim at the well defined and right one.

Then why is it that we have become so averse towards using books (?) Is the Internet the only source of valuable information (?) Where does all this commitment towards the Internet come from? Why do we trust the Internet as the only source available? Is the Internet the only answer to a question we have? Or did we simply become lazy to walk into a library, find a book, and search what we are looking for?

Did the use of the Internet become a trend, or simply a cultural syndrome?

Reading is an art that must be mastered with a lot of patience and ambitions; a more human and tangible source of knowledge you get while trying to outlive the technological age.

Shouldn’t we start challenging ourselves and practice once again the thrill and excitement of reading a book…it is never too late to start practicing and being fascinated by the good habit of investigating further with the help of books. (RM)

The case for Western liberal democracy: Neo-colonialist? Detrimental to business?

Let me present two concocted and somewhat clichéd but by no means unrealistic cases to pinpoint a conundrum of managing international business. In a company with an intercultural workforce an openly gay employee is being harassed by a colleague coming from a society which is known for its high levels of homophobia. Another business seeks cooperation with an important player in a country, where economic and political decision-making is not only male-dominated (as practically anywhere in the world) but where women and men hardly interact publicly. Should the entreprise refrain from delegating a female representative to head the negotiating team?

If I were in charge of either of these tasks, my responses were quite clear. As much as one has to be critical of post-WWII Western liberal democracy, I nevertheless consider the European Convention on Human Rights as a most basic reference point not only for societal but also for my proper individual behaviour. Rejecting discrimination on grounds of gender and sexual orientation, I would confront the homophobe with his/her behaviour and place the woman with the delegation.

It is safe to assume that my decisions could attract two quite distinct strands of criticism. From a business-case perspective, I am prone to decrease the admonished employee’s motivation or, referring to the second case, jeopardise the negotiation outcome rather than change the mindset of any of the parties involved. Conversely, my insistence on so-called universal human rights is allegedly but a sign of disrespect and feelings of Western superiority.

In a recently published essay, Princeton-based intellectual Jan-Werner Müller offers some inspiring thoughts on how the EU institutions should act vis-à-vis Hungary in light of semi-authoritarian tendencies and popular anti-minority sentiment. On one hand, Müller warns to treat new EU member-states as if they were somewhat retarded apprentices to democracy. On the other hand, he encourages the EU to emphasise its legal foundations and normative achievements, of which pluralist democracy, the rule of law and anti-discrimination are key. Where EU economic governance readily encroaches on national sovereignty, one cannot turn a blind eye to constantly eroding cornerstones of liberal democracy. After all, the common market should conform to democracy, not vice-versa.

Müller is wary of neo-colonialist attitudes in asymmetric power-relations. Consequently, both sides should sit at the negotiation table and create an environment where stronger and weaker partners can exchange arguments but also convince each other. This forum for debate is inclusive, but convictions can be rigid, and thus exclude certain opinions and actions.

Though addressing a different sphere, I found Müller’s approach instructive for diversity management across national and cultural boundaries. Perhaps this is a daring analogy. But it teaches us to delegitimise standpoints (such as, inter alia, homophobia and misogyny) but not the people who voice them. On the contrary, opponents should be invited to debate and convinced by better arguments. This is possibly not the worst prerequisite for sustainable business and work relations either. (EK)

Recommended reading: Müller, J. (2013). Wo Europa endet: Ungarn, Brüssel und das Schicksal der liberalen Demokratie. Berlin: Suhrkamp

Recognizing the potential of diversity

I read an article published on Financial Times online doing some research about the Big Four (audit firms), when I came across Fleur Bothwick, director of diversity and inclusive leadership at Ernst & Young. She is working hard to reach the goal of  having 17 per cent female partners in the EMEIA region – Europe, Middle East, India and Africa. I always become cautious when gender quotas are discussed, because in some cases they are applied without the required modifications to the respective company’s (HR) strategy. What I have read about E&Y in this article makes me believe, that companies have finally recognized the potential of  a diverse workforce and thus have adopted their strategies accordingly.

“Different programmes and networks are tailored to geographical areas but they all share the same ultimate goal: to ensure the reputation and revenues of the firm and the retention of high-flying staff. Retaining and promoting women is not just the right thing to do but makes hard commercial sense”, Ms Bothwick says. In my opinion, this is really good news – companies of the might of the Big Four have realized the commercial perspective of diversity.  Programmes such as Globnal Next Gen or the Navigator, for career planning; sponsorship programmes targeting high potential women; internal diversity score cards are used in the sense of diversity and inclusive leadership as defined by Ernst&Young:

“Diversity is the demographic mix in a given environment which includes both seen and unseen differences and Inclusiveness is how we make the mix work by creating an environment where all people feel valued and are able to achieve their potential”. (MaS)

The full article can be retrieved here.

On the benefits of a general course

Books and policy papers on how to improve the quality of higher education abound. One trend, put forward by respective thinkers and increasingly being implemented in universities across the globe, are general courses.

General courses are rooted in the traditions of the Oxfordian tutoring model, the American liberal arts colleges, and allegedly also in the Humboldtian ideal of Allgemeinbildung. They do away with narrow disciplinary boundaries and authoritative introductory courses, in which professors take a compulsory break from their more prestigious research endeavours to teach a subject’s foundations to a large number of freshers. If we transpose this idea to the three-cycle Bologna degree system, students should primarily gain philosophical, methodological and interdisciplinary training during their bachelors. Only then they choose a specialisation for their masters, and possibly embark on a research track during a PhD. In equivalence, professional law and med school degrees in the U.S. can only be commenced after undergraduate studies.

 A recently published tome by renowned philosopher of science and former CEU president Yehuda Elkana and junior scholar and entrepreneur Hannes Klöpper emphasises the significance of general courses; for they foster an encounter with humankind’s most pressing problems and the difficulty to solve them. Whereas a limitation to discipline-bound theories suggests that any challenge from starvation to cyber war can be tackled by means of linear models, Elkana and Klöpper deliberately wish to expose first-year students to the complexity of the world. Accordingly, re-designed bachelor curricula would have science students take classes and do project-work together with future historians and economists.

 Throughout their book, Elkana and Klöpper do not cease to stress that processes of learning and acquiring/producing knowledge have to be adapted to the context they take place in. By promoting universal theories, we create the false assumption that problems can be solved uniformly irrespective of locality and time. A bachelor student should, thus, be aware of the chaotic world s/he lives in, get tools to look at it from various angles, and grow curiosity to confront these intricacies in his/her role as an educated and engaged citizen.

Having read Elkana’s and Klöpper’s piece, my first thought was that given the constraints of European higher education policy the general-course approach were tempting but illusionary. Students, whether self-sustaining or funded by their families or bursaries, have to find a job. Likewise, many universities are evaluated by the employability of their programmes.

We are currently in the stage of planning the upcoming academic year, which gives us both leeway and the responsibility to set up a rewarding and impactful course offer. On a second thought, a general course could be worth the effort. (EK)

Recommended reading: Elkana, Y. & Klöpper, H. (2012). Die Universität im 21. Jahrhundert: Für eine neue Einheit von Lehre, Forschung und Gesellschaft. Hamburg: Edition Körber-Stiftung

The ‚masculine’ or the ‚feminine’ managerial way: The dilemma of a female employee

There exists quite a big paradox which comes across the female working life, making it to a certain extent more challenging and complicated.

Human beings, be they male or female, are both orderly and rebellious.

However, in our everyday working life we might encounter an ordinarily unremarked scenario of working twice as hard to get half as far and yet enjoying the novelty of being a woman. We have the tendency to show empathy, compassion, understanding, sensitivity…the so called ‘feminine’ label.

At the age of 18 we decide to choose our study path, which is followed by 30 when we strive to achieve a good managerial position. While we are surrounded by male and female colleagues, we strive to position ourselves well enough in that certain workplace. We are faced with the so called masculine syndrome which teaches us that in order to succeed; we would mostly show some ‘masculine’ approaches, such as being determinant, decisive, tough and authoritarian. But what is the reason for it?

We try to repress our female qualities, and face challenges by somehow losing our own identity, striving to develop masculine characteristics in order to ‘fit-in’.  On the other hand we have qualities that a ‘masculine’ approach could ignore and reject, such as nurturing, intuition, empathy…So, why is it then so hard to benefit from them?

Yet, by suppressing certain ‘female’ qualities, we end up being tired and unsatisfied with the ways a certain task is accomplished and a result is somehow achieved (?)

While encountering certain stereotypes, such as ‘women are too sensitive and compassionate’, I am asking myself whether it is not about time to find a balance for the well being of all workforce.

It is certainly not easy; however despite the fact that it is considered as a challenge in choosing among ‘masculine’ or ‘feminine’ approaches, we aim at reaching a certain serenity that will help us keep our confidence and nurture our values and characteristics.

Or perhaps, should we simply draw back and live with the existence of the thought that ‘feminist ideas are much less threatening when they come from a man’?(RM)