YAG ECR Lunch October 2022: What’s all that talk about "academic freedom“?

In recent years, a broad variety of incidents - from student protests against specific speakers on campus, to public outrage against scientists and funding cuts - have been described as threats to "academic freedom." But what exactly do we mean by academic freedom? How is it different from other rights, such as freedom of speech or freedom of assembly? Who is responsible for achieving, maintaining and protecting academic freedom? And what limits can legitimately be imposed?

Programme:

During this ECR lunch, we want to reflect on the concept of "academic freedom" and focus on the various constraints - ethical, political, practical - that researchers experience. We invite you to read the KNAW report about academic freedom (or the summary) beforehand, and we will kick off the session with some critical reflections. Then we’ll share experiences of constraints in teaching and research. We’ll round off the discussion by reflecting on the institutional structures in which academic freedom needs to be implemented as well as the current situation in the Netherlands and at the RUG.