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Learning from crises: Future impulses for higher education
[28.04.2026]The Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society (HIIG) and the CATALPA Research Center hosted an event to mark the conclusion of the OrA and ORC research projects, bringing together participants to discuss crisis-resilient and future-proof higher education institutions. Under the title “Learning from Crises: Impulses for the Future of Higher Education,” CATALPA and HIIG researchers provided insights into the practical significance of their research.
Photo: Hardy Welsch/Privat
What can we learn from crises? This question was the focus of the closing event for the project, "Organizational Resilience and Creativity: The Future of Educational Technologies in Higher Education (ORC)" In March, CATALPA and the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society (HIIG) brought together university administrators, faculty, e-learning leaders, IT professionals, pedagogical experts, management professionals, and other higher education stakeholders.
Pandemic-driven digitization of teaching and disruptive events, such as generative AI's breakthrough in higher education, are just two examples of major upheavals to which universities must respond. To this end, participants shared experiences with crises and challenges and tested potential solutions.
Barbara Wagner, Dr. Len Ole Schäfer, and Bronwen Deacon provided insights that framed the event, which was moderated by Ann-Kathrin Watolla. The event revealed key findings on resilience in higher education.
- Resilience, as a capacity of higher education institutions, is most evident in their actions following a crisis. Anticipating crises is often neglected, and immediate action during a crisis is usually reactive.
- Our research shows how closely creativity and resilience are intertwined, yet creativity is an underestimated lever for resilience. For universities, creativity can be a concrete starting point for better addressing crises.
- Crises are different yet comparable. Using our Resilience & Creativity Canvas to break down crises into phases and concrete practices can make even unimaginable events tangible and facilitate structured reflection.
- The discussion emphasized the difficulty of balancing the university as a whole with the individual attitudes and actions of its members. The decision-making process at universities and the openness of decision-makers to technology significantly impact organizational resilience.
About the project
OrA and ORC are collaborative projects between the research program “Knowledge & Society” at the Alexander von Humboldt Institute for Internet and Society and CATALPA – Center of Advanced Technology for Assisted Learning and Predictive Analytics at the FernUniversität in Hagen.
