Leveraging our location to deliver impactful learning experiences

At Queen’s, there is much to be gained from leveraging our urban location for the mutual benefit of the University and the city region. As evidence elsewhere attests to, where partnerships are forged, major institutions such as research universities can play important roles in shaping the economies of urban regions. Partnerships between research-intensive universities and their host city-regions can serve as mutually beneficial catalysts for innovation and resilience, as illustrated in the partnerships being forged through the Belfast Agenda (2017) and Belfast Region City Deal (2019). Too often, however, this dynamic is framed solely in terms of our research, its impact and the qualities of the graduates we produce. What is often over-looked are the ways in which university/city-region partnerships also present opportunities to re-imagine the types of learning experiences we offer our undergraduates through forms of civic engagement.