The University of Tampere
Hameenlinna, Finland
The Research Centre for Vocational Education
The Finnish National Commission for
UNESCO

Press Release: 17th of September 2003

Contact: Prof. Tapio Varis

Professor and Chair in Media Education

UNESCO Chair in Global eLearning with applications to multiple domains

University of Tampere, Research Centre for Vocational Education, Finland

E-mail: tapio.varis@uta.fi 

Tel: +358-3-614 5608, fax: +358-3-614 5611, GSM +358 50 567 9833

 

 

Global Peace Through The Global University System

Tapio Varis - Takeshi Utsumi - William Klemm (Eds.)

University of Tampere, Finland 2003, Saarijärven Offset Oy

Cover painting: Juhani Palmu: "Communications II"

Cover design: Hanna Varis

ISBN 951-44-5695-5

 

Contents in brief:

This book is produced by the UNESCO Chair in Global eLearning at the University of Tampere, Finland. The Editor-in-Chief is Finnish Ph.D., Professor Tapio Varis, UNESCO Chair holder, and co-editors are Dr. Takeshi Utsumi and professor William Klemm. The book includes about 500 pages and CD-Rom on the topic of Global University System GUS and eLearning/eHealthcare projects.

 

Greetings by high-level dignitaries and representatives of international organizations in Part I of the book endorse the concept of GUS.  Authors of these greetings give their visions of how the university can advance the cause of world prosperity, justice, and peace.  They are:

 

Former President of Finland and Laureate of Fulbright Prize, Martti Ahtisaari
 
Minister for Foreign Affairs of Finland, Erkki Tuomioja
 
European Comissioner for Education and Culture, Belgium, Ms. Viviane Reding
 
Former Director-General of UNESCO, Spain, Federico Mayor
 
Former Director-General of ITU, Finland, Pekka Tarjanne
 
Director-General of ITU, Switzerland, Yoshio Utsumi
 
Director-General of ILO, Switzerland, Juan Somavia
 
Vice Chancellor of The Open University, UK, Ms. Brenda M. Gourley
 
Former Director of Higher Education of UNESCO, France, Marco Antonio R. Dias.

 

The purpose of this book is to make internationally known the philosophy, past and present actions, as well as future plans of the GUS, which have resulted from years of development and a seminal working conference at the University of Tampere in 1999. The editors' paper "Creating Global University System" opens Part II, which emphasizes the important role of higher educational institutions not only as the knowledge centers of their community but also as the gateway to the world for collaboration  of creating new knowledge in global knowledge society of the 21st century.  The key to global peace, which is the ultimate aim of GUS education, can be attained by promoting mutual understanding and trust among the people of the world. This is followed by papers describing how the challenges of globalization in the 21st century are to be dealt with along intercultural studies and peace education with the use of advanced information and communication technologies (ICTs).

 

Papers in Part III describe:

 

  • Implementation plan for realizing GUS with a community development approach and paradigm shift from industrial age to knowledge society of the 21st century,

 

  • Past and current experiences of eLearning practices through narrow band Internet and other ways,

 

  • Proposed schemes on how to extend eLearning through narrow-band Internet to developing countries, and

 

  • Vision of how to enhance eLearning courses with broadband Internet and proposed schemes – how to realize them.

 

Papers in Part IV describe how GUS can help promote collaboration for attaining global peace, particularly with the use of virtual reality and virtual laboratories through the advanced GRID computing network technology for globally collaborative, experiential/constructive creation of new knowledge by young people around the world.

 

Economic interdependence among nations and cultures is spawning a global economy.  Such globalisation inevitably magnifies the negative consequences of population growth, environmental degradation, and unequal distribution of resources and wealth among nations.  Globalization also promotes clashes of divergent cultures and belief systems, political and religious.  As a result, wars and rumours of wars abound.  If global peace is ever to be achieved, global-scale education with the use of the modern digital telecommunications will be needed to create mutual understanding among nations, cultures, ethnic groups, and religions.  The Internet is the future of telecommunications and can be a medium for building peace.

 

The Global University System (GUS) is a worldwide initiative to create satellite/wireless telecommunications infrastructure and educational programs for access to educational resources across national and cultural boundaries for global peace.  The GUS helps higher educational institutions in remote/rural areas of developing countries to deploy broadband Internet in order for them to close the digital divide and act as the knowledge center of their region for the eradication of poverty and isolation.  Education and job skills are the keys in determining a nation's wealth and influence.  The GUS education thus will promote world prosperity, justice, and peace, based on moral principles rather than political or ideological doctrines.  The aim is to achieve "education for all", anywhere, anytime.

 

 

About Editors:

Ph.D., editor-in-chief, is Professor and Chair of Media Education at the University of Tampere, Finland, at the Research Centre for Vocational Education in Hämeenlinna, Finland and Hyper Media Laboratory.  He holds the UNESCO Chair in Global eLearning with applications to multiple domains; and is Acting President of the Global University System.
Tapio Varis
Ph.D., P.E., co-editor, is Chairman of GLObal Systems Analysis and Simulation Association in the USA (GLOSAS/USA), Founder and Vice President for Technology and Coordination of the Global University System.
Takeshi Utsumi
D.V.M., Ph.D., co-editor, is Professor of NeuroScience at Texas A&M University, USA.  His scientific interests include brainstem mechanisms of behaviour, learning, memory, human cognition and EEG. He has over 400 publications and is co-developer of the shared-document computer collaboration system FORUM Matrix.
William R. Klemm