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Higher education is often positioned as a site of opportunity, mobility and hope, particularly in times of social, economic and political uncertainty. Drawing on insights from an action‑research study in India, this lecture explores how young people from historically marginalised communities engage with higher education as they seek to challenge intergenerational inequalities shaped by caste, class and parental occupation.
Focusing on first‑generation students whose families are engaged in work considered “dirty” or stigmatised, Dr Tambe examines the tensions these students navigate between aspirations for social mobility and the desire for belonging. The lecture highlights how young people, families, communities and workers’ organisations mobilise higher education to imagine and build hopeful futures, linking struggles for ‘decent’ work with wider movements for democratic and sustainable education.
About the speaker
Dr Anagha Tambe is Director of the Department of Gender and Women’s Studies at Savitribai Phule Pune University, India. Her work focuses on higher education, social justice and labour, with particular attention to caste, intergenerational mobility and the experiences of historically marginalised communities. Drawing on action‑research and long‑term collaboration with workers’ organisations, her research explores how education becomes a site of hope, struggle and political change in times of uncertainty.
Format
The event will take the form of a hybrid public lecture, with in-person and online attendance available.
The event will be chaired by Professor Barbara Crossouard and Dr Gunjan Wadhwa, Centre for International Education.
The event will also feature an interdisciplinary panel offering international and cross‑sector perspectives on higher education, mobility and hope. The panel includes:
- Kamakshi Nari, Doctoral Researcher, Centre for International Education, University of Sussex
- Professor Geert de Neve, Head of School of Global Studies, University of Sussex
- Dr Noah W. Sobe, Chief of Section for Higher Education, UNESCO (Paris)
- Professor Máiréad Dunne, Institute of the Social Sciences, University College Cork
The lecture will be delivered by Dr Anagha Tambe and followed by responses from the panel, offering reflections on the themes of higher education, mobility and hope in times of uncertainty.
There will be an open Q&A session to invite questions and contributions from the audience. In-person participants will then take part in a facilitated workshop activity focused on rethinking higher education for progressive futures, creating space for discussion, reflection and exchange across roles and disciplines.
Target audience
Open to all with an interest in the future of higher education, including undergraduate students, postgraduate taught students, postgraduate researchers, faculty and members of the wider community.