Picture a gathering where academics, students, and community leaders come together to ask bold questions about the future of higher education: How can universities repair historical injustices? How can they cultivate humanity through authentic engagement? This was the spirit of the 2026 International Community Engagement Conference hosted by Rhodes University, where the theme Higher Education Community Engagement: Reparative Futures for the Cultivation of Humanity set the tone for deep reflection and dialogue.
Staff from the University of the Free State (UFS) joined colleagues from across South Africa and abroad to explore how community engagement can shape responsible societal futures. The conference drew on ideas of the reparative university, Ubuntu, and universal human values, positioning engagement not as charity but as a reparative, ethical, and humanising relationship that reshapes both the university and society.
Building on this, Bishop Billyboy Ramahlele, Director of the Directorate of Community Engagement, emphasised that the conference marked a turning point in how universities think about their role. “Universities must move beyond engagement to become agents of repair, addressing historical injustices and structural inequalities. Community engagement is positioned as a core academic function, not an add on,” he said.
This reparative orientation asks universities to confront colonial and apartheid legacies, acknowledge complicities, and imagine futures grounded in accountability, reciprocity, and healing. For Dr Karen Venter, Head of Service Learning in the Directorate of Community Engagement, the emphasis on Ubuntu was particularly powerful. “Engagement must be grounded in Ubuntu – relationality, dignity, and interdependence. The focus is on mutuality and co creation of knowledge, rather than knowledge transfer,” explained Dr Venter.
UFS scholars advance reparative engagement research
The UFS contingent made a significant impact, with contributions including papers and posters. Presenters included Dr Samuel Fongwa, Research Fellow in the Research Group on Higher Education and Human Development; Dr Gernus Terblanche, researcher, virologist, and community engagement facilitator (ACCESS); Dr Venter; Dr Rosaline Sebolao, Deputy Director in the Office of the Dean of the Faculty of The Humanities; Dr Gcina Mtengwane, Lecturer in the UFS Community Development Programme and the Centre for Gender and Africa Studies, Prof Grey Magaiza (Associate Professor); Dr Kanya Padayachee (Research Fellow); Choene Mabitsela, Nthatisi Nkoebele, and Dr Jerit Dube (lecturers); Dr Moorosi Leshoele (Senior Lecturer); and Siphamandla Mncwango (facilitator).
Their work spanned reparative justice, race reconstruction, Ubuntu informed pedagogy, and innovative co curricular engagement models. Bishop Ramahlele commented: “Our contributions bridged theory and practice, advanced reparative and decolonial frameworks, strengthened student centred engagement, contributed to African epistemologies and methodological innovation. We positioned ourselves as leaders in applied, socially responsive engaged scholarship.”
Several presentations also resonated strongly with the UFS’ commitment to contribute meaningfully to responsible societal futures. This included Drs Terblanche and Venter’s paper, titled Bridging Theory and Practice: Co-curricular Student Engagement for Reparative Futures in Higher Education.
Two other presentations from the UFS that also align with responsible societal futures were those of Dr Padayachee, titled Reparative Futures for the Cultivation of Humanity: Integral Education for Early Childhood Development Practitioner Pedagogy, and Dr Fongwa, on Exploring university community engagement as reparative justice.
The conference further highlighted the evolving role of students. Dr Venter noted: “Students are increasingly positioned as co researchers, community partners, and change agents. Engagement enhances ethical agency, critical consciousness, and civic responsibility.” This shift is moving away from transactional models of service towards dialogic, participatory partnerships that value student voices and community knowledge equally.
Students and partnerships reshape engagement practice
The participation of student leaders, including members of the SRC, added depth to the discussions. Bishop Ramahlele observed: “Students reframed engagement as being with communities, not helping them. Their contributions emphasised student citizenship, ethical leadership, and participatory governance.”
Knowledge for Change (K4C), a global initiative under the UNESCO Chair in Community-Based Research and Social Responsibility in Higher Education, also featured prominently. Dr Venter explained: “K4C promotes epistemic justice and the co creation of knowledge. Furthermore, it promoted universities as part of a learning ecosystem. For the University of the Free State, it strengthens our positioning within global engaged scholarship networks and reinforces participatory research as a methodology for engaged scholarship.”
For UFS staff, attending the conference offered valuable learning and reflection opportunities. Moodi Matsoso from the Directorate of Community Engagement on the Qwaqwa Campus attended the conference, reflecting on the importance of empathy and reciprocity in engagement work. After attending the session of Marie Sutherland on Dialogic Attunement: Empathy as a tool for Building Reciprocal Community Academic Partnerships, Matsoso noted, “Empathy plays a key role when engaging with any community. It allows one to search deeper into the pressing needs of the community alongside them, without speculating and without their voices being excluded. It also encourages reciprocity.”
Dr Bawinile Mthanti, Manager: Societal Impact in the Directorate of Community Engagement, also attended the conference. She described the conference as an important learning experience after joining the directorate earlier this year. “The workshop strengthened my understanding of the importance of universities working collaboratively with the communities they serve, rather than operating in isolation,” she said. She added that the keynote presentations offered valuable insights into the evolving role of community engagement within higher education.
Building responsible societal futures through community engagement
The International Community Engagement Conference was a call to action. By embracing reparative futures grounded in Ubuntu and community knowledge, universities can cultivate humanity in ways that extend beyond economic instrumentalism. For the University of the Free State, the message was clear: responsible societal futures depend on authentic, reparative, and humanising engagement.