Pracademia in the Third Sector

Session Submission Type: Innovative content or format

Abstract

Pracademics are individuals with an academic affiliation who self-commit to active involvement in practice, making them a distinct and valuable type of change agent (Posner 2009). This session explores the premise that pracademics within the Third Sector possess unique qualities making them valuable agents of change (Brown, 2001; Fowler et al, forthcoming). It aims to critically assess this assumption by addressing key questions. Firstly, it questions the accuracy of this belief and aims to identify these distinctive qualities and their origins. It also investigates how pracademics use these qualities to make an impact. Lastly, it delves into how these distinctive traits affect pracademics' academic careers, contributing to the broader understanding of pracademia in Third Sector Studies.

In recognizing the importance of greater conceptual clarity, there is an acknowledgment of the necessity to define the traits of pracademics characteristics and their added value. Filling both in are essential for the long-term promotion of pracademia within the Third Sector, which is the underlying goal of this session. Its setup draws upon the highly participatory fishbowl methodology to enable a focused, inclusive and high-quality discussion on the subject. The outcomes will be shared afterwards with all participants and taken forward.

The session is part of the Pracademic Development Initiative (PDI), a multi-country effort seeking to address longstanding limitations in academia that reduce pracademia’s contribution to Third Sector and development practice. Rather than focusing exclusively on research as the ultimate way to combine academia and practice, the PDI intends to work in four areas: promoting pracademia as a career path; deepening understanding of the value-added of pracademia; mobilising resources for pracademic undertakings; and building a pracademic community.

This open invitation fishbowl-style session will be organized by the PDI team:

Angela Crack (University of Portsmouth, UK)
Faina Diola (University of the Philippines)
Willem Elbers (Radboud University, Netherlands)
Alan Fowler (University of Witwatersrand Business School, South Africa)
Inés Pousadela (Universidad ORT, Uruguay)

Sub Unit

• Other Third Sector related topics

Presenters

• Angela Crack, University of Portsmouth

• Maria Faina Lucero Diola, University of the Philippines

• Willem Elbers, University of Nijmegen

• Alan Fowler, Wits Business School

• Ines Maria Pousadela, CIVICUS/Universidad ORT Uruguay