Rethinking the University

This book offers an empirically informed and philosophically grounded reimagining of the university in the 21st century. Confronted with polycrises, geopolitical tensions, student activism, academic freedom disputes, and growing Epistemic Asymmetry, the book examines the deeper tensions shaping contemporary higher education. Drawing on global academic interviews, Strategic Foresight-In workshops, and student dialogues, the authors analyze conditions of Strategic Drift and institutional misalignment between the university’s epistemic and democratic commitments. The book reflects on the university’s responsibility to steward knowledge with integrity, pluralism, and care. Through innovative metaphors, including the forest farm and the spinning top, the university is reimagined as a dynamic knowledge ecosystem capable of cultivating both short- and long-term inquiry, with disruptive science as its distinctive mandate. The design philosophy of Integrating Simplification provides a framework for harmonizing epistemic, ethical, and operational dimensions. Bridging higher education management, governance, and organizational design, this book offers a clear pathway for renewing the university’s coherence, academic freedom, and societal responsibility.