Whenever I arrive in Makhanda, the South African town home to Rhodes University, I am reminded of the complex layers of history that shape the landscape and my own understanding of community engagement. The first thing most visitors notice is the Settlers National Monument, a concrete structure resembling a ship perched upon a hill. Originally built to commemorate British settlers who arrived in the 1820s, the Monument now carries more complex meanings. While its colonial past remains an essential part of the narrative, the Monument is also the backdrop for the National Arts Festival, featuring a range of provocative and anticolonial performances. It is also the site for Rhodes University’s graduation ceremonies. Each year, many graduates crossing its stage are the first in their families to earn a university degree. As Weaver-Hightower and Weaver-Hightower (2022, p. 565) suggest, the Monument may now represent ‘a rupture in history’, with many, sometimes contradictory, meanings attached to the building.

This blog post, however, is not about the Monument or Makhanda, but reflects my experience as a South African doctoral candidate attending my first IARSLCE conference at the University of San Diego (USD). Although USD’s palm-lined avenues and terracotta tiles feel worlds apart from Makhanda, they evoke a similar sense of connection to place. From USD’s campus, one overlooks the San Diego cityscape, much like the Monument overlooks Makhanda. However, like the Monument, USD campus defies the single narrative of a university, or ivory tower, looking down upon its neighboring community. The USD I experienced was a generative space, convening community partners, scholars, and graduate students from around the world, including many locals who consider San Diego home.

Together, we used this meeting place to learn from one another, unapologetically bringing our local experiences to the forefront as we explored how our universities could be more deeply connected to the communities that surround them and enable their existence. This experience reminded me of Watson’s (2014, p. xxii) claim that ‘while the modern university lives in the cloud, it has its feet […] firmly on the ground.’ Universities of the twenty-first century are international spaces that respond to the world in various ways. But they also exist in specific locales; they have neighborhoods and therefore cannot be ‘islands’ (Watson, 2014, p. xxii).

It feels fitting, therefore, that the theme of the 2024 IARSLCE conference was intersections. Throughout the conference, in various presentations, keynotes, lightning talks, poster sessions, and roundtables, we explored the diverse connections and knowledge emerging from them. We examined the intersections of different places, the links between past and present, and the connections between the experiences of countries across the globe. To me, the 2024 conference seemed to simultaneously highlight both cross-border collaboration and place-based research. Over the course of the three days, I realised that I was not only building a network but also developing a deeper understanding that different locations and communities may be connected in surprising and meaningful ways.

I was particularly inspired by those constructing critical histories of community engagement from the Global South. These conversations help fill a silence in the literature, while also creating a platform for dialogue about both the similarities and differences in the experiences of various developing countries – including but not limited to Chile, Uruguay, South Africa, Mexico, China, Nigeria, Trinidad and Tobago, Ecuador and Lebanon. Since engaging in these dialogues, I have found myself reflecting more deeply on the connections (and divergences) between African, Latin American and Caribbean conceptualisations and practices of community engagement.

One moment that particularly struck me during one such roundtable discussion was a comment from a participant from Lebanon, who shared that in Arabic, the word for university can also mean a ‘convener’. I loved this observation, and the conversation that followed, which explored what it means for universities to be meeting places. This idea has significant implications for the relationship between communities and universities, with universities seen not as ‘apart’, but as an ‘integral part’ and facilitator of a greater whole (Mabizela, 2024).

Two of the highlights of my experience came from outside the formal programme. The first was the Rosh Hashanah dinner, organised with true generosity of spirit. My second highlight was the bonds built and nurtured during and after the conference. Beyond the surprising familiarity I encountered on USD’s physical campus, there was a more profound reason why I felt at home in this space. In my usual research circles, I often find that I am the only person focused on community engagement, and many of my colleagues have never even heard of the concept. So, it was incredibly energizing to be surrounded by so many people, particularly graduate students, who are deeply passionate about both the practice and scholarship of engagement. Suddenly, a community I hadn’t anticipated emerged, and it has continued to grow well beyond that initial encounter. I am inspired by the people I’ve met along this journey, whose passion and care for one another’s growth and well-being mirrors their commitment to their communities. This group reminded me of my own ‘why’, or the reasons that first drew me to the practice and scholarship of community engagement. I am excited to continue learning and growing alongside them as I move forward in my PhD.

As I reflect on my experience, I am reminded of the landscapes we navigate: the Monument in Makhanda, the palm-lined avenues of the USD, or the upcoming IARSLCE conference scheduled to take place in Durban in 2025. These spaces, though geographically distant, mirror the intersections I encountered throughout the conference. They remind us that within and between these places, there are many ‘cross-border’ spaces and shifting, contested conceptions of community. The experience of the 2024 conference has reaffirmed my belief that community engagement is a practice rooted in the local, but it also has the power to transcend borders, and the boundaries we construct between groups. Our ‘convening spaces’ – universities and the collaborative efforts that they can facilitate – allow us to draw connections across borders while remaining firmly grounded in the specificities of place, offering us vantage points from which to better understand our shared worlds. As we prepare for our next gathering in Durban, another South African city with its own histories of resistance and transformation, I look forward to diving deeper into the intersections of community engagement across different continents and contexts.

P.S. This blog post is written with gratitude for the IARSLCE Graduate Student Scholarship which enabled me to attend the 2024 IARSLCE Conference in San Diego. I am especially grateful for the community and support I have found in GradSN, which helped me feel connected before, during, and after this encounter in San Diego.

Reference list

Mabizela, S. (2024). Foreword. African Journal of Higher Education Community Engagement, 1(2).
Watson, D. (2014). Foreword. In P. Temple (Ed.), The Physical University: Contours of space and place in higher education (pp. xxi-xxiv). Routledge.
Weaver-Hightower, R., & Weaver-Hightower, M.B. (2022). South Africa’s Voortrekker monument and 1820 Settlers National Monument: Monuments to cultural violence. Journal of Genocide Research, 24(4), 549-567.

1. Poster session alongside (left to right): Matías G. Flores, me (Claire Mc Cann), Diana Hornby, and Darren Lortan.
2. Shilohna Phillanders (left), Matías G. Flores (right) and me (middle) at our Airbnb during the IARSLCE conference.

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