From Individual Responsibility to Collective Agency: Reimagining Higher Education Futures

Contemporary higher education faces an urgent call to reimagine learning environments (Elkington & Dickinson, 2025) that are not only diverse, dynamic, and transformative (Lubicz Nawrocka & Bovill, 2023), but also equitable, student-centered, and truly transformative (Bawa et al., 2025). Achieving this vision requires more than adopting new pedagogical methods; it calls for a fundamental reorganization of the individual, collegial, and institutional logics that shape educational practices and decision-making. At the core of this re-
organization is the idea of agency (Priestly et al., 2015)—defined as the resilience, intentionality, and capacity to act purposefully to shape one’s environment and drive change (Bandura, 2001). In academic development, agency is evident in educators’ roles as change agents who influence teaching, learning, and institutional strategies across various levels of practice (Priestley et al., 2012).

Exercising such agency involves challenging persistent constraints, reconciling competing demands, and aligning personal and collective aspirations with broader institutional and societal goals, including one’s own
educator beliefs (Biesta et al., 2015). This raises a critical question: How can educators, together with students, enact collective forms of agency that contribute to sustainable, ethical, and equitable futures for higher education? Addressing this question requires more than pedagogical innovation; it calls for re-examining the underlying assumptions and values that inform academic work and organizational culture (McAlpine & Hopwood, 2009).

This paper shares insights from an international team of educational scholars rethinking teaching methods in higher education to prepare future graduates (Robinson, 2020). We base our ideas on current literature in educational philosophy, resilience and capacity development, entrepreneurial thinking as value co-creation, and the cultivation of a sustainable mindset (Hermes & Rimanoczy, 2018). Empowering educators to position students as active participants in their own learning boosts students’ agency as emerging change-makers—capable of transforming their educational environments through reflective action and responsible decision-making. Involving students as partners in co-creation and learning innovation not only enhances their
educational experience but also helps create more inclusive, relevant, and future-ready curricula.

Drawing on a variety of pedagogical models and practices, specifically emphasizing regenerative education for developing a sustainable mindset, and capacity-building approaches for educators based on reflective and
adaptive teaching philosophies (Ruge et al., 2023).

Methodologically, we employ a participatory design approach combined with action research and ethnographic analysis. Academic developers and educational researchers from four countries participate in collaborative “Living Lab” environments (Dell’Era & Landoni, 2014), helping participants experiment with speculative reasoning to build both agency and an authentic voice in future-oriented educational practice (Gümüsay & Reinecke, 2024). The cross-context findings reveal shared and different mindset qualities that support the work of future-making academic developers.

From a collective agency perspective, we seek to enhance institutional, human, and pedagogical capacities by rethinking how we teach, learn, and lead in uncertain times. We provide conceptual tools, collaborative insights, and practical strategies to create learning environments that are dynamic and future-oriented. By focusing on educators’ and students’ agency, we show how innovative teaching and learning approaches can be reinforced through collective and cooperative efforts.