UNIVERSITY OF ZADAR
WHO WE ARE
The University of Zadar is located in Croatia. It was founded in 2002 as a public higher education institution, though its lineage can be traced back to 1396. The University is comprised of 27 departments which engage in research and teaching from undergraduate to postgraduate level in a multitude of academic fields, with a focus on the humanities and social sciences. It positions itself as an internationally connected University oriented towards the creative generation and transfer of new knowledge and technology, which initiates innovative change based on societal needs and founded on values such as equal opportunities, socially responsible behaviour and high ethical standards. Its embeddedness in the Mediterranean space of historical and cultural heritage is an inspiration for scholars across the University exploring this region from different academic angles. The university is a member of the European Network of Inclusive Universities.
WHY WE ARE PARTICIPATING IN THE PROJECT
We recognise that our university also attracts students and staff from different equity groups that benefit from institutional support as they contribute to university life, and we want to improve existing valuable work at the University on enhancing inclusion and diversity for these groups, and relatedly for the university as a whole. The IDEA-net project is an opportunity for us to share and gain knowledge on how to take the IDEA agenda forward in higher education more broadly and our university more specifically, both by engaging first-hand with partner institutions on the project but also learning from other universities whose good practices of ensuring inclusion, diversity, equity and access we will be mapping. The planned staff training in IDEA is also important to our university.
OUR ROLE IN THE PROJECT
We are joining our partners in mapping and enhancing good practices for building inclusive universities. Once we collect insights from other universities on how they advance IDEA and detect best practices, we will be contributing to the development of guidelines for setting up IDEA offices and approaches. Our role is to ensure that these guidelines are informed by best practices internationally, useful and inspiring for universities wanting to nurture an IDEA culture.
OUR TEAM
Karin Doolan
Associat Professor
Karin Doolan is Associate Professor at the Department of Sociology, University of Zadar. Her teaching activities are rooted in critical and engaged pedagogy, and she conducts research on the interface between social class inequalities, education and disaster events. She holds a PhD degree in sociology of education from the University of Cambridge.
Pavao Parunov
Research Assistant
Pavao Parunov is a research assistant at the University of Zadar’s Department of Sociology. His research is focused on institutional contributions to social inequalities. As a junior researcher, he wants to ground his approach in the principle of sociology being an engaged science that contributes to discussions and advancements of social justice.
Ana Knežević Čače
Project manager
Ana Knežević Čače is project manager at the University of Zadar in its Centre for projects, science and technology transfer. She is responsible for administrative and financial monitoring of projects, monitoring of contract implementation and the achievement of project results and activities.
