Workshop W3. Y-Gov
Date: June 15
Time: 14:00 – 18:00
Room: TBA
Universities are increasingly recognised as key actors in regional innovation ecosystems. However, while youth empowerment is widely invoked in policy discourse, mechanisms that grant young people structured decision-making roles within higher education governance remain under-analysed. This workshop concentrates specifically on the institutionalisation of youth co-governance models in higher education institutions and their territorial networks.
Rather than addressing social innovation broadly, the workshop focuses on three interrelated analytical dimensions:
- Governance architectures: formal structures and regulatory frameworks enabling youth participation in decision-making processes (e.g., advisory councils with voting rights, participatory budgeting in universities, student–community co-governance boards).
- Digital infrastructures for deliberation: digital platforms and hybrid environments that facilitate structured youth engagement in research agenda-setting, innovation strategy design, and curriculum co-creation.
- Impact assessment: indicators, methodologies, and evaluation frameworks capable of measuring the institutional and territorial effects of youth co-governance (e.g., changes in policy orientation, inclusion outcomes, civic competencies, social innovation outputs).
Key Research Questions
- Which governance configurations effectively shift youth participation from symbolic inclusion to shared decision authority?
- How can digital tools be designed to support deliberative quality and inclusiveness rather than reinforcing existing asymmetries?
- What criteria and longitudinal indicators allow assessment of the impact of youth co-governance on social innovation and democratic capacity?
Topics of interest
Submissions are invited on:
- Participatory governance models in universities that institutionalise youth co-decision.
- Co-creation mechanisms linking universities, youth organisations, and civil society actors in territorial ecosystems.
- Digital deliberation platforms and their governance implications.
- Evaluation frameworks and metrics for youth empowerment within institutional settings.
- Case studies documenting structural transformation in governance models.
The workshop prioritises empirical case studies, comparative institutional analyses, and theoretically grounded contributions addressing governance transformation.
Goals and Expected Outcomes
The workshop aims to:
- Consolidate a focused research agenda on youth co-governance in higher education.
- Identify transferable governance models.
- Develop shared methodological tools for impact assessment.
- Strengthen international research collaboration within HEAd’s scholarly community.
Agenda
Two thematic sessions structured around:
Session 1
Governance Models and Institutional Design
Session 2
Digital Deliberation and Impact Measurement
Each session will include 4 presentations (12 minutes each) followed by a moderated collective discussion to ensure thematic coherence and in-depth exchange.
Intended Audience
Scholars in higher education studies, governance studies, educational policy, digital innovation, civic engagement, and social innovation; doctoral researchers; early researchers; institutional leaders; policy-makers working on participatory governance and youth inclusion; students.
Publication
Selected contributions (short papers with DOI) will be considered for publication in a peer-reviewed Special Issue dedicated to the workshop proceedings in Quaderni di Comunità. Persone, Educazione e Welfare nella società 5.0.
Organizer
DITES RESEARCH CENTRE & RESKILL Project
Convenors
Stefania Capogna is an Associate Professor at Link Campus University in Italy. She is also the founder and director of the Digital Technologies, Education & Society research centre and the “Quaderni di Comunità” academic journal Community Notebook. People, education and welfare in society 5.0. In her research, she examines the education system as a unitary macro-sector in which education, training, university, and work converge. In recent years, she has focused on the transformations induced by the digital revolution, with two privileged lines of intervention: a) social effects of the digital revolution on people, organisations, and communities; b) empowerment for people, organisations, and communities.
Maria Chiara De Angelis. Social Sciences PhD, Research Fellow at Link Campus University, and Adjunct Professor at Niccolò Cusano University, where she teaches Media Studies, Social Journalism, and Environment. She is also a member of the DITES Research Center’s Steering Committee. Her main research topics are the impact of digital innovation on people, educational systems, and organisations, the ethical-public dimension of digital culture, and flourishing and social well-being in the digital age.
Important dates and information
Submission deadline: 1 April 2026
Acceptance notification: 20 April 2026
Workshop: 15 June 2026
Leading conference: 16-18 June 2026
Abstract Template for submission (click here)
For Submission fill the form at the following link: https://forms.gle/AKb2KtWqwjRk8YwR8
For more information: redazione.quadernicomunita@unilink.it and in copy to: mc.deangelis@unilink.it; s.capogna@unilink.it