The New Power University: The social purpose of higher education in the 21st century

Chapter 5

The social responsibility of the New Power University

The New Power University will include social responsibility as a core and equal part of its academic mission

A few years ago, a friend told me the story of an aluminium smelter located in Mozal, Mozambique. The smelter was owned by BHP Billiton and was losing money. The company wanted to understand why this was the case, especially as they had made a significant investment of over US$2 billion in the plant. On investigation, it turned out that the low levels of productivity resulted from high rates of absenteeism in the workforce caused by the endemic levels of malaria in Mozal. In response, BHP Billiton implemented an anti-malaria programme. With education, spraying and the provision ...