Professor Helle Porsdam to speak on scientific freedom at the Magna Charta Observatory
The roots of academic freedom – Underlying values and human rights perspectives
In the United Kingdom, academic freedom has always been a matter of convention rather than law, let alone human rights law.
In the United States, academic freedom is recognised as a fundamental right under the Constitution, signifying university autonomy, however, rather than individual rights.
On the European continent, the reference in constitutions is usually to freedom of science.
Especially newer constitutions, such as those of South Africa or the European Union, however, expressly recognise a human right to academic freedom. International human rights law does not explicitly recognise academic freedom in any treaty.
Nevertheless, it might potentially be subsumed under provisions on the right to science, freedom of expression, or the right to education.
This webinar will explore the nature of academic freedom as a human right. It will seek to answer the question what the content of academic freedom as a human right, and what the benefits of recognising it as an enforceable human right, would be.
Answering these questions might also be relevant to the future work of the Magna Charta Observatory.