The World of Higher Education Podcast Listen now →

The World of Higher Education Podcast Listen now →

Author: Alex Usher

Universities, Colonialism, and Indigenous Knowledge in Australia

Dhoombak Goobgoowana can be translated as “truth-telling” in the Woi Wurrung language of the Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung people from the unceded area now known as Melbourne, Australia. It’s also the name of the recently published two-volume work on Indigenous Australia and the University of Melbourne. The books are an extraordinary read, not at all your usual institutional history. Made up of dozens of essays by different authors, it’s not so much a corporate history as it is a meditation on

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May 7, 2026 No Comments

Canadian Research vs. German Research

Hi all. I’m in Germany this week along with the members of our University Vice-Presidents Network having a blast networking with German institutions and hearing from some of the sharpest commentators on the German higher education scene, including Frank Ziegele, author of one of my favourite books of 2025, Authentic Universities (podcast interview here) and Jan-Martin Wiarda, my sort-of German equivalent in the sense of being a prominent education blogger, (albeit much more journalistically-inclined than I am). It’s been a

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May 6, 2026 2 Comments

2026 Provincial Budgets

Last Wednesday, Newfoundland and Labrador became the tenth province to deliver its budget, and that means it’s time for my annual review of provincial budgets. Spoiler: while it’s the usual mixed bag across most provinces, Ontario is the epicentre of this year’s stories. And not in a bad way. Let’s start with overall budgeted provincial transfers to institutions, shown below in Figure 1. Growth this year after inflation is a stunning 6.5% – a rise not seen in 20 years.

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May 5, 2026 No Comments

Mid-Year Update

So, last week, the federal government delivered its Spring Economic Update, a kind of mini-budget for people who can’t wait until November for their fix. I am sure you are wondering what, if anything, changed for post-secondary education. I’ll break it into five topics. First, there’s nothing in there on research apart from yet another round of tweaks to the Scientific Research & Experimental Development Tax Credit. No surprise there. Second, there is nothing in there rectifying or even hinting

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May 4, 2026 No Comments

The Fifteen: May 1, 2026

Morning everyone. We’re pretty heavy on events in Africa and Latin America this week, and not from countries that are the usual suspects, either. Hop on for a trip through Dar es Salaam, San José, Jakarta, and Guatemala City! That’s it for this round of the Fifteen. See you again on May 15.

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May 1, 2026 No Comments

One Thought to Start Your Day

One Thought to Start Your Day is our founder and CEO Alex Usher’s popular daily blog, brimming with up-to-the-minute insights and informed opinions on today’s higher education industry.

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