Advancing E-Learning Excellence: UNU-Wide Retreat in Dresden
From May 13-14, 2025, UNU-EGOV Research Fellow Demetrios Sarantis joined colleagues from across the UNU system at a retreat on e-learning hosted by UNU-FLORES in Dresden, Germany. Thirteen people from ten different UNU institutes came together to share experiences and find ways to work together better on e-learning initiatives.
The two-day event focused on three main areas: sharing what each institute has learned about e-learning, finding better ways to promote UNU courses, and exploring shared technical resources like learning management systems. Participants talked about how much expertise exists across UNU and agreed that working together more closely would help everyone make better use of the UNU brand.
What came out of the retreat:
Better understanding of e-learning standards across UNU institutes
New ways for institutes to share knowledge and experiences
A committed group ready to move UNU's e-learning work forward
Plans for centralised hosting and joint promotion of courses
The retreat brought people together who hadn't worked closely before and generated concrete ideas for collaboration. This puts UNU-EGOV in a good position to contribute more to UNU's educational work.
Digital Governance in Action: Seoul Symposium
A week later, Demetrios travelled to Seoul, Republic of Korea, for the Global Symposium 'Smart Government in the ERA of AI' at Seoul National University. The university's Centre of Intelligent Policy and Society works closely with UNU-EGOV and UNDESA through the LOSI Network, making this an important opportunity to share research and learn from partners.
Sharing LOSI Research and Tools
Demetrios presented "Digital Governance Assessment at the Local Level: Insights from the LOSI and Global Best Practices," where he explained UNU-EGOV's work in helping local governments improve their digital services. His presentation covered:
LOSI Methodology: The basics of how the Local Online Services Index works—a tool developed by UNDESA and UNU-EGOV to measure local government digital services
Local E-Government Toolkit: A practical guide that helps local authorities figure out where they stand with digital services and how to get better
Best Practices Collection: Examples of local governments that have successfully improved their digital services
Real-world Applications: Cases where communities have used digital tools for democracy and smart city initiatives
Learning and Building Connections
The symposium brought together about 20 researchers from Korean universities and government officials, creating good opportunities for discussion and future collaboration. Other presentations covered topics like AI policy research, using synthetic data to train AI models, and how digital government services work at the local level.
Growing the LOSI Network
These trips show how UNU-EGOV works with its partners, especially UNDESA and institutions like Seoul National University. By sharing what we know about digital governance and learning from others, UNU-EGOV stays connected to the latest thinking in local e-government research and helps build capacity around the world.
Both trips highlight how UNU-EGOV connects with partners both within the UNU system and internationally. The relationships built and knowledge shared during these visits will continue to inform our research and help us support local governments around the world.
As governments everywhere work to understand how AI and digital transformation can improve public services, UNU-EGOV's participation in these forums helps ensure our research stays relevant and useful for policymakers and practitioners who are dealing with these challenges every day.
