University of Delaware
Office of Public Relations
UpDate - Vol. 16, No. 33, May 29

         Arno Loessner serves on prestigious Salzburg faculty
     
     Over the past 20 years, several UD faculty and staff
have been selected as fellows of the prestigious Salzburg
Seminar in Austria, but Arno Loessner, urban affairs and
public policy, is the first to have served on the faculty.
     Loessner was a presenter at a March symposium designed
to bring together the rectors and senior staff of Eastern
European universities to assist them in restructuring their
institutions under democratization and to provide
information so they could contribute to the economic and
social development of their regions.
     "In a sense, we are going full circle back to the roots
of the Salzburg Seminar, which was begun after World War II
in 1947," Loessner said. "The goal then was to bring
together leaders and scholars to study and address problems
and issues involved in rebuilding Western Europe. The goal
now is to assist Central and Eastern European nations in
democratization.
     "This conference addressed reform in higher education
through the seminar's ongoing Universities Project," he
said.
     At the March symposium, entitled "Perspective on
Autonomy: Academic Systems, Goals and Social
Responsibilities," Loessner was a panelist discussing
"Academic Structure and Governance within the University."
Fundraising, grants, involving the private sector, the
positive impact of research expenditures on a region and
academic freedom were among the topics covered.
     Other sessions dealt with administration, finance, the
needs and roles of students in institutional affairs, with
presenters from several countries, including the United
States, Poland, Estonia, Croatia and Great Britain.
     When Eastern Europe was under the Soviet system,
universities were heavily influenced by the policies of
central governments and ministries, Loessner said. Now, the
rectors, who are elected from the faculty by their peers for
terms of four to five years, are endeavoring to reestablish
their institutions in new directions with greater autonomy.
     The seminar examined the practices of American higher
education where longer termed, professional administrators
manage colleges and universities, and governance includes a
board of trustees. These are concepts of great interest to
higher educational institutions in Eastern European,
Loessner said.
     The meeting also provided an opportunity for education
leaders to meet, exchange views and network with each other.
     Although enrollment at universities is up dramatically,
resources are strained, and there is concern about "brain
drain," losing outstanding students to Western schools,
Loessner said.
     In addition to his participation in March at the
Salzburg Seminar, Loessner was a presenter at the 33rd
International Union of Local Authorities (IULA) World
Congress, held in April in Mauritius. An island nation off
the east coast of Africa, the location made it possible for
representatives of local governments of many African nations
to attend, Loessner said.
     Loessner has served as IULA permanent representative to
the United Nations since 1978, and he is director of the
IULA Office for Research and Training located at the
University. At this conference, he was the rapporteur,
summing up the conference proceedings on decentralization
with the topic, "A Decent Life: Decentralization Discussions
and Conclusions."
     As he pointed out in his talk, the world population is
increasing from approximately 1 billion in the early 1800s
to 3 billion in the 1960s to 6 billion in 1997. There also
has been a trend toward moving to cities, with every other
person becoming an urban dweller. Per capita income is
declining in many developing countries, particularly in
Africa.
     "Billions of people live in misery and do not have a
decent life," he said, pointing out that "decentralized
government is more accountable, more democratic, more
efficient and more equitable" in serving its citizens.
     In his speech he added, "Several delegates have spoken
about how their national leaders go to international
conferences and speak about democracy, then return home to
practice business as usual. This is unacceptable."
     He also promoted opportunities and training for women
to participate in local government.
     Loessner called upon IULA members to improve living
conditions for people all over the world by encouraging the
decentralization of government, by promoting greater local
fiscal autonomy, dependable intergovernmental flows of
resources from central to local levels and constitutional
provisions to formalize the legal rights and powers of local
governments. But, he added, decentralization "should not be
a transfer of power from central elites to local elites."
     The congress was attended by approximately 800 persons,
many from developing countries. The IULA World Executive
Committee, scheduled to meet again in November, will start
regular reports on decentralization successes and
shortcomings to keep members informed about these issues,
Loessner said.
                                         -Sue Swyers Moncure