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The Social Mission of the University. Service-Learning, the Third Mission, and the Fifth-Generation University
Universities are called to respond to social fragility, the environmental crisis, technological transformation, artificial
intelligence, and the loss of trust in institutions. This book argues that higher education cannot be limited to teaching,
research, or technology transfer. Its deepest purpose is to contribute to the holistic human development of individuals,
communities, and territories.
By articulating the third mission, service-learning, and the Fifth Generation University (5GU), the authors present the
social mission as a cross-cutting orientation for teaching, research, innovation, governance, sustainability, evaluation,
communication, and institutional culture. Service-learning is examined as a pedagogy capable of connecting academic knowledge with real-world needs through reciprocal relationships and the co-creation of public value.
Aimed at faculty, university administrators, researchers, educational development specialists, management teams,
and community organizations, this book offers an integrated framework to advance from isolated projects toward a
university culture of learning, service, shared responsibility, and care for holistic human development.