In this issue we feature 8 current papers on the theme of social capital, chosen by Fabio Sabatini (Università degli Studi di Roma “La Sapienza”):

So the UK Prime Minister has declared he is ‘on the side of the motorist’ in the aftermath of a parliamentary byelection in which the imposition of an extended ultra-low emission zone (ULEZ) was a major issue.  Other attempts at controlling traffic movement in towns and cities in the UK through measures such as low traffic zones (LTZs) or controlled parking zones (CPZs) are also meeting opposition, and are being postponed (as in Oxford, Bristol and elsewhere) or abandoned. All this, when the social, environmental and health benefits of lower traffic seem clear, and popular support for environmental action remains firm.

We are very pleased that eight representatives from the University of Glasgow were able to visit the University of Duhok in May 2023 under the aegis of Erasmus+ Institutional Mobility Programme. The delegation was led by Michael Osborne, Professor of Adult and Lifelong Learning, Director of CR&DALL (School of Education) and Director of PASCAL Europe, and also included Qammar Abbasi, Professor of Electronic & Nanoscale Engineering, Brian Barrett, Reader in Environmental Remote Sensing (School of Geographical & Earth Sciences), John Davies, Research Fellow and Associate Director of Arts Lab (College of Arts), Muhammad Imran, Professor of Communication Systems/Dean Transnational Engineering Education, Mary Ryan, International Development Research Manager (Research & Innovation Services),  Yulia Nesterova, Lecturer in International and Comparative Education (School of Education) and Kirstie Wild, Head of Research and Operations Strategy (College of Arts).

Urban America would be a different – and lesser – place without universities.  They provide vocational instruction and prepare young people for the workforce.  But more importantly, the liberal tradition in higher education increases our capacity to understand and reshape the world far beyond the university.  Yet liberal education is under siege throughout a range of states in the United States.