Expanding the network of Inclusion, Diversity, Equity and Access (IDEA) practitioners in higher education through institutional capacity building

The IDEA-net project was born out of a shared recognition of the urgent need to embed inclusion, diversity, equity, and access (IDEA) more systematically within higher education institutions (HEIs) across Europe. Despite isolated efforts, many institutions lacked coordinated, research-informed strategies to support IDEA work. The project addressed the need for structured frameworks, capacity building, and practical tools to promote sustainable change, especially in contexts where IDEA infrastructure is still emerging, such as the Western Balkans (WB) region. It aimed to foster inclusive institutional cultures, support leadership and staff development, and ensure that IDEA initiatives are context-sensitive and aligned with local realities. Partners also identified the need to critically reflect on their own policies, improve support for underrepresented groups, and enable evidence-based decision-making. IDEA-net provided an opportunity to exchange practices, bridge gaps between policy and practice, inspire innovation, strengthen regional collaborations to support long-term transformation and empower staff, students, and faculty to become change agents in building equitable and resilient learning environments.

The project aimed to build institutional capacity for IDEA in HEIs by creating practical, evidence-informed resources.This objective ensured that the outputs were not isolated, but part of a long-term strategic agenda to embed IDEA institutionally.It sought to collect and share context practices in a Compendium, develop a cooperative, accessible and adaptable Toolkit for setting up IDEA offices, and pilot a peer-based Capacity Building Tool (CBT) tailored to local realities (Serbia, Croatia and Slovenia), rather than simply applying existing activities. Through its Community of Practice (CoP), the project supported professional development, critical reflection, and exchange of knowledge among HEIs’ staff. A key objective was to embed IDEA into policies, teaching, governance, and support systems by offering adaptable frameworks rooted in lived experiences. It also aimed to promote structural change by raising awareness of inequalities, strengthening leadership engagement, and empowering institutions to act intentionally. Ultimately, the project sought to create a sustainable, transnational network of IDEA practitioners committed to disseminate innovative and transferable resources, capable of influencing both practices and policies

A data collection tool was created and used to gather best practices from global institutions, resulting in a public and online Compendium with 60 good practices. Guidelines were developed to support the creation of IDEA offices, informed by desk reviews, institutional mapping and peer feedback, and not just the product of one singular experience. Focus groups, interviews, meetings with institutional leadership and cultural analyses shaped the CBT, which was piloted through intensive 12 hours workshops each, in three partner countries. These sessions used theoretical frameworks with interactive peer-learning formats, such as forum theatre and roleplay, to explore IDEA-related challenges and build skills. Training resources, including content information, facilitation guidelines and presentation slides, were made publicly available online for future use (train-the-trainer approach). Partners also organized institutional webinars, local and in-person workshops and participated in international conferences, while contributing to a CoP through a LinkedIn group, a podcast, blogs, webinars, and a newsletter—creating an active network to support IDEA engagement across other geographies.

A key result is the Compendium of Best Practices with 60 IDEA initiatives from HEIs worldwide. Additionally, a Guideline Toolkit offering a digital, open-access and practical roadmap for establishing IDEA offices, with self-assessment tools and adaptable strategies. Another outcome was the in-person (and then digitally-available) CBT that includes peer-learning methods and facilitation guides, piloted through three intensive training sessions. These sessions generated trained facilitators and were foundational in initiating dedicated networks for further exchange and collaboration. A CoP and all the material produced (six webinars, one podcast-webinar, 27 posts on the LinkedIn group, eight blog posts, six vox pops and one newsletter) which fostered peer learning and international collaboration. While the University of Ljubljana (UL) and University of Belgrade (UB) advanced towards formal establishment of IDEA offices, the University of Zadar (UZ) re-assessed existing inclusive practices and has built capacity to expand them, notably by building on the work of the Student Counselling Centre. This ensures that the original commitment of three WB universities taking first steps toward IDEA institutionalization was fully addressed.