Driving Innovation Ecosystems: The Role of Fourth Generation Universities
Overview: This workshop, organized by Elsevier, will look into driving action through knowledge and partnerships. In an era where knowledge, innovation, and
partnership are vital components of sustainable economic growth, the concept of the "Fourth Generation University" (4GU) has gained prominence as a transformative model for Higher
Education institutions.
4GUs are characterized by their active engagement in fostering innovation ecosystems, and bridging academia to industry, government, and civil
society (the so-called 'Quadruple Helix' model). This workshop aims to explore the characteristics of these universities, examine how their attributes might be effectively measured,
and will invite discussion as to their applicability within local contexts, such as the Middle East.
Participants will be introduced to the core features that distinguish
4GUs, including their entrepreneurial orientation, partnership models and their role as catalysts for regional development through skills and R&D. The session will explore some of
the work that Elsevier, together with 12 founding academic partners, has initiated to understand the 4GU concept in detail and to recognise the different ways that universities
contribute to regional ecosystems.
SDG Alignment: The workshop aligns with:
Objectives:
This interactive session aims to inspire higher education leaders, policymakers, and partners to consider the role of universities as engines of regional innovation and growth,
ultimately contributing to a more resilient and dynamic knowledge economy.
Ultimately, this Elsevier-organized workshop provides university leaders, policymakers, and researchers with actionable frameworks to design, implement, and scale innovation-led
initiatives that generate tangible benefits for their communities—advancing both regional development and the global Sustainable Development Goals.
Beyond the Metrics: Ensuring Research Integrity
and Data Quality in Global University Rankings
Overview: This workshop responds to growing concerns about research ethics and data misuse in the rankings ecosystem—
issues that are especially salient across the MENA region as research output scales. Drawing on Elsevier’s dual
role as publisher and information-analytics provider, the session will open the “black box” of quality assurance:
how self-citation patterns, retractions, predatory outlets, authorship anomalies, and the ethical implications of
emerging technologies such as generative AI are detected, reviewed, and addressed before curated datasets flow
to ranking providers (e.g., THE, QS). Through demonstrations and discussion, participants will gain a transparent
understanding of safeguards that protect comparability and fairness while discouraging metric gaming, and will codevelop
practical recommendations that strengthen institutional reporting, governance, and responsible research
assessment.
SDG Alignment: The workshop advances SDG 4 (Quality Education) by reinforcing trustworthy evaluation
and learning ecosystems, SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure) by improving research information
infrastructure and metadata standards, SDG 16 (Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions) by promoting integrity,
transparency, and accountability in research systems, and SDG 17 (Partnerships for the Goals) by fostering
collaboration among universities, publishers, and ranking providers.
Objectives:
By the close of the session, participants will understand Elsevier’s end-to-end quality-assurance
measures and how they interface with ranking datasets; be able to recognize high-risk integrity signals and
distinguish legitimate impact strategies from metric gaming; and leave with a concise, MENA-relevant set of
recommendations—policy, governance, capacity-building, and a practical checklist for responsible research
assessment and data submissions—that can be applied immediately within their institutions and networks.