Do it differently! But how?

Another university is possible! An exclamation point. A claim. A theme. The title of the 2024 ESJP conference. Do it differently! A call to reimagine conference engagements and practices. During the conference, I listened to colleagues presenting their work. Some presentations. But also workshops. An attempt to do academia differently. Another academia. Some of it different. More play. Less performance. More activity. Less lecturing. More colorful wax pastels and playdough. Less black words on white paper and screens. Some of it giving hope. Inspiring. Some of it challenging academic rules. Some of it playing academic tunes. Using academia’s colors. Performing academic performances. Puzzling. Why is it so hard to do it differently? Even if the invitation is to do it differently. Think. Feel. Believe. Another university possible? Another engineering possible? Maybe. But why hasn’t this been easier? Possible, so far? bell hooks writes, “Dominator culture has tried to keep us all afraid, to make us choose safety instead of risk, sameness instead of diversity. Moving through that fear, finding out what connects us, revelling in our differences; this is the process that brings us closer, that gives us a world of shared values, of meaningful community” (2003, p.197). How can we build these meaningful communities? And can we? This piece unpacks some thoughts on community in conversation. A collective movement from a caricature to regeneration. Updated with minor typographical corrections: June 30, 2025.