Research   Community    College

 The College research community refers to the idea of Robert Belar where the child is the companies authentic, original researcher. The idea was developed by the faculty Robert Belar in 1998 and onward during his doctoral studies and is supported by his supervisor Prof. Dr. Gerhard Lauth (University of Cologne). The idea was further developed During his Doctor Research Fellowship studies at the renowned Harvard University (Massachusetts, USA) in 2007/2008 under the mentorship of the legendary Professor Dr. Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot which he received as a scholarship holder by the Ministry for Innovation, Science and Research of NRW.

After a very inspiring conversation with Nobel Prize winner Prof. Dr. Amartya Sen the idea has been postulated in its current form as a systemic-humanistic model under the name of the “Research Community College”.

The Research Community College is an intervention and support model that is constantly being modeled and adapted by the creative research teams in collaboration with renowned experts, other German, European and American universities as well as additional academic institutions. From its founding until 2018, it was implemented in Cologne and from 2019 to 2024, further research communities will follow in Sweden (Stockholm), the Netherlands, Italy (Sicily), Croatia, Austria, Hungary, Switzerland and finally in all EU Countries, as well as Africa (Kenya), Asia (Sri Lanka, China) and USA.

The Team of the Research Community College

"In the times of an everchanging culture of knowledge, the exercise of learning and researching cultures, thereby enabling the full individual and democratic development of the child and for new generations, is an imperative. This should be implemented especially at school. The most important international instrument of human rights in the world - the Convention on the Rights of the Child (United Nations Parliament, 20 November 1989) and Articles 12, 13, 17, 28, 31 and especially Article 29 clearly argue in favor of this (at school, every child should have their own personality which can unfold) "

Robert Belar, Scientific Director of the Research Community College, 2016