ESREA is a European scientific society. It was established in 1991 to provide a European-wide forum for all researchers engaged in research on adult education and learning and to promote and disseminate theoretical and empirical research in the field. Since 1991 the landscape of adult education and learning has changed to include more diverse learning contexts at formal and informal levels. At the same time, there has been a policy push by the European Union, OECD, UNESCO and national governments to promote a policy of lifelong learning. ESREA provides an important space for these changes and (re)definition of adult education and learning in relation to research, theory, policy and practice to be reflected upon and discussed. This takes place at the triennial conference, network conferences and through the publication of books and a journal.
ESREA Research Networks
The major priority of ESREA is the encouragement of co-operation between active researchers in the form of thematic research networks which encourage inter-disciplinary research drawing on a broad range of the social sciences. These research networks hold annual/biennial seminars and conferences for the exchange of research results and to encourage publications.
The current active ESREA networks are:
Access, Learning Careers and Identities
Active Democratic Citizenship and Adult Learning
Adult Educators, Trainers and their and Professional Development
Between Global and Local: Adult Learning and Development
Education and Learning of Older Adults
Gender and Adult Learning
History of Adult Education and Training in Europe
Interrogating Transformative Processes in Learning: An International Exchange
Life-history and Biographical Research
Migration, Ethnicity, Racism and Xenophobia
Policy Studies in Adult Education
Working Life and Learning
ESREA Triennial European Research Conference
In order to encourage the widest possible forum for the exchange of ongoing research activities ESREA holds a triennial European Research Conference. The conferences have been held in Strobl (1995), Bruxelles (1998), Lisbon (2001), Wroclaw (2004), Seville (2007), Linköping (2010), Berlin (2013) and Maynooth (2016).
ESREA Journal
ESREA publishes a scientific open access journal entitled The European Journal for Research on the Education and Learning of Adults (RELA). All issues of the journal can be read at www.rela.ep.liu.se. You can also find more information about call for papers and submission procedures on this website.
ESREA Books
ESREA’s research networks and conferences have led to the publication of over forty books. A full list, giving details of the various publishers, and the books’ availability, is on the ESREA website. ESREA’s current book series is published in co-operation with Brill Sense.
Further information on ESREA is available at www.rela.ep.liu.se
Emilio Lucio-Villegas Barbara Merrill Marcella Milana Henning Salling Olesen