Lalage Bown – 1927 – 2021: Emerita Professor, Honorary Senior Research Fellow in, and former Head of, Department of Adult and Continuing Education at the University of Glasgow

On 4th July 2019 I was honoured to be able to interview Lalage Bown following a busy couple of days for us both, attending and presenting at the 2019 SCUTREA conference. It was very informal and just a grabbed moment while she waited in my office for a taxi to take her back to the station. She must have been tired but was generous to the last minute, as the taxi arrived, responding with grace and humour to my somewhat starstruck comments and queries.

We are a global alliance of networks, associations and organisations for adult learning and education (ALE). We recognise the fundamental importance of ALE for justice, well-being and change. While Agenda 2030 identifies lifelong learning (LLL) as critical to attainment of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ALE which is a significant part of LLL, is largely invisible. For ALE to be seen, understood and valued, we need to advocate for greater involvement and investment by governments, donors, private sector, international organizations, and social movements.