The DICE project aimed to strengthen the third mission of universitis, their engagement with society, while at the same time fostering digitalisation in higher education. Our goal was to bring community engagement into the online environment through the development of the DICE Accelerator, an innovative online platform that guides educators step by step in creating or enhancing their courses with digital community engagement components. The Accelerator was built upon the Value Maps framework, a value-based tool that helps educators identify areas in their courses where improvements can increase both social impact and student learning outcomes. To make this process systematic, we created a structured (Manual for Designing Digital Community Engagement Courses) to further assist educators in applying this approach. By piloting selected courses, we were able to test, refine, and validate the Value Maps, the Manual, and the DICE Accelerator itself. Last but not least, the project sought to generate sustainable impact by producing two key deliverables— the Best Practices Report and the DICE Handbook—which compile lessons learned, successful practices, and policy recommendations for integrating DICE courses into higher education systems
The COVID-19 pandemic showed us that many activities could successfully move online. We adapted to working remotely, teaching virtually, and even connecting socially through digital tools. Digitalization became a part of everyday life, and universities were no exception. But beyond research and teaching, universities also had a third mission: to act as a bridge between academia and society, using their expertise to address social and economic challenges.The project aimed to combine these two topics: digitalization and the third mission of universities. Drawing inspiration from business accelerators, DICE developed a program to guide university educators in designing digital CE courses. Traditional CE had restrictions, whereas digital tools offered a broader scope—reaching across borders and involving groups that were previously difficult to access. Still, many educators struggled with where to start. They often lacked the awareness, structure, and support needed to take their courses digital. DICE responded to this by offering a structured, step-by-step program to make digital CE more accessible and impactful.