While the different forms of student-community engagement emerge from a range different histories they share the aim of developing more rounded and competent professionals and value both academic and practitioner knowledge. Although such programmes are not new they are becoming more significant internationally, particularly in relation to questions of citizenship, employability and social justice. During the next decade within higher education we will need to find innovative ways to do more with less. The papers in this issue provide examples of some of the ways in which colleagues have been able to do this and challenge some of the assumptions behind engagement programmes. They provide a sample of different approaches used in various parts of the world.