2022 EAIE Conference reunites international higher education sector
The 2022 EAIE Conference and Exhibition will be the first major in-person gathering of Europe’s international higher education sector since the start of the pandemic. With more than 6000 participants from across the world convening in Barcelona, many of whom have continued to collaborate virtually over the last two years, this year’s event is set to be a particularly significant one for the sector.
International higher education professionals from Europe and further afield will take the 2022 EAIE Conference as an opportunity to share their experiences and insights gleaned from the personal and professional disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic and ongoing conflict in Ukraine. At the same time, the programme is distinctly forward-looking: this year’s theme of ‘The future in full colour’ will stimulate discussion around how to move forward as a sector and how to implement the evolving role of international education in rising to the challenges of an increasingly globalised world.
Inspiring leaders and speakers
High-profile speakers will bookend the conference programme with sessions at the Opening and Closing Plenaries. On Wednesday’s Opening Plenary, Gemma Geis i Carreras, Minister for Universities and Research of Catalonia, will welcome participants to the conference and offer a glimpse into the Catalonian higher education system. Later in the plenary, award-winning foreign correspondent Yalda Hakim will deliver an insightful keynote and share her experiences as a journalist, reflecting on how international education can play a part in a better future for the world.
As the conference comes to a close on Friday, the Closing Plenary will also witness the formal leadership handover of the Association, as Outgoing EAIE President Michelle Stewart passes the torch to Incoming President Piet Van Hove and the rest of the 2022–2024 leadership. Afterward, Indigenous peoples photographer Jimmy Nelson will deliver a speech that focuses on the themes of ‘travelling and communication’, sharing his international experiences and inspiring us to take a different view on how we travel.
Comprehensive programme
With eight workshops, 13 Campus Experiences, 16 Networking Events, and a slew of sessions and poster sessions running from Tuesday to Friday, conference participants will have a full week. The 2022 programme touches on the mainstays of current topics in international higher education – like virtual exchange, the European Universities Initiative, and the repercussions of the war in Ukraine – as well as delving into more specialised areas ranging from evaluating digital credentials to decolonising the curriculum. Alongside this robust programme, the EAIE Exhibition will feature over 200 exhibitors from around the globe, including representatives of several Ukrainian higher education institutions who will be available to provide information on supporting Ukraine through the conflict.
In addition to the plethora of activities unfolding on-site in Barcelona throughout the week, this will be the EAIE’s first ever hybrid conference, meaning that an online programme will run parallel to the in-person event. Virtual participants will be able to live stream the Plenaries, access pre-recorded sessions, browse the virtual poster gallery, network with both in-person and virtual participants and more.
The 2022 EAIE Conference and Exhibition in Barcelona is set to be a landmark event in the international higher education sector, and the EAIE looks forward to finally bringing the community together in person again for a week of learning, networking and thinking about the future. Press inquiries about the event can be directed to [email protected].
