As well as establishing, supporting and following up the development of the regional systems of the Central American University Confederation, such as the Central American System for the Evaluation and Harmonisation of Higher Education SICEVAES, the Regional System for Research and Postgraduate Studies SIRCIP and the System for the Internationalisation of Central American Higher Education, SIESCA. For many years he played a leading role in the establishment and development of regional higher education quality evaluation and accreditation bodies in Central America, such as CCA, ACAAI, ACAP and ACESAR and was a founder and board member of international higher education quality accreditation networks, such as INQAAHE and RIACES. He has worked for CSUCA since November 1993. Francisco Alarcón received an Honorary Doctorate in Education from the National Autonomous University of Nicaragua Managua. In addition, he obtained a Master of Science degree in Tropical Coastal Zone Management from the University of Newcastle upon Tyne, England and a Bachelor of Science degree in Marine Biology with emphasis in Aquaculture from the National University of Costa Rica. Francisco Alarcón has also obtained a postgraduate certification in Regional Integration from the Colegio de México and another in University Management from the University of Kassel in Germany. He has also been an international consultant and author of numerous international publications on higher education.
MEET THE SPEAKERS
More speakers will be announced soon!
Francisco Alarcón
Director Academic Area and Deputy Secretary GeneralConsejo Superior Universitario Centroamericano -CSUCA- (gUATEMALA)
Francisco Alarcón Alba is the Director of the Academic Area and is also currently the Deputy Secretary General of the Consejo Superior Universitario Centroamericano CSUCA. He has been responsible for formulating, managing and coordinating numerous Central American programmes and projects in higher education. […]
Maria Leonor Alves Maia
President. Brazilian Association for International Education – FAUBAI (Brazil)
Maria Leonor Alves Maia is the President of the Brazilian Association for International Education – FAUBAI and full professor in the Department of Civil Engineering at the Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), Brazil.[…]
Since 2012 she has been active in the field of internationalization of Higher Education. From 2012-2020 she served as Dean for International Affairs at UFPE, being responsible for the implementation and management of international programs and activities which includes study abroad and exchange programs; international students and scholar services, internationalization at home and the implementation of Brazilian Virtual Exchange (BRAVE) program.
Maria Leonor is a researcher of the Brazilian Scientific Agency CNPq and has participated actively in conferences around the world
Peter Birle
Academic Director. IBERO-AMERIKANISCHES INSTITUT (GERMANY)
Dr. Peter Birle , Academic Director of IAI is political scientist by training, holding a Ph.D from University of Mainz (Germany) […]
He has been a Lecturer and Senior Researcher at the Universities of Mainz, Rostock, Düsseldorf and Berlin and Visiting Professor at several universities in Chile (Universidad de Chile, Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Universidad Católica de Concepción, Universidad de la Frontera in Temuco), Colombia (Universidad Javeriana, Universidad de Cali, Universidad del Valle) and Poland (Warsowia, Lublin). Between 2007 and 2010 he was Chairman of the German Association of Latin American Studies (ADLAF). He is director of the journal Iberoamericana: América Latina – España – Portugal and member of the international advisory boards of journals in Brazil, Mexico, France and Poland. His main research interests are Latin American Foreign Policies in Comparative Perspective, Regional Cooperation and Integration in Latin America, Comparative Analysis of Latin American Political Systems and Knowledge Production in and about Latin America.
Adrián Bonilla
Executive director. EU-LAC Foundation (Germany)
Before joining the EU-LAC Foundation, Adrián Bonilla was National Secretary of Higher Education with ministerial rank in Ecuador (2018-2019) […]
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Adrian also served as Secretary-General for the entire region at the Latin American Faculty of Social Sciences FLACSO (2012-2016), and also as Director of the Office in Ecuador (2004-2012) of this international academic organisation.
Dr Bonilla has published as an author and editor fifteen books and numerous articles in prestigious academic journals and books in Latin America and the Caribbean, Europe and the United States. He has been a lecturer and visiting professor at several universities and is current member of the editorial bodies of Global Governance, Contexto Internacional and the CIDOB journal D’Afers Internacionals, amongst other specialised publications. His work topics are related to foreign policy, security and multilateralism in Latin America and the Caribbean.
He was also Vice-President of the Advisory Board on Foreign Relations in Ecuador, and has also served as an international electoral observer. He has been a governing member of the Council on International Relations of Latin America (RIAL), of the Latin American Defence Studies Network (RESDAL), of the Global-Observatory of European Union-Latin America Relations (OBREAL) and of the Ibero-American Network of International Relations (RIBEI).
Doctorate and Master’s degrees in International Relations from the University of Miami. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Public and Social Sciences from the Central University of Ecuador.
Phil Bowes
Manager of Enterprise Development, Vinpro (South Africa)
Phil Bowes has been involved in project proposal writing, development programme implementation, monitoring and evaluation for prominent implementing organizations, local and international donors to the agricultural sector since 2002. […]
Sustainability, training and dissemination of best practice have been at the core of his approach.
He began his career supplying agricultural inputs to small scale farmers as an entrepreneur in the late 1990’s. He then joined the US-based Land O’Lakes International Development Division, where, before the age of 30, he was promoted to the role of Regional Manager-Southern Africa for a US$ 5 million programme. Managing activities in five countries, he was accountable for 178 technical assistance and training assignments and over 5000 days of consulting.
In 2009 he joined SATI, the table grape industry body in South Africa. He developed and implemented an industry strategy for the training and enterprise development programmes for new entrant farmers in that sector. Since then, the strategy is still being implemented today and has formed the basis of more than R240 million in project funding.
In 2015 he joined the wine industry to, amongst other projects, establish the South African Wine Industry Transformation Unit, an inclusive, multi-stakeholder business mandated to fund and implement development programmes valued at more than R20 m of per annum. His current role with Vinpro is to run an enterprise development advisory service for its 2500 producer and wine cellar members.
DANIËL BRINK
Dean. Faculty of AgriSciences, Stellenbosch University (South Africa)
As from 1 July 2017, prof Danie Brink has been appointed as Dean of the Faculty of AgriSciences. He was acting Dean of the Faculty since May 2014. Prof Brink is an alumni of Stellenbosch University and serves on several boards, industry organisations and associations. […]
Jessica Byron
Director. Institute of International Relations at the University of the West Indies St. Augustine Campus (Trinidad and Tobago)
Professor Jessica Byron is the Director of the Institute of International Relations at the University of the West Indies St. Augustine Campus. Previously, she lectured at the Mona Campus, serving as the Head of the Department of Government, UWI Mona 2010 – 2013 and as Visiting Professorial Fellow 2015 – 2016 at Sir Arthur Lewis Institute of Social and Economic Studies (SALISES) Mona. […]
She studied at the Cave Hill and St. Augustine Campuses of the UWI before doing her PhD at the Graduate Institute of International Studies, University of Geneva in Switzerland. She has also served previously as a Foreign Service Officer with the government of St Kitts and Nevis and with the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States based at the East Caribbean High Commission in London 1988 – 1990, and then lectured for some years at the Institute of Social Studies in The Hague, The Netherlands.
Jessica Byron has published extensively on Caribbean-Latin American international relations and on small states and territories in the global political economy. Recent research focuses on Caribbean countries’ engagement in South-South cooperation initiatives. Recent publications include “Martinique’s Accession to the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States: A New Chapter in Caribbean Regionalism?” The Round Table Vol. 106 (3) 2017 pp. 279 – 302; Pan-Caribbean Integration: Beyond CARICOM eds. Patsy Lewis, Terri-Ann Gilbert-Roberts and Jessica Byron 2018 London: Routledge; Byron J., Laguardia Martinez J. 2018. “EU and the Caribbean: Towards the Reconfiguration of the Inter-Regional Landscape” in Mori A. ed. The EU and Latin America: A Stronger Partnership? Milan: Ledizioni LediPublishing; Byron J. “Relations with the EU and the UK post-Brexit: Perspectives from the Caribbean” Etudes Caribeennes No. 42, Avril 2019; Briguglio L., Byron J., Moncada S. and Veenendaal W. 2020. Handbook on Governance in Small States London: Routledge.
Elizabeth K. Colucci
International Projects Director. OBREAL Global (sPAIN)
Elizabeth Colucci currently serves as the International Projects Director for the OBREAL Global Observatory, based in Barcelona, a membership organisation that provides a platform for strategic partnerships between the EU, Latin America and different regions of the world.
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She presently advises the European University Association (EUA), a major stakeholder in the European Higher Education and Research Areas, which she worked for as a programme manager between 2008 and 2015. She has also previously worked for the Academic Cooperation Association (ACA) in Brussels, the Fulbright Commission to Belgium and Luxemburg and the European Commission of the EU. She has both lectured and published on topics related to higher education internationalisation, mobility, joint degrees, teaching and learning reform, the Bologna Process, higher education regional integration and e-learning. Elizabeth has degrees from both Duke University and the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE), but feels that her education has been and will be a continuous process.
Armida de la Garza
Senior Lecturer. UCC (Ireland)
Armida de la Garza is a Senior Lecturer at the National University of Ireland Cork, where she is also part of the internationalisation team. During 2016-2019 she was Director of Internationalisation Strategy for the College of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences at the University
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Her current line of research is the synergy between curriculum internationalisation and interdisciplinarity, an area in which she has been actively publishing, including her recent article in the Journal of Studies in International Education (Sage). With Cliona Maher, she researches the use of COIL pedagogies to foster the employability of higher education graduates.
Oscar Domínguez
Executive Director. Asociación Colombiana de Universidades - ascun- (colombia) and co-chair of the obreal global chapter south america
Agricultural Engineer, Specialist in Environmental Education; Specialist in Strategic Management and Master in Education.
He currently serves as Executive Director of Asociación Colombiana de Universidades ASCUN (Colombian Association of Universities) […]
She has been Vice-Minister of Higher Education of the Colombian Ministry of National Education (2012-2014), Rector of the Technological University of Bolivar (2002-2012), General Director of ICFES-Colombian Institute of Evaluation and Higher Education (1998 -2002), Secretary of Education of Bolivar (1998) and Secretary of Education and Culture of Cartagena (1995-1997). Professor at several universities in the country and Director of several educational centres.
She received the «Simón Bolívar» Medal from the Ministry of National Education for her educational leadership, the Cartagena Civic Award «Behave well with Cartagena» as the best official in education, and the Bolívar Innovation Award from the Chamber of Commerce.
She has been a member of the Boards of Directors of several public and private universities, including the Superior Councils of the University of Cartagena, Colegio Mayor de Bolívar (Cartagena), Uniminuto (Bogotá), and the Universidad Simón Bolívar (Barranquilla) where she is currently linked to the Doctorate in Education Sciences, leads the research group Education, Social and Human Sciences, the Caribbean node of CRECES-Regional Centre for Cooperation in Higher Education, and has directed the journal Educación y Humanismo (Education and Humanism),
She has an extensive intellectual output including articles in journals and media, scientific publications, book chapters and extensive contributions to the design of higher education policies and innovations in management processes.
D. in Educational Sciences from the University of Cartagena-Rudecolombia (a consortium of public universities) with a laureate thesis entitled «Governance and quality, main challenges of public universities in the Colombian Caribbean», under the direction of Dr. Diana Lago and the international co-direction of Dr. Walter R. Allen from the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at the University of California at Los Angeles-UCLA. She also holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Instruction with an emphasis in University Administration from the University of Miami. She is a Family Counsellor from the University of Navarra and holds a BA in Liberal Arts from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA. She is a member of the RUECA Research Group of Rudecolombia, and a Research Associate of the Center for Capacity Building -CBC-, with the projects «Inclusion and Excellence in Colombian Higher Education» and «OPTIONS: Access, Equity and Excellence», at the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSE & IS), at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Jimena Estrella
Secretary of Research. International Relations and Postgraduate Studies. National University of Cuyo (ARGENTINA)
Jimena Estrella is currently Secretary of Research, International Relations and Postgraduate Studies at the Rectorate of the National University of Cuyo, in charge of the design and implementation of policies for the promotion of science, internationalisation and postgraduate studies. He is in charge of the creation of the Innovation Area of the UNCuyo. […]
She is an undergraduate and postgraduate lecturer at the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences of the National University of Cuyo and guest lecturer at numerous national and international institutions.
She participates as a consultant and researcher in national and international projects, with a strong focus on the wine sector. She is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Association of Wine Economists (AAWE) since May 2015, being the only Argentinean member of this committee. She is currently a member of the Centro de Estudios Económicos de Bodegas de Argentina, which brings together more than 250 wineries in Argentina.
PhD in Economics and Agricultural Policy from the Universita degli Studi di Padova, Master in International Business from the Universita degli Studi di Udine, and Degree in Administration from the Universidad Nacional de Cuyo.
Kiran G.R
Dean. Middle East College (Oman) and Vice President of OBREAL Global
Dr. Kiran GR is currently the Dean of Middle East College (MEC), which is one of the largest higher education institutions in the Sultanate of Oman and the Vice -President of OBREAL-Global. […]
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Kiran holds a PhD in Information Systems from the London School of Economics & Political Science, UK. Kiran has more than 23 years of vast experience from his key roles at national and international levels in areas relating to higher education management, teaching, research, strategic policy development, quality assurance, social computing, governance reforms, e-governance, and ICT for development. He is an External Reviewer with the Oman Authority of Academic Accreditation (OAAA) since 2015. In his capacity as the Dean of MEC, Dr. Kiran has chaired the Institutional Standards Assessment panel to colleges/universities within Oman. Dr. Kiran also holds vast experience in heading and implementing key governmental projects on e-governance and ICT in Kerala, India.
Michael Gaebel
Director. Higher Education Policy Unit of the European University Association (bELGIUM)
Michael Gaebel is the Director of the Higher Education Policy Unit of the European University Association (EUA), which follows the Bologna Process, issues in learning and teaching, including lifelong learning, digitally enhanced learning, internationalisation and global dialogue. […]
Michael represents EUA in the Bologna Follow-up Group, and has been actively involved in several of its working groups over the past decade.
The European University Association (EUA) D represents 33 national university associations (rectors’ conferences) and more than 800 universities from all over Europe.
Michael graduated from the Freie Universität Berlin, Germany, in 1994, in German literature and linguistics, and Middle Eastern Studies. Before joining EUA, for more than a decade, Michael has held positions in international higher education exchange and cooperation in the Middle East, the former Soviet-Union, and South-Asia.
ELIZABETH BERNAL GAMBOA
academic coordinator. Asociación Colombiana de Universidades – ASCUN (Colombia)
She is a psychologist from the Pontificia Universidad Javeriana, anthropologist and master’s degree in anthropology from the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. She is currently the academic coordinator of the Asociación Colombiana de Universidades – ASCUN (Colombian Association of Universities) and occasional lecturer at the Universidad Nacional de Colombia. […]
She has worked in project management and academic administration in different units of the Universidad Nacional de Colombia, and has been an expert advisor and researcher on the subject of education with universities, consulting firms, the Convenio Andrés Bello and the Ministry of Education. She has been a university lecturer in the field of anthropology and research.
His most recent publications are on the topics of university management, the 2030 Agenda and the SDGs. He participated in the publications: «Universidad 2030. La educación superior como instrumento de desarrollo regional», «Desafíos de la educación y la movilidad social en Latino América Latina» and «Guía de fundamentos para la gestión de las estrategias de internacionalización de la educación superior en América Latina y el Caribe». She was co-author of the book «Gestión de la información cuantitativa en las universidades», editor and co-author of four publications that were the result of the project: «Visión 20/UN: construcción de la visión y el plan prospectivo de la Universidad Nacional de Colombia a 20 años», co-author of the article «Metodología Q: An alternative for participation in the reform of higher education policy in Colombia», the book «Seis temas centrales asociados a las condiciones básicas de calidad de instituciones y programas de educación superior», and six publications referring to internal quality assurance models for higher education institutions, as well as other publications related to anthropology in Colombia.
Barbara Goebel
Director. Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut (Germany)
Prof. Dr. Barbara Göbel is Director of the Ibero-Amerikanisches Institut (Stiftung Preußischer Kulturbesitz) in Berlin, a non-university research institute that hosts one of the largest libraries on Latin America, the Caribbean, Spain and Portugal in the world. […]
Since 2017 she is Honorary Professor at the Freie Universität Berlin. She is Principal Investigator and project leader of several third-party funded international project as, for example, the Maria Sibylla Merian Centre Conviviality-Inequality in Latin America (2017-2026), sponsored mainly by BMBF.
Barbara Göbel studied social anthropology, prehistory, economic and social history at the Universities of Munich and Göttingen (Germany), holding a Ph.D. (1990) from the latter. Barbara Göbel has been a Lecturer and Senior Researcher at the Universities of Göttingen, Tübingen, Stuttgart-Hohenheim, Cologne, and Bonn (Germany) and Visiting Professor at several universities in Argentina (Universities of Buenos Aires, Córdoba, Jujuy, San Martín, La Pampa), Bolivia (University of La Paz), Chile (Universities of Antofagasta and Arica) and Peru (PUCP, Lima). She has also worked at the Laboratoire d’ Anthropologie Sociale (Collège de France) in Paris (France). She carried out long-term ethnographic fieldwork and historical studies in the Andes. Between 2002 and 2005 Barbara Göbel was the Executive Director of the International Human Dimensions Programme on Global Environmental Change (IHDP), co-sponsored by ICSU, ISSC, and UNU.
Her main research interests are knowledge asymmetries and geopolitics of knowledge; collection institutions and digital transformations; socio-environmental inequalities and resource conflicts in Latin America.
She is member of several advisory boards of funding agencies, scientific and cultural institutions and scientific journals (e.g. board of ifa, German Chancellor Fellowhips for Brazil of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation, Center for Development Studies at University of Bonn).
Prathap Haridoss
Professor-in-Charge Online Degree Programme. Director NPTEL. Indian Institutoe of Technology Madras (India)
Dr. Prathap Haridoss has been a faculty at IIT Madras since 2001, and is presently a Professor in the Department of Metallurgical and Materials Engineering IIT Madras […]
He is also one of the NPTEL coordinators for IIT Madras. NPTEL is one of the world’s largest accessed higher technical education portals, with over 1 Billion views internationally. Millions of students enroll for NPTEL MOOCs each year, with the world’s highest completion rates in this mode for this level of education, with unique in-person, and therefore credible assessment, despite the large scale.
Carl-Gustaf Jansson
Professor Emeritus in Artificial Intelligence. KTH (Sweeden)
Senior academic advisor for the KTH Internationalization in the Prioritized regions of India and Latin America. KTH representative in several projects with mixed European and Indian partners ( IISc, IIT Madras, Amrita U., Symbiosis International U., Mysore U. and Asian Institute of Design) […]
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In particular contributions to the KTH – IIT Madras strategic partnership. Responsible for the development and lecturing of an IITM NPTEL course in Machine Learning running 2019 and 2020. Advisor to startups and investors on AI related ventures.
PhD in Knowledge Representation/Artificial Intelligence (AI) in 1986. Having held a position in Artificial Intelligence at KTH since 1987, he has lead research and examined more than 30 PhD students in Artificial Intelligence in Machine Learning, Knowledge Representation, Automated Reasoning as well as Intelligent Interfaces. 10 PhDs have eventually become tenured Professors. Chairman of the Swedish AI Society (SAIS), 1990-2000. Honorary President of SAIS. Local organization chair for the International Joint Conference in AI (IJCAI99) in 1999. Cofounder and Director for the center for Cognitive Engineering (KTH and SU) 1990-1995. Responsible for the development of the new KTH five year MSc Program in Information Technology (1999) and its Program Chairman (1999-2005). Vice Dean for the KTH ICT School and Chairman for its Graduate Study and Recruitment Committees 2005-2014. Designer of and Director for the EIT Digital Pan European Master School:2011-2016. Director (research coordinator) for the KTH ICT Research Platform: 2009 – 2018. Head of the KTH EECS Communication Department 2018.
Nico Jooste
Strategic Advisor. SARUA (South africa) and Co-chair of the OBREAL Global Chapter Africa
Dr Nico Jooste is the founding Senior Director: International Education at the Nelson Mandela University. He acted in this position from July 2000 to December 2018 […]
He is responsible for the development of the Office for International Education at the University with the philosophy of Comprehensive Internationalisation as the guiding principle.
He is involved in the re-thinking of Internationalisation Globally and arranged the Global Dialogue on the future of Higher Education Internationalisation in January 2014 in Port Elizabeth, South Africa. This event brought together all the major role players in Higher Education Internationalisation. He was the President of the International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA) for the years 2014 to December 2016.
He is now the Director of the African Centre for Higher Education Internationalisation (AfriC) The focus of the Centre is to research higher education internationalisation matters that influence and enhance the internationalisation of higher education with specific reference to Africa and the emerging world. The Centre is also involved in the design and offering of capacity building programs in Internationalization of Higher Education
He publishes widely on Higher Education Internationalisation and has presented numerous papers on this topic at international conferences. He is the series editor of a Colloquium Series on Higher Education Internationalisation published since 2004.
He participates regularly in projects that evaluate Higher Education Internationalisation through peer review activities, quality assurance teams and the development of Institutional Internationalisation Strategies.
Dr Jooste was appointed as the chairperson of the committee that assisted the South African Department of Higher Education to draft the national Internationalisation Policy. The draft of the Policy was published in July 2017.
James Otieno Jowi
Principal Education Officer, East African Community Secretariat, (Tanzania) and Executive Director of the African Network for Internationalization of Education (ANIE)
James Otieno Jowi is the Principal Education Officer at the East African Community (EAC). He is the founding Executive Director of the African Network for Internationalization of Education (ANIE) […]
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and also taught Comparative and International Education at Moi University, Kenya. His research focuses on internationalization of higher education in Africa. He holds a PhD in Higher Education (University of Twente, Netherlands) a Masters in Comparative and International Education (University of Oslo, Norway).
Cathrael Kazin
Managing Partner. Volta Learning (USA)
Dr. Cathrael (“Kate”) Kazin serves as Managing Partner of Volta Learning Group, a consultancy focused on transforming both the learning experience and labor market outcomes of postsecondary education and training. […]
An internationally recognized expert in competency-based learning and assessment, Kate served as founding Chief Academic Officer of College for America (CfA) and designed its award-winning model for project-focused competency-based education (CBE). She has been recognized by the Competency-Based Education Network (C-BEN) for “extraordinary contributions to the field of CBE.” She has extensive experience designing and developing competency frameworks and learning strategies, such as market-facing stackable microcredentials, that meet the needs of both individual learners and organizations. A former Commissioner of the New England accrediting body for colleges and universities, Kate served as Executive Director of the Higher Education Division at ETS; she is also a lawyer who has worked on employment and education issues in government as well as in private practice. She has taught widely in the US and in Israel and was a faculty member at the University of Iowa. She holds an AB with Highest Honors in English from Smith College, a PhD in English from Cornell University, and a JD from the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she was an editor of the University of Pennsylvania Law Review. Kate is often invited to present on CBE, 21st century assessment, project-based learning, microcredentials, and disruptive innovation in the US and internationally, including the Harvard Graduate School of Education, the White House, New America Foundation, the Lumina Foundation, and numerous venues in Latin America, Europe, India, Canada, Israel, and Singapore.
Maria Kelo
Director. European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (Belgium)
Maria Kelo is the Director of ENQA, the European Association for Quality Assurance in Higher Education (since 2011). Her tasks within ENQA include managing the work of the ENQA Secretariat, supporting and coordinating ENQA member agencies, managing projects, and represent the association and its members in policy making processes. […]
Maria has expertise in both policy and practice of quality assurance, and speaks regularly in international event on related issues.
Prior to joining ENQA in 2011, Maria worked for nine years in the field of international higher education. During these years Maria carried out a number of project and studies on international higher education, in particular in the fields of transnational education, student mobility, student services, promotion of European higher education, and human resource management in higher education.
Maria is a graduate of University College London (1996-2000) and London School of Economics (2001-2002).
Felix Kwabena Donkor
African Students’ Alumni Forum -ASAF- (Ghana)
Felix Kwabena Donkor is a research scientist at the College of Agriculture and Environmental Sciences (UNISA), South Africa. He serves on the advisory board of the joint African Union and European Union HAQAA (Harmonisation of African Higher Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation) Initiative. […]
MARINA LARREA
Director International Cooperation. Secretariat of University Policy. Ministry of Education (Argentina)
Marina Larrea has a degree in International Relations (Universidad de San Andrés, Argentina, 2003) and she is a specialist in International Cooperation (Universidad Nacional de San Martín, Argentina, 2010)[…]
Marina has been since 2006, the Coordinator of the Programme for the Internationalisation of Higher Education and International Cooperation of the Secretariat of University Policies of the Ministry of Education of Argentina.
Deirdre Lennan
International Cooperation officer. european comission (Beligum)
Deirdre Lennan has been working for international cooperation in higher education since 1992. She worked for the EU’s Tempus programme with a specific focus first on cooperation with Central and Eastern Europe, the Western Balkans, the Russian Federation and then the Mashrek region (Egypt, Lebanon and Syria in particular) […]
Since 2009 she follows policy issues with Africa at the European Commission’s Directorate General for Education, Youth, Sport and Culture, is in charge of the higher education initiatives in the framework of the Africa-EU Partnership and oversees all Erasmus+ activities with Africa. She is also involved in the international dimension of Erasmus+, in particular for capacity building in higher education, and covers all development related issues for the DG.
Álvaro Maglia
Secretary General, Asociación de universidades Grupo MOntevideo -AUGM- (Uruguay) and co-Chair of the OBREAL Global Chapter South America
Executive Secretary of the Asociación de universidades Grupo Montevideo (AUGM). Graduated in 1980 as Doctor of Dentistry from the Universidad de la República (UdelaR). […]
He was Dean of the Faculty of Dentistry of the UdelaR between 2001 and 2009 and Vice-Rector of the Universidad de la República between 2005 and 2009. As Vice Rector he chaired the Commission for International Relations and Regional and International Cooperation – Udelar.
Since 2015 he is Director / Coordinator of the Degree in Human Biology at UdelaR.
He is a member of several research groups in his area at UdelaR.
He chaired the Uruguayan Society of Dental Research between 2012 and 2014. He was a member of the «ad hoc» Commission of Accreditation ARCUSUR of Uruguay between 2010 and 2014. He has been Executive Secretary of AUGM since 2009.
Clíona Maher
Latin America Strategy Officer and Vice-Chair of the Latin America Regional Working Group. UCC (IRELAND)
Clíona Maher is Latin America Strategy Officer and Vice-Chair of the Latin America Regional Working Group for UCC since 2015. She has worked in educational and cultural international cooperation for Universidad Veracruzana (UV) in Mexico for over 20 years […]
Her research interests include social responsibility, community engagement, migration, sustainable development and internationalisation in higher education and how they can play a role in promoting global citizenship and Agenda 2030 on a local, regional and global level.
Nicolas Maillard
director. UFRGS’ Institute of Latin-American Advanced Studies (Brazil)
Nicolas Maillard is Associate Professor at the Federal University of Rio Grande do Sul (UFRGS), Porto Alegre, Brazil, since 2004. He is director of UFRGS’ Institute of Latin-American Advanced Studies (ILEA) since Jan, 2021.[…]
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He has been Dean of International Affairs at UFRGS for the period 2013-2020. In 2019, he published a book on the management of international affairs. He graduated in 1996 at the French “Grande École d’Ingénieur” ENSIMAG – INPG and obtained a Ph.D. in Information Sciences and Technologies at the Université Joseph Fourier, in 2001. His research field is Parallel Programming. He has advised 15 Master´s and 4 Ph.D. students. He has published 24 papers in international conferences with editorial review and 7 in international journals. In 2012, he spent six months as an invited scholar at the University of Pittsburgh, USA.
As Dean of International Affairs, Nicolas was in charge of the internationalization process of UFRGS, being the direct representative of the Rector for international affairs, and in close connection with the Vice-Presidents of Teaching, Research and Outreach. His activities also included the management of student mobility.
Mónica Marquina
Researcher. National Council of Scientific and Technical Research of Argentina -CONICET- (Argentina)
Mónica Marquina holds a BA in Education Sciences from UBA, an MA in Higher Education Administration from Boston College (USA) and a PhD in Higher Education from the University of Palermo (Argentina). She is an independent researcher at CONICET. […]
lecturer at UBA in Comparative Education and Educational Policy and lecturer in University Policy and Management at postgraduate level at UNTREF. For years she has been researching issues of university policy and management, evaluation and accreditation and especially the academic profession. She is general co-coordinator of the APIKS Project (Academic Profession in the Knowledge Society) in which more than 20 countries participate, based on a joint survey of academics around the world. She is a member of the board of the National Commission for University Evaluation and Accreditation of Argentina, proposed by the Chamber of Deputies of the Nation. During 2016 and 2018 she was Executive Director of the University Quality Programme from where the National Academic Recognition System (RTF) was designed and implemented.
PATRICIA MARTINEZ
independent consultant and researcher in higher education (Colombia)
Colombian leader active in education and independent consultant and researcher in higher education, on issues of university governance, organisation, management, quality, inclusion, regionalisation and internationalisation.[…]
She has been Vice-Minister of Higher Education of the Colombian Ministry of National Education (2012-2014), Rector of the Technological University of Bolivar (2002-2012), General Director of ICFES-Colombian Institute of Evaluation and Higher Education (1998 -2002), Secretary of Education of Bolivar (1998) and Secretary of Education and Culture of Cartagena (1995-1997). Professor at several universities in the country and Director of several educational centres.
She received the «Simón Bolívar» Medal from the Ministry of National Education for her educational leadership, the Cartagena Civic Award «Behave well with Cartagena» as the best official in education, and the Bolívar Innovation Award from the Chamber of Commerce.
She has been a member of the Boards of Directors of several public and private universities, including the Superior Councils of the University of Cartagena, Colegio Mayor de Bolívar (Cartagena), Uniminuto (Bogotá), and the Universidad Simón Bolívar (Barranquilla) where she is currently linked to the Doctorate in Education Sciences, leads the research group Education, Social and Human Sciences, the Caribbean node of CRECES-Regional Centre for Cooperation in Higher Education, and has directed the journal Educación y Humanismo (Education and Humanism),
She has an extensive intellectual output including articles in journals and media, scientific publications, book chapters and extensive contributions to the design of higher education policies and innovations in management processes.
D. in Educational Sciences from the University of Cartagena-Rudecolombia (a consortium of public universities) with a laureate thesis entitled «Governance and quality, main challenges of public universities in the Colombian Caribbean», under the direction of Dr. Diana Lago and the international co-direction of Dr. Walter R. Allen from the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies at the University of California at Los Angeles-UCLA. She also holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership and Instruction with an emphasis in University Administration from the University of Miami. She is a Family Counsellor from the University of Navarra and holds a BA in Liberal Arts from the University of Notre Dame, Indiana, USA. She is a member of the RUECA Research Group of Rudecolombia, and a Research Associate of the Center for Capacity Building -CBC-, with the projects «Inclusion and Excellence in Colombian Higher Education» and «OPTIONS: Access, Equity and Excellence», at the Graduate School of Education and Information Studies (GSE & IS), at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA).
Chafic Mokbel
professor and Higher Education Reform expert. University of Balamand (Lebanon)
Chafic Mokbel has been since 2008 a Tempus then an Erasmus+ higher education reform expert. He participated, organised or co-organised series of workshops, seminars and conferences […]
[…] related to the reform and development of higher education in particular in the domains of: quality assurance, recognition, qualifications framework, learning outcomes, teaching and learning, mobility, internationalization, students’ services, civic engagement, online learning, financing, … In 2011, he led the European Tempus project “Towards the Lebanese Quality Assurance Agency” and in 2015 the European Erasmus+ project “Programme Evaluation for Transparency and Recognition of Skills and Competences.”
Jeffy Mukora
Executive Director. National Quality Assurance Agency of Mozambique -CNAQ- (Mozambique)
He is the current Chair of the Task Force for the ASG-QA under the HAQAA phase 2 as well as CNAQ Project Leader for HAQAA 2.
He is also a member of the Task Force Team of Experts responsible for the development of the African Continental Qualifications Framework (ACQF).[…]
Jeffy Mukora is an educationist with more than 15 years of experience in the education and training sector. He completed his PhD on the development and implementation of Qualifications Frameworks and Systems of Quality Assurance at Edinburgh University, UK in 2006. He was employed as a Post-doctoral Research Fellow at the rank of Research Specialist in the Education and Skills Development research programme at the Human Sciences Research Council (HSRC) in South Africa from 2007-2008. He has worked at the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA) as a Deputy Director: Research from 2008 to 2010.
He worked at the TVET Reform programme in Mozambique (PIREP) where he was influential in the development and implementation of the vocational qualifications framework. He was Team Leader responsible for the development of a model for the recognition of prior learning in Mozambique.
He is currently an Executive Director: External Quality Assurance at the National Council for Quality Assurance and Accreditation in Higher Education (CANQ) and also Coordinator of the development of a higher education qualifications sub-framework within the national qualifications framework.
He has co-authored the African Standards and Guidelines for Quality Assurance (ASG-QA) under the Harmonization of African Higher Education Quality Assurance and Accreditation (HAQAA Initiative) as a Member of the Technical Working Group (TWG).
José Passarini
professor. Universidad de la República (Uruguay)
Director of the Department of Social Sciences of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the Universidad de la República (Uruguay). He worked for 9 years in the Higher Education Area of the Ministry of Education and Culture, carrying out evaluations of private tertiary education institutions in Uruguay. […]
He has been teaching undergraduate courses since 1998 at the Universidad de la República (Uruguay). and currently also teaches didactic training courses for university professors and in master’s and doctoral courses, mainly related to agricultural education and university teaching. Since 2018 he has been coordinating the Master’s Degree in Rural Education and Extension.
Since 2019 he serves as President of the Central Commission of Internal Evaluation and Accreditation of the University of the Republic.
Categorized in the National System of Researchers of Uruguay. Main lines of research: Veterinary Education, Teaching practices in the agricultural area; Follow-up of veterinary graduates; Analysis of MERCOSUR accreditation processes; Evaluation of Learning; Trajectories in Higher Education. Publications in Journals and Books on Quality in Higher Education, Institutional Evaluation and Accreditation, Didactics of Agricultural Sciences and Learning Assessment.
He has directed and supervised several master’s and doctoral theses in postgraduate programmes at the Universidad de la República, Universidad de la Habana and Universidad Nacional del Litoral.
Currently Executive Secretary of the Network for Strategic Management of Higher Education (Red DEES), a network of 45 universities from 12 Latin American countries.
Nicolas Patrici
Director. OBREAL Global (Spain)
Nicolas Patrici is one of the directors of OBREAL Global. Dr.Patrici has an extensive experience in education management and international cooperation. He has worked extensively in higher education projects and regional integration initiatives in India, Oman, Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean […]
Nicolás has been in charge of the coordination of ALFA, Erasmus Mundus Action 1, 2 and 3, TEMPUS Projects and leading EU cooperation and research projects and EU specialized actions in the field of international cooperation for more than 15 years. Before his appointment as a director at OBREAL-Global, Dr. Patrici has been the Director of the Observatory of Globalization of the University of Barcelona (2017-2020), the director of the University of Barcelona and Middle East College´s Smart Knowledge Alliance SKA based in Muscat (2014-2017), Oman and worked for UB’s AECHE Secretariat that leads the AECHE (Arab-European Conferences on Higher Education) process together with the European University Association (EUA) and the Association of Arab Universities (AARU) (2013-2017). Nicolás holds a bachelor’s degree (5 years) in political science from Universidad de Buenos Aires (UBA), (Argentina), an MPhil from Pompeu Fabra University in Barcelona (Spain), and has pursued doctoral studies in Science Po, Paris (France), Leiden University (The Netherlands) and the University of Barcelona (Spain) where he obtained his Doctoral Degree (Summa Cum Laude) in Philosophy and Classical Studies.
Fred Réno
Professor of Political Science. Université des Antilles (Guadeloupe)
Fred Réno is a Professor of Political Science. After lecturing at the University of Rennes in France, he has taught Comparative Po¬litics, Caribbean Political Systems and Political Sociology at the Université des Antilles. […]
He is the author of seve¬ral articles on identity, creolization policy in the Caribbean, so-cial mobilization, and the politics and culture of the French West Indies. He is the co-editor of several books on political culture in the Caribbean with Holger Henker, politics of identity with Robert Hudson and the French West Indies with Richard Burton. His most recent publication was an edited book with Myriam Moïse: Border Transgression and Reconfiguration of Caribbean Spaces, Palgrave MacMillan, 2020.
Professor Reno is very involved in international cooperation, particularly with the OECS and the wider Caribbean region. He has been nominated as responsible for regional cooperation with Higher Education institutions in the Caribbean by the President of Uni¬versité des Antilles and regularly represents his institution at the Executive committee of regional Higher Education organi¬zations such as Universities Caribbean and CORPUCA. Fred Réno is particulary committed to serving the wider Caribbean region as he is currently militating for the development of a common core knowledge and curriculum of Caribbean Studies across universities of the region.
Susan Francis Salazar
Professor and researcher at the Latin American Doctoral Programme in Education and the in Education and the Institute for Research in Education.. Universidad de Costa Rica (Costa Rica)
She worked at the Ministry of Public Education from 1987 to 2001 as a teacher and as an Advisor in Preschool Education and Evaluation.
She works at the University of Costa Rica (from 1996 to date) […]
She served as Vice Rector of Teaching from May 19 to December 31, 2020 and as Director of the Latin American Doctoral Programme in Education and the Institute for Research in Education as Director of the Latin American Doctorate in Education from April 4, 2018 to December 31, 2020.
Her academic teaching activity includes undergraduate and postgraduate courses in the areas of Educational Assessment, Educational Research, Curricular, Educational Evaluation, Educational Research, Curriculum Evaluation, Teaching and University Didactics, Educational Theory and Pedagogy, and from 2013 to 2017 she directed the ICT-mediated Teaching Support Unit and coordinated and coordinated the Multiversa Teaching Project.
Her academic research activity includes work as a senior researcher and collaborator in the Department of University Teaching in the Department of University Teaching, the Institute for Research in Education, Institute of Psychological Research, the State of Education, Central American Educational and Cultural Coordination and CONARE.
Marcello Scalisi
director of the Mediterranean Universities Union -UNIMED- (ITALY)
Marcello Scalisi has been the director of the Mediterranean Universities Union (UNIMED) since 2008. He gained extensive experience in Sicily in the sustainable tourism sector, managing and monitoring EU projects for local tourism development and providing vocational training for dozens of companies and thousands of workers. […]
Scalisi started working at UNIMED in 1998 as project manager and moved gradually to the coordination of UNIMED’s European, international and national funded initiatives and projects. Since he became director of UNIMED, there has been a significant increase of the number of associated universities to the network, funded projects, employees, and collaborators. UNIMED is now a permanent stakeholder of the European Commission. Scalisi holds a degree in historical sciences and international cooperation from the Faculty of Literature, Philosophy and Languages at the University of Roma Tre, Rome.
José Miguel Sermeño
Secretary of Scientific Research of Universidad de El Salvador -SIC-UES- (El Salvador)
President of the Central American and Caribbean Regional System for Research and Postgraduate Studies (SIRCIP) of CSUCA in 2019. Currently Secretary of Scientific Research at the University of El Salvador (SIC-UES) […]
José Miguel Sermeño Chicas, professor of entomology since 1991 at the Faculty of Agronomic Sciences of the University of El Salvador, holds a Master’s degree in Agricultural Entomology from the University of Panama (1994-1996, former scholarship holder of the German Academic Exchange Service, DAAD) and a postgraduate degree in Food Security and Poverty from the University of San Carlos de Guatemala (2005). He also holds a Diploma in Pedagogy for Higher Education (2007-2008). From 1999-2004, Assistant Postgraduate Coordinator of the Faculty of Agricultural Sciences, University of El Salvador. From 2004-2005, Postgraduate Director, Faculty of Agronomic Sciences, UES. Author and co-author of more than 80 scientific research papers, technical manuals and books on plant protection and biodiversity studies with emphasis on the conservation of arthropod species.
He has published in the IPM Newsletter of the Centro Agronómico Tropical de Investigación y Enseñanza de Costa Ricas (CATIE), Florida Entomologist, USA, Ecology and Evolution Revista Agrociencia, Revista Minerva, Memorias de Congresos en Centro y Sur América. As a consultant in the area of plant protection and biodiversity studies at the International Regional Organization for Agricultural Health (OIRSA), Inter-American Institute for Agricultural Cooperation (IICA), National Council for Culture and Art (CONCULTURA, El Salvador) and Tropical Agricultural Research and Higher Education Centre (CATIE). Main author of Chapter 5 of the book «Diversidad, conservación y uso de los macro-invertebrados dulceacuícolas de México, Centroamérica, Colombia, Cuba y Puerto Rico» . Main author of the book «Diversity of arthropods and their natural enemies associated with coffee (Coffea arabica L.) in El Salvador» . Advisor and jury of more than 40 research works of undergraduate and postgraduate students, UES. Named Agronomist of the Year 2010. Member of the Society of Agricultural Engineers of El Salvador (SIADES), the Mesoamerican Society for Biology and Conservation (SMBC) and the Mesoamerican Network of Biotic Resources of the working group on freshwater macro-invertebrates (MADMESO). Representative for the Faculty of Agronomic Sciences, UES, to the Executive Research Council of the University of El Salvador (CEI-UES). Member of the Scientific and/or Academic Area of the Administrative Council of the Initiative for the Americas Fund (FIAES) from 2009 to 2017. Liaison representative of El Salvador to the International Master of Entomology of the University of Panama.
Juma Shabani
Coordinator. Continental Education Strategy for Africa -CESA- (Burundi)
Professor Shabani was Vice-Rector of the University of Burundi until 1992, and was recently named the new Deputy Secretary-General of the Association of African Universities […]
He also currently holds the position of Visiting Professor at the National University of Benin and the University of Burundi». J.Shabani presented the paper «Strategies for capacity-building through regional cooperation in science and technology and postgraduate education in Africa».
Dr. Shabani has held a position at the Institut de Physique ThéoriqueUniversité Catholique de Louvain. Currently, he is a Professor in the Department of Mathematics University of Burundi and he is Deputy Secretary-General, Association of African Universities.
Ramon torrent
President. OBREAL Global ( Spain)
Between 1988 and 1998, Ramon Torrent was a member and later the Director for International Economic Relations in the Legal Service of the EU Council. He is one of the five EU-proposed members of the roster of arbitrators for the EU agreements with Central America, Peru and Colombia, Chile, CARIFORUM, Moldova, Georgia, Ukraine, Korea, SADC and Central Africa […]
Until his retirement in September 2017, Ramon was a full professor of Political Economy and International Economic Law at the Universitat de Barcelona. He launched in 2008 and directed for 10 years the extinct Master of Laws in International Economic Law and Policy (IELPO LL.M.), a top-notch program that gathered salient Faculty and talented students from more than 84 nationalities, and whose graduates currently occupy leading positions worldwide.
He has coordinated a number of International, mainly EU-funded, projects of cooperation in Higher Education with Latin America, the Mediterranean, the EU’s Neighbouring Countries and Africa. He launched the process of the Arab – Euro Conferences on Higher Education (AECHE). He is currently (2019) the scientific coordinator of the Horizon 2020 project EULAC Focus («Giving Focus to the cultural, scientific and social dimension of EU – CELAC relations») as well as the President of OBREAL Global.
Arnau Valls
Co-Director of the Expert3D Postgraduate programme. Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Children’s Hospital (Spain)
Arnau Valls, BSc, MSc in Telecommunications Engineering from the Univeristat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC- BarcelonaTech) […]
He was a former fellow of the d·HEALTH Program (Stanford University Biodesign affiliated program).
Arnau Valls is currently working at the Research and Innovation Department of the Sant Joan de Déu Barcelona Children’s Hospital as R&D Engineer, coordinator of the 3D planning Unit and Co-Director of the Expert3D Postgraduate Course (www.expert3d.eu).
Vidya Yeravdekar
Pro Chancellor. Symbiosis International University and Chairperson. FICCI Higher Education Committee. (India) and Chair of the OBREAL Global Chapter India
Dr. Vidya Yeravdekar is the Principal Director of Symbiosis Society, which encompasses the Symbiosis schools, College of Arts & Commerce and institutions under the Symbiosis International University.[…]
She is also the Pro Chancellor of Symbiosis International University. A dream of her father, Dr. S. B Mujumdar, Founder and President of Symbiosis of creating ‘a home away from home’ for international students, Symbiosis today, has transformed itself into a multi-disciplinary, multinational, multi-cultural International University having students not only from all states of India but international students from 85 different countries. The University has institutes under 8 faculties viz. Management, Law, Humanities & Social Sciences, Health & Biological Sciences, Computer Studies, Engineering, Media & Communication, Architecture and Design. Management, Media, Law and Computer Science Institutes have been consistently ranked amongst the top ten in the country.
Dr. Vidya holds a Post Graduate Degree in Medicine, a degree in Law and Ph.D. in ‘Internationalisation of Higher Education in India’. She has been instrumental in bringing in innovative approaches to promote internationalisation. Her foresight and leadership have been instrumental in creating strategic collaborations with universities across the globe. Sharing her father’s desire for capacity building by imparting education for international students, she strives to create a “home away from home” by creating a conducive environment for international students.
Dr. Vidya has been able to influence policy regulations for promoting and bringing in innovative approaches to higher education in India through her appointments on various governmental bodies. She has been a member of University Grants Commission (UGC) for two terms, Central Advisory Board of Education (CABE) and Indian Council for Cultural Relations (ICCR). She has also been served as a Member on many other organizations such as Independent Director on the Board of RITES Limited under Ministry of Railways, Government of India, Indian Institute of Corporate Affairs, Yeshwantaro Chavan Maharashtra Open University, State Knowledge Advisory Board of Higher Education, Government of Andhra Pradesh, Sub-Group on Higher & Technical Education and Skill Development of Chief Minister’s Advisory Council, Government of Rajasthan.
She is a Chairperson of the FICCI Committee on Higher Education. Dr. Vidya has been appointed as Member of India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF) Trust. IBEF is a Trust set up by Ministry of Commerce & Industries, Government of India, to promote the ‘Brand India’ label in overseas markets and facilitate dissemination of information on Indian products and services. She has elected as Member of the Central Governing Council of Services Export Promotion Council (SEPC) set up by Ministry of Commerce & Industry, Government of India. It is an apex trade body which facilitates service exporters of India.
She is a member on the Board of several organisations like Rayat Shikshan Sanstha, Symbiosis University of Applied Sciences, Indore, Symbiosis Skills and Open University, Pune, Research Committee of the Association of Indian Universities (AIU) and Public Health Foundation of India.
She is a member of many corporate bodies such as Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce & Industry (FICCI), Confederation of India Industry (CII), Maratha Chambers of Commerce and Industries (MCCIA) and Not for profit organisations like HK Firodiya Foundation, India International Centre (IIC), Pune International Centre (PIC) & Pune Citizens Police Foundation (PCPF).
Dr. Vidya has presented papers at various National & International Conferences and has numerous research publications to her credit. She has authored books on ‘Internationalization of Higher Education in India’ based on her experiences and research in this field and ‘New Faces New Friends’ based on her experience with international students studying in Pune.
She has been ranked No.14 amongst India’s top 25 Powerful Women by Fame India Magazine. Dr.Vidya’s hard work has won her numerous awards and accolades and she is now focussed on making Symbiosis International University benchmarked amongst one of the best Universities in Asia.
Julio César Theiler
Professor at the Universidad Nacional del Litoral, (Argentina)
Julio César Theiler is a professor at the Universidad Nacional del Litoral (UNL), Argentina. He is currently Director of the Language Centre of the aforementioned University. He is also Advisor to the International Affairs Commission of the CIN. […]
He has participated in the design of different Academic Mobility programmes in Latin America, such as AUGM’s ESCALA ESTUDIANTIL, PIMA-OEI, JIMA Mexico-Argentina, MACA Colombia-Argentina and the Latin American Academic Exchange Programme (PILA).
He has participated as a lecturer and speaker in various academic events in different countries in Latin America and Europe, on topics related to the internationalisation of higher education.
He has authored and co-authored several books related to the internationalisation and cooperation of higher education in Latin America and the Caribbean, including co-author of the book «Educación Superior, Internacionalización e Integración Regional de América Latina y el Caribe», official publication of the CRES 2018.