Abstract
International partnerships are increasingly strategic, yet increasingly tested — by geopolitical volatility, shifting national priorities, funding pressure and the rapid spread of AI. Building on our 2026 APAIE framework for evaluating partnership impact, this workshop session asks how strategic partnerships stay resilient and purposeful when the operating environment will not hold still.
Drawing on the Adelaide–Freiburg–Nottingham workshop at APAIE 2026 which considered strategic partnerships across three countries and higher education systems, the workshop will draw on the experiences of the University of Nottingham Malaysia and examine how institutions sustain trust, adapt priorities and protect meaningful impact under pressure. We look honestly at where data and AI genuinely help – horizon-scanning, analytics, easing administrative load – and where they do not: the trust, judgement and shared values that only people build.
As AI makes content abundant and uniform, the human relationship becomes the differentiator. Aligned with APAIE 2027’s focus on humanity in the AI age, the session offers a practical resilience lens and structured peer discussion so participants leave with approaches they can apply at home, exploring how accountability, shared values and human connection underpin partnerships that endure.
Learning objectives
Participants will:
- Identify the pressures — geopolitical, financial and technological — that most threaten the resilience of international partnerships;
- Understand the characteristics that make partnerships resilient: trust, shared values, adaptive governance and strong human relationships;
- Distinguish where AI and data add genuine value to partnership management from where human judgement remains essential;
- Apply a practical resilience lens to assess and strengthen partnerships in their own institutional context;
- Benchmark their current practice against peer institutions from across the Asia-Pacific and beyond;
- Leave with at least one concrete approach to adopt or adapt on return to their institution.
Target audience
Staff who manage, evaluate or develop international partnerships: global engagement leads, international office teams, partnership and mobility managers, institutional planners and academic leads, especially those navigating geopolitical and technological change who want practical, human-centred approaches to resilience.