Keynote Speakers

Joan DeJaeghere is a Distinguished International Professor of Comparative and International Development Education and co-chair of the UNESCO Chair in Education, Equity, and Wellbeing at the University of Minnesota. As faculty director of Global Education Research, she focuses on educational inequalities, democratic citizenship, sustainable livelihoods, and wellbeing. She has authored four books, including Reflexive Mixed Methods Research (2024) and Educating Entrepreneurial Citizens (2017), and over 60 articles. A former Fulbright Fellow in Vietnam (2013) and Visiting Fellow in Australia and India (2023), she leads transdisciplinary research and partnerships in over 15 countries, including collaborations with UNESCO, the Global Partnership for Education, and the Mekong Development Research Institute.

Professor Ly Tran is a leading scholar in international education at Deakin University’s School of Education. She leads two Australian Government-funded projects: the Australia-Vietnam Enhanced Economic Engagement Strategy (EEES) - Internationalisation of Higher Education, co-hosted with Vietnam’s Ministry of Education, and the Best Practice in International Student Engagement. She founded the Australia-Vietnam International Education Centre and leads the International Student Graduate Employability Research Group. Recognized as one of The PIE’s “Top 50 Voices” (2023), she has received awards like the Melbourne Asia Game Changer Award and IEAA Excellence Awards (2014, 2021). Prof. Tran has delivered over 100 keynote and plenary talks globally, specializing in international student experiences, graduate employability, student mobility, and higher education internationalisation in the Australia-Asia context.

Dr. Hiroshi Ota is a Professor at the Center for General Education at Hitotsubashi University, Tokyo, where he serves as Director of the Hitotsubashi University Global Education Program. Prior to his current position, he worked for the Office for the Promotion of International Relations at Hitotsubashi University, the School of Commerce and Management as International Student Advisor at Hitotsubashi University, the Office of International Education at the State University of New York at Buffalo, and Toyo University, Tokyo. His research primarily focuses on higher education policies and practices related to internationalization and international student mobility from a comparative perspective. From the State University of New York at Buffalo, Ota received his Ed.M. and Ph.D. in Social Foundations of Education with a dual title in Comparative and Global Studies in Education. He was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study international education administration in the U.S. in 1996 and was invited by Harvard-Yenching Institute as a Visiting Scholar from 2023-24.

Stefanie Sauer, a qualified social worker and social pedagogue with a PhD in educational science, is a professor of social work methods at the Evangelical University of Applied Sciences Berlin. Her work and research focuses on families, migration, and counseling. She is currently conducting a research on migrants from Vietnam to Germany.

Dr. Christian Gedschold is a philosopher, educator, sociologist and actor. With his dissertation on the experiences of young people in theater clubs, he was awarded a Dr. phil. Doctorate by the PH Ludwigsburg. He teaches at various universities of applied science in the fields of social work and cultural education. As a research assistant, he is involved in the LaVie study on the living environments of Vietnamese migrants in Germany.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE • Professor, Teachers College, Columbia University, 2016-present • Director, National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, & Teaching (NCREST), 2020 – present • Associate Professor (with tenure), Teachers College, Columbia University, 2008-2015 • Associate Professor, Teachers College, Columbia University, 2003-2008 • Co-Director, National Center for Restructuring Education, Schools, &Teaching (NCREST), 2003-2020 • Senior Scholar, The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching, 1997-2003 • Project Director, the ATLAS Seminar, Harvard Project Zero, 1993-1997 AWARDS • Visiting Scholar, Beijing Normal University & Scholar-in-Residence, Columbia Global Center, Beijing, 2024 • Fulbright Finland Alumni Award, 2023 • J. William Fulbright Specialist Grant (Finland), 2014 • J. William Fulbright Scholar to Norway, 2009-2010 • Visiting Scholar, Stanford University, 1996-1997 • Spencer Dissertation Fellowship, 1989-1990 • Distinguished Achievement Award for Excellence in Educational Journalism, Educational Press Association of America, 1989

Dr. Junghyun Jasmine Ryu is a researcher and higher education professional at the International Exchange Division, Center for Global Education, University of Tokyo. She earned her PhD in International Studies from Waseda University, where her research examined bilateral relationships in higher education through comparative analysis of South Korea’s relations with the United States and Japan. Her academic interests include comparative and international higher education, international student mobility, educational development, and inclusive education for displaced and marginalized learners. Dr. Ryu has published research on global education and migration and actively contributes to international collaborations aimed at promoting equitable access and cooperation in higher education systems.

Dr. Diep Nguyen is a Lecturer in Education Research Methodologies at the School of Education, Deakin University, Australia. Her research focuses on internationalisation of higher education, international student engagement, student mobility, and education policy. She holds a PhD in Education from Deakin University, where her doctoral research examined academics’ capacity for internationalisation in higher education. Dr. Nguyen has contributed to several projects funded by the Australian Government and the Australian Research Council, including research on international student engagement and geopolitics in international education. She has published widely in international journals and books and actively contributes to scholarly communities through research collaboration and peer review.