Global Mindset workshop: the Australasian and International Boards get together in Singapore

Prior to the eXperience Asia Regional Conference in Singapore this year, both the Australasian Council and the International Board took the opportunity to have their meetings.

Within the Learning Environments Australasia Regional Council we discussed current activities affecting the organisation, including funding, our regional and chapter events, branding, sponsorship and research. The face to face meetings are always a good opportunity for our Regional representatives and Executive to get together and discuss the organisation from our own particular perspectives.

It was heartening to hear how energetic everyone is within LEA and the great plans we have to grow our organisation further.

Regionally, our membership has increased slightly which is good news following last year’s downturn. So welcome to all our new members, and we hope you get as much out of the organisation as we do. We are lucky to have strong sponsor support across all Chapters and a large variety of events.

The Region has set up three subcommittees to develop our strategic programmes – Awards, Membership and Research. If you would like to be involved in the Research subcommittee please contact your local Chapter Chair to register your interest.

Following our Regional Board meeting, we had the unique opportunity to join with the International Board, after they completed their concurrent board meeting. This was the first time that the whole International Board have attended an Australasian region conference, so we were very lucky to get the chance to come together and learn from each other.

This was an exciting opportunity to mix with our mostly-American counterparts and learn about our similarities and differences within the organisation. Philip Idle, International Chair-Elect led both boards in a global mindset activity, and the energy in the room was palpable.

Through all our discussions, many common themes emerged. Although we are working within different educational systems and with differing pedagogical drivers, our purpose is universal – to create better spaces for learning.

The development of the Association’s global mindset is a major focus as we progress from being a North American-focused association to a truly international group. We all agreed that the reason we are committed to the organisation is the multiple perspectives and mix of expertise from a range of dedicated volunteers keen to learn more about learning, by networking, sharing ideas and ‘rowing together rather than paddling alone’.

It was a very informative session which hopefully helps inform the future direction of the organisation, and was a great personal opportunity for all involved.

Dani Martin, WA Chapter Chair

Photos by Bill Dixon and Troy Glover