IEAA Transnational Education Forum 2026

Pankaj Bagri is a Chartered Accountant and a Partner at Deloitte India, with over 23 years of experience in Tax and Regulatory services. He leads the tax function for the Government, Education, and Public Sector (GEPS) vertical within the Deloitte India firm. Pankaj has extensive experience advising a wide range of stakeholders across India’s social and education ecosystem, including universities, schools, government bodies, not-for-profit organizations, and corporate philanthropic arms. He currently supports several foreign universities and schools in establishing their presence in India, providing end-to-end assistance from market entry to initial stabilization. His team of specialized professionals also deliver ongoing compliance and regulatory support. His expertise spans across tax, foreign exchange regulations, and internal defence /security legislations governing foreign contributions in India, enabling him to offer a comprehensive perspective on the country’s tax and regulatory landscape. In light of recent policy liberalization allowing foreign universities to establish campuses in India, Pankaj has been actively advising global institutions on India entry strategies and compliance frameworks. He also engages regularly with government authorities and international universities exploring opportunities in the Indian education sector.

Rebecca Bendall is the Director, Partnership Development for Acumen and has 13+ years in international education. In her current position, she collaborates with institutions and businesses to offer solutions and opportunities for achieving their international expansion objectives. Previously, she was the Director, International Business Development at Torrens Global Education, spearheading global recruitment initiatives and tech enhancements. Her expertise encompasses business development, strategy, operations, marketing, and project management at Monash and Urbanest. Rebecca's leadership extends to roles in industry associations like the Student Accommodation Association and IEAA (past board member).

Peter Burgess is the Principal Partner and CEO of EdBiz Pty Ltd, an Australian education consultancy with strong internationalisation credentials. Peter has held academic and administrative positions in Australia, UK and China and has sat on various higher education Academic and Governance Boards in Australia, Singapore and Sri Lanka. Peter was inaugural Chair of the ‘Australian Universities Transnational Education Forum’. He has presented at numerous Australian and International Education Conferences and published widely on cross border and international education, including papers on Transnational Education and the Australian Schools Sector; Australian Transnational Higher Education and Offshore Student Flows; Chapters in the ‘AIEA SAGE Handbook on International Education’ and the Springer publication ‘Education Across Borders’; together with Australian International Education (AEI) TNE publications. Peter is also listed as an external expert with the Australian government Tertiary Education Quality & Standards Agency and advisor to education clients across Australia, Asia and USA.

Jon Chew is Chief Insights Officer at Navitas, a global education provider with over 100 colleges and campuses in 18 countries, where he leads the organisation’s data-driven culture. Jon is recognised as one of the world’s preeminent market analysts in international education and brings in-depth expertise on global trends in education, built on the rigorous analysis of a wide range of external and in-house datasets. His work is informed by an up-to-the-minute industry perspective developed collaboratively with a global network of stakeholders, policy-makers and experts. Jon was the recipient of the IEAA Excellence Award in Professional Commentary in 2022. Prior to joining Navitas, Jon spent 10 years in management and policy consulting, and began his career as a public-sector economist.

Nigel de Silva is a senior leader in transnational education with over three decades of experience establishing and managing international campus and partnership operations. He has played a direct role in developing branch campuses and TNE models across Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, the United Arab Emirates, China, Mauritius, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Australia — giving him firsthand insight into the regulatory, operational, and strategic dimensions of establishing global campuses. As Director, Global Partnerships at Curtin University, Nigel leads the university’s transnational strategy and oversees the governance and operations of Curtin’s network of global campuses in Malaysia, Singapore, Dubai, Mauritius and Sri Lanka. His work encompasses the full lifecycle of TNE delivery — from host country regulatory engagement and site feasibility through to campus governance, quality assurance, and long-term sustainability. He brings particular expertise in navigating the complex government, institutional, and community relationships that underpin successful branch campus models. Nigel is also a PhD candidate at Curtin, researching international partnerships in higher education, bringing an evidence-informed perspective to the strategic and policy challenges facing Australian universities operating transnationally. He is recognised for his ability to translate complex cross-cultural and regulatory environments into sustainable TNE partnerships that deliver genuine impact for students, institutions, and host communities.

Tim Gilbert is a seasoned professional in the field of international education, particularly transnational education, including stand-alone commercial partnerships, capacity development, and feeder programs. As the head of Melbourne Polytechnic's International Partnerships division since 2019, he has successfully established new models of transnational delivery and expanded the institution's reach into new markets, resulting in it being recognized as Victoria's top-performing TAFE internationally winning several Victorian Government awards in 2023. Melbourne Polytechnic’s International Partnerships directorate has been at the forefront of developing VET micro credentials for offshore delivery, leading the collaboration with Victorian TAFE counterparts, with the goal of scaling Australian VET expertise throughout the region. Under Tim's leadership, Melbourne Polytechnic has also focused on customizing its educational offerings to cater to the specific needs of local markets, while also providing pathways for students to continue their education in Australia. Overseeing both international student recruitment as well as international partnerships, Tim has been able to integrate strict admissions criteria into the transnational programs to allow for streamlined articulations onshore.

Ms Swapna Hegde is the Manager, International Partnerships (South Asia) at RMIT University, bringing over 18 years of experience across the international higher education sector. Her career spans senior roles within the Australian higher education sector, providing strategic leadership across international student engagement, partnership development, and the oversight of high stakes assessment processes. At RMIT, Swapna manages the University’s flagship strategic partnership with the Birla Institute of Technology and Sciences (BITS), leading partnership operations and supporting commercial TNE arrangements. She has played a key role in the launch of the BITS RMIT Higher Education Academy and progressing new transnational education program launches across India, while driving student mobility, transition, and experiential learning initiatives. Previously, Swapna served as a Knowledge Economy Officer with the British Trade Office (UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office) in India, developing expertise in international education markets. She is deeply committed to fostering innovative, sustainable global partnerships that deliver meaningful impact in higher education.

Philipp Ivanov is a leading strategist and advisor on geopolitical risk and foreign policy, with over two decades of executive experience across government, business, think tanks and universities in Australia, the United States, China, Asia and Russia. He is currently Chief Global Resilience Officer at RMIT University - Australia’s global university of technology, design and enterprise. He is the Founder of GRASP (Geopolitical Risks and Strategy Practice), a specialist advisory firm helping companies, governments and universities navigate global disruption, mitigate geopolitical risk and build institutional resilience. Philipp is a trusted advisor to C-suite, university leaders and senior policymakers on risk, strategy, China, and major-power competition. Philipp brings a rare, lived perspective — having worked in China, Russia and the United States — the three powers at the core of today’s geopolitical upheaval A globally recognised expert on China and China-Russia relations, Philipp has been published in New York Times, Financial Times, South China Morning Post, Bloomberg, CNBC, and The Australian Financial Review. A passionate advocate for Asia literacy, he co-led the Business Council of Australia’s National Asia Taskforce, and founded and co-edited the 5-volume Disruptive Asia essay series. Previously, Philipp was Global Chief Programming Officer and Senior Fellow at Asia Society New York, where he led global strategy across 16 international centres and founded the China-Russia Program. From 2015 to 2023, he was CEO of Asia Society Australia, which he transformed into Australia’s leading business and policy institution focused on Asia — tripling its revenue, expanding its policy impact, and securing a new national HQ in Melbourne, in partnership with the Victorian Government. Earlier in his career, he served as a diplomat and China policy officer at the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, where he co-authored Australia’s first public China Country Strategy. Philipp has deep sectoral experience in higher education. He was Deputy and Acting Director at the University of Sydney’s Research Institute for Asia and the Pacific, and advised the Vice-Chancellor on China offshore centre strategy. At La Trobe University, he led international scholarship and transnational partnerships across Southeast Asia and the Gulf. Philipp is currently an Industry Fellow at UTS Business School and a Visiting Scholar at the School of Foreign Service, Georgetown University. He holds board and advisory roles with the Foundation for Australian Studies in China (FASIC), Australian Centre for International Trade and Investment (ACITI), Global Women Asia, and Geopolitical Strategy. A Fulbright Scholar in US-Australia Alliance Studies (Georgetown, 2023), Australian Government’s Endeavour Executive Fellow (China National Academy of Education Administration, 2009) and a McKinsey Executive Leadership Program alumnus, Philipp has lived and worked in China, United States and Russia. He speaks fluent Chinese and Russian. When off the grid, you’ll find him soaking in the raw majesty of the South Australian outback.

Dr. Jason E. Lane is Senior Advisor to the President of the University of Illinois System and a Professor at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. He leads system-level initiatives focused on global engagement, economic development, and cross-sector partnerships. He also serves as Director of the Association of Governing Boards’ Institute for Leadership & Governance in Higher Education, working with governing boards and senior leaders across the United States and internationally. A Fulbright New Century Scholar and leading expert on transnational education, Dr. Lane is co-founder of the Cross-Border Education Research Team (C-BERT), which maintains the world’s most comprehensive database on international branch campuses. His research and advisory work examine the intersection of higher education, geopolitics, and global strategy. Previously, he served as Vice Provost and Senior International Officer for the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Dr. Lane has collaborated with organizations including OECD, UNESCO, and the United Nations Sustainable Development Solutions Network, advising governments and universities in more than 30 countries.

Brendon Lutwyche is the Associate Director Future Students International at the Australian National University with oversight for the university's international recruitment, agent management, sponsor and stakeholder engagement portfolio. Prior to this role he worked in several positions at the University of Queensland in the areas of international strategy, partnerships, recruitment and marketing, admissions, international development, and administration. He has represented the sector on the Cambridge International Higher Education Advisory Council (HEAC) Australia, TIME Association General Assembly, Australian Business Dean's Council International Network, and the Australia China Business Council Queensland Branch Education Working Group. Brendon has also lived in and taught English in Japan, and has more than twenty-five years’ experience in the international education sector. He holds a BArts (Modern Asian Studies) from Griffith University and a GradCert Executive Leadership from the University of Queensland.

Caryn has worked in international education for over 25 years in a variety of roles including teaching, teacher training, academic coordination and TNE partnership management. Caryn has been involved in the leadership of the TNE Network for over 10 years and is a highly regarded TNE expert. She joined Victoria University as Director, Transnational Education Partnerships in June 2019, and oversees partnerships in Malaysia, China, Sri Lanka, and India. Prior to this, Caryn worked as Associate Director, Partnerships and Development at Monash College and spent 9 years at RMIT, managing TNE partnerships in the Asian region.

Keri is an Economist with over 18 years’ experience in international education. He previously worked at Macquarie University after completing his Master in International Business. He was the Virtual Marketing Coordinator at Macquarie International which saw him manage, not only the universities international online marketing strategies, but also managed the marketing intelligence reports, student communication and enquiry protocols for Macquarie International. He established Studymove in 2007 and has completed various consulting projects for numerous Australian and International universities in the areas of benchmarking in Learning Abroad, marketing intelligence and online marketing. Keri loves stats and loves telling a story with data! He has presented at various domestic and international conferences including AIEC, APAIE and NAFSA. Keri won the 2025 IEAA Excellence Award in Professional Commentary.