The following speakers will be presenting at AIEC 2008

Dr William Tan

An Alumnus of the National University of Singapore a Harvard University Fulbright Scholar and an Oxford University’s Raffles Scholar, William Tan is also a neuroscientist, medical doctor, Olympic wheelchair athlete and world records holder. For the last 18 years, Dr William Tan has raised $16 million through his 60 ultra marathons, which included pushing himself in his racing wheelchair through gravel and snow from the North to the South Poles. Hear his remarkable story and learn how his experiences have shaped his outlook on life.

Dr Hans de Wit

Hans de Wit is editor of the Journal of Studies in International Education, Dean of Windesheim Honours College in the Netherlands, and a founding member of the European Association for International Education (EAIE). He has been a Fulbright scholar, a visiting scholar: among others Visiting Scholar Australian Universities Teaching Committee (AUTC), 2002, and has published widely on international education. A new book, The Dynamics in International Student Circulation in a Global Context has been recently published.

ProfessorJohn K Hudzik

NAFSA President-Elect and with a long academic career at Michigan State University, Prof Hudzik currently serves as the Vice President for Global Engagement and Strategic Projects. Prior to this appointment he served as dean of International Studies and Programs. Dr Hudzik has also served in leadership roles in a variety of international organizations, including the Association of International Education Administrators (AIEA), the Midwest Universities Consortium for International Activities, USAID Higher Education for Development, and Australian Education International.

Professor Obdulio Velásquez Posada

Obdulio Velásquez, (LLM) the 4th President of Sabana University (Bogotá) is a distinguished professor of Torts Law and innovative leader in Higher education. He assumed the presidency of Sabana University in January 2006.

Professor Velásquez, 44, earned law degree at the University of Bolivariana, Medellin, Colombia. He earned a Master of laws at the university of Melbourne-Australia (2004). He currently is a PHD candidate. Prior to his appointment as President of Sabana University, Dr Velásquez was Vice-president of the Sabana.  During the last 18 years, he advanced his scholarly and administrative career, serving as dean of the Law Faculty and member of the Superior Council.

Professor Velásquez is member of a research group recognized by Colciencias  in private law (grade A). He has researched and published extensively in torts law.

John Cribbin

School Secretary & Registrar, HKU SPACE. HKU SPACE currently has an enrolment of 110,000, including 7,000 full-time students, a staff of 900 and an income of over HK$900 million.

John Cribbin is a career University administrator. Since 1990 he has been School Secretary & Registrar at the University of Hong Kong School of Professional and Continuing Education (HKU SPACE), a Deputy Registrar level post. A graduate of University College London, he also holds a Masters degree in HRM/ Training from Leicester University and is currently completing an Ed.D. programme with Nottingham University.

He has worked at Kings College London, the UK Open University and the University of Hong Kong. 

Professor Michael McDaniel

Michael McDaniel is a member of the Wiradjuri nation of central New South Wales.

In 2006 Michael took up the position of Dean, Indigenous Education at the University of Western Sydney. Prior to this position he was Director of Warawara Department of Indigenous Studies at Macquarie University and before that was Director of Indigenous Programs within the Faculty of Education at the University of Technology, Sydney.

Apart from these positions, at various times Michael has held part-time lectureships in Indigenous education at the Australian Catholic University, Sydney. Over the years Michael has worked closely with International units within a number of Universities and more recently has encouraged his own university to indigenise its International agenda. 

Professor Elspeth Jones

Elspeth Jones is Professor of the Internationalisation of Higher Education and International Dean at Leeds Metropolitan University. She is responsible for leading the University’s ambitious internationalisation plans.  These include all aspects of the international student experience, from recruitment to alumni relations, internationalisation for home students, and associated staff development.  With a background in applied linguistics and teaching English as a foreign language, Elspeth has many years’ experience of learning, assessment and cross-cultural issues for students from a wide variety of nationalities and cultural backgrounds.  She worked at the British Council in Japan for three years and in Singapore for four years.  Her output includes Internationalising Higher Education (edited with Sally Brown) (Routledge 2007), Setting the Agenda for Languages in Higher Education (edited with David Head, Mike Kelly and Teresa Tinsley) (CILT, 2003) and is currently editing her next book entitled, Internationalisation: the Student Voice. She has delivered many keynote speeches around the world and authored a range of chapters and papers on values-driven internationalisation and world-wide horizons.  Elspeth also initiated Leeds Met’s International Reflections webpage and has edited it for four years.

Dr Neil Kemp OBE

Neil leads his own international education consultancy company which is concerned with the global market for education and training, international student mobility and, more broadly, the role of education and training in developing countries. He has worked and lived in India (seven years in Kolkata and New Delhi), Malaysia, Kenya, Sri Lanka and spent eight years in Indonesia where he was the British Council Director. He has also held various posts in the British Council, UK, including as Director, Science and Technology, and Director, Education UK.

He is author of a variety of publications in international education including (with IDP Education Australia) ‘Vision 2020: Forecasting International Student Mobility’.

He has been a member of the UK government's Education and Training Export Group, the Higher Level Steering Group for the UK Prime Minister's Initiative on International Students, the Education UK Board and Chair of the Marketing Committee for the UK New Route PhD programme. He is a member of the Steering Committee for the EU Erasmus Mundus study at ACA, Brussels.

Robert Lawrence

Robert Lawrence is hailed as one of the world’s leading specialists in education market research, market planning and brand building. His experience includes the development of destination strategies for many national, State and provincial governments; over sixty universities across seven countries; and numerous organisations ranging from multinationals to Government agencies. With extensive experience in market planning and communications, Robert is widely regarded as an expert in forecasting education demand and industry trends, audience needs and expectations, and key influencing factors.

Dr Khaled Salih

At the AIEC 2005  Dr Khaled Salih, gave a keynote address discussing the pre and post-war Iraqi education system, the initial reconstruction plans for education after the war, achievements since mid 2003, the longer-term education goals and the major challenges, both country-wide and regional, facing education in Iraq.  He also examined the extent to which the political and constitutional processes facilitated and/or impeded the reconstruction of education in Iraq.   Dr Salih is back in 2008 to present an update on the situation in Iraq and give his thoughts on where the Iraqi education is heading given events in the intervening years.

Peter Baines

Peter Baines is an expert at creating successful results starting from nothing - no time, no money, no staff, but as Peter says, ‘No worries’. Throughout almost two decades Peter has experienced and led people through some of life’s most challenging events, as a Detective Inspector of Operations within the Forensic Services Group of the NSW Police. Through his experiences, Peter offers a rare insight into what it takes to lead powerfully and with compassion, taking audiences into a world of crisis management where Leadership Matters.

Archie Roach, Ruby Hunter & Shane Howard

Archie Roach is an Australian singer, songwriter and guitarist. He survived a turbulent upbringing as one of the stolen generation to develop into a powerful voice for indigenous Australians, a storyteller in the tradition of his ancestors, and a nationally popular and respected artist. He turned his story into a song ‘Took the Children Away’ which earned him the Human Rights Achievement Award. It was the first time the award was ever presented to a songwriter. His lifelong partner, and musical soul mate Ruby Hunter is also a singer and songwriter and one of Australia’s stolen generation. A Ngarrindjeri/Kukatha/Pitjantjatjara woman from South Australia, she often performs with Archie and together they have collaborated with the Australian Art Orchestra and have so far created two hugely successful shows: Ruby's Story and Kura Tungar: River Songs and Stories.   Shane Howard was one of the first Australian musicians to broach the subject of Aboriginal rights and he impacted powerfully on a generation of musicians who followed. His songs (remember Goanna and ‘Solid Rock’!) pay homage to the culture both of his Irish ancestors and the Aboriginal people whose land he lives on. A quiet but passionate rebel, he continues to provide a local, national and international view of Australia and Australians through his songs and stories. He and his songs continue to provide meaningful insights into the human spirit and interpret the Australian landscape in a way that has helped to build a bridge between Aboriginal and non Aboriginal peoples.

Nils Vesk

Author, TV host, creative coach for executives, corporate trainer & yoga instructor, Nils will get you thinking with his presentation: Create, innovate, ideate... Do you have a culture of creativity and a formalised system of idea generation? Do you challenge the way you do business and strive for greatness every day? Do you have a great status quo, or a status ho-hum? Take the guesswork out of creativity, making it easier for you to turn your struggle to create ideas into a red-hot ability to make things happen.