Nishat Riaz, Global, head of higher education systems and internationalization and TNE lead at the British Council tells us how the seeds of her passion for international education started as a young child in a small, rural, remote valley in the Punjab mountains, where she began to connect with other cultures through books of different countries. This intercultural experience became a reality when she joined the British, where she was able to appreciate the power of international education in developing the empathy and ethics required to overcome cultural divides and unhelpful polarisations, and in developing and sharing the knowledge and solutions needed to address common challenges.

Nishat shares her reflections on the potential of technological innovation to break down geographical barriers, warning about the risks of creating a digital divide, and on the importance of making international education inclusive, and the critical role that equitable TNE partnerships can play in fostering mutual learning and respect for diverse ways of thinking. She also shares her insights into developments in the Pakistan higher education landscape as the country is turning to international education to meet the education and training needs of the 5th most populous country where 60% of the population is under 30… and the memorable experience of meeting at the airport a beneficiary of the Scottish Pakistan scholarship program she managed, as she was embarking on her first international journey through a scholarship for postgraduate studies in the UK.