Closing Keynote Speaker

Dr. Lavern Samuels

Vice President, Past President and President-Elect International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA)
Dr. Lavern Samuels

End the conference at the Closing Plenary with a dynamic keynote speech by Dr. Lavern Samuels, President-Elect of the International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA). Dr. Samuels will bring our 2022 conference to a close by sharing his perspective on inclusive, comprehensive internationalization through the lens of decolonization. Dr. Samuels will highlight how our work can serve as a bridge that connects the local and the global, creating space for voices, previously silent, to be heard, and enriching the world with new narratives to consider.

Dr. Samuels is the current Director of the International Education and Partnerships (IEP) Directorate at the Durban University of Technology (DUT). He was the Senate Representative on the University Council and the Council EXCO for 16 years. He is also the immediate past Chairperson of the DUT Institutional Forum, which he held for 14 years. Dr. Samuels is the Vice-President and immediate past Chairperson of the Director’s Forum of the International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA).

He is currently a member of the steering committee of the International Virtual Exchange Conference (IVEC) and represents South Africa on the Network of International Education Associations (NIEA), the global body for international education.

Dr. Samuels has accumulated vast experience in internationalization, having served as the president of the International Education Association of South Africa (IEASA) from 2012- 2014. He served five years on the Foreign Qualifications Committee of the South African Qualifications Authority (SAQA). In addition, he is also a Board Member of the International Centre for Non-Violence (ICON) and the ML Sultan Charitable and Educational Trust.