Dr Tariq Umar, Senior Lecturer from the School of Architecture and Environment (College and of Arts and Technology, UWE Bristol) was invited by the Southeast Asian Ministers of Education Organization (SEAMEO), Regional Institute for Higher Education Development (RIHED), to share his experience and work on Gender Equity, Diversity and Inclusivity (GEDI) with 40 government and HEI (Higher Education Institution) leaders from 11 South East Asian countries. The event was held on 24 and 25 October 2024 in Bangkok, Thailand.
In his keynote, Dr Umar outlined a brief history of the University, starting from 1595, and its transformation to its current status where the University has three colleges and 10 Schools with over 30 research centres and groups. He further stated how EDI (Equality, Diversity and Inclusion) are embodied in UWE Bristol’s four broad research themes: 1. Digital futures, 2. Health and wellbeing, 3. Creative industries and technologies and 4. Sustainability and climate change resilience.
Dr Umar presented how EDI underpin UWE Bristol’s core values by focusing on inclusive culture, how people are core to its shared success, and how we care deeply about career and personal development. He further gave examples on governance and voice, inclusive teaching and learning, hate incident reporting, EDI polices and guidance, technician commitment, and EDI Champions who demonstrate the University’s commitment to EDI.
Above: Dr Tariq Umar
Dr Umar expressed his views on the challenges around EDI in South East Asia countries’ HEIs and shared his thoughts on potential solutions to address these challenges. He particularly focused on the SEAMEO’s member countries who have different cultures, context, priorities and policies; and how EDI might face different levels of resistance and dimensions.
At the same time, he gave the example of the UK, which has a vibrant society, different cultures and languages, and how different universities tackle the challenges of EDI. He stated that there is a lot to learn from each other’s experiences. He gave the examples of current projects and collaborations where UWE Bristol is collaborating with different partners around the world, including South East Asia. He discussed his current project “Developing inclusive policies and practices for greater accessibility in Higher Education” in collaboration with Universitas Nahdlatul Ulama (UNU) Yogyakarta where he is aiming to develop a road map to reduce access gap and to mainstream inclusive education practice in Indonesian higher education.
The potential solution and a starting point, shared by Dr Umar, to address the issues of EDI in South East Asian countries’ HEIs was to focus on the inclusive leadership and diversity in higher education. He outlined how a cross-cultural research initiative between the UK and South East Asia could be important to foster inclusive leadership and diversity in higher education. He shared the proposed objectives of the potential collaboration, outlined the key areas to focus, discussed the collaboration mechanism, and highlighted the expected outcomes. All 40 government and HEI leaders from 11 South East Asian countries showed a great interest in the proposed idea for research collaboration.
Lastly, Dr Umar had separate meetings with representatives from the South East Asian countries where they discussed potential collaborations, looked into their specific needs and context, and set a timeframe for future follow-up meetings.
Following the event, the SEAMEO RIHED expressed deep appreciation for Dr Umar’s vital contribution via a letter of acknowledgement. Dr Umar’s presentation provided practical, globally informed strategies for embedding inclusive policies and infrastructures in Southeast Asian higher education. His focus on the intersection of disability, gender equity, and accessible environments added critical depth to the discussions. The letter highlights the immediate impact of his contribution, including increased institutional awareness, strengthened regional collaboration, and growing interest in cross-border partnerships focused on inclusive education, policy development, and institutional resilience.