PREFACE This year the Association has continued to navigate the everevolving COVID-19 crisis and to influence and shape policy for our sector. We have structured the annual report around the three key pillars of the Association’s strategic plan:
Advocacy, policy and representation IEAA’s advocacy role in shaping sector policy is more crucial than ever. As we face some hard challenges and roadblocks, the Association continues to be a united voice for our sector to advocate the interests of our members, the international student cohort, and engage governments and the wider community to foster a shared understanding of the richness our sector brings to Australia. In the past year, we continue to represent key federal and state level advisory committees, and have been profiled across various media outlets and platforms. At its core, the Association remains a resilient champion for international education.
Professional learning IEAA maintains its role as the leading provider of professional learning for international education professionals, despite the challenges presented by the pandemic. Our professional learning calendar of Network forums and webinars continue to be a great asset for IEAA members and non-members alike. They have become well-established annual events and I thank all those who have contributed to making the virtual events engaging and informative. Our webinar delivery has been impressive, with over 3000 registrations for webinars in 2020–1. While the sector could not come together physically, we could at least connect colleagues across Australia and across the globe and begin to re-imagine how international education can operate in a post-COVID-19 world.
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