The 10th Education International Asia-Pacific Regional Conference kicked off with a series of pre-conference events on October 10 to 12, setting the stage for deep-dive discussions on building resilient, inclusive, and future-proof education unions.

Day 1: Women’s Caucus – transforming unions from the inside out

The Women’s Caucus provided a vital platform for women unionists from across the region to build the skills, strategies, and solidarity needed to reshape their organisations.

Key highlights of the session included:

A keynote address from former Education International President Susan Hopgood;Updates from the sub-regional women’s networks;A panel discussion focusing on women leading union transformation across the Asia-Pacific;Group work centered on advancing gender equality to cultivate an inclusive, resilient, and sustainable trade union movement.

Core themes emerging from the dialogue included urgent concerns regarding gender-based violence and harassment, demands for stronger accountability frameworks, enhanced teacher safety and well-being protections, meaningful decision-making roles for young women, and dedicated outreach to Indigenous Communities.

Day 2: Indigenous, Higher Education, and Youth CaucusesIndigenous Caucus

This dedicated session centered Indigenous voices, allowing delegates to share lived experiences and channel collective action into real power. Discussions tackled the specific challenges and opportunities facing Indigenous educators and communities, strategies to embed Indigenous perspectives into future EIAP programs, and ways to strengthen Indigenous languages, cultures, and representation through union advocacy.

Participants reaffirmed that Indigenous Peoples must be active decisionmakers, not merely represented in discussions. The Caucus concluded with a strong call for collective action, solidarity and accountability to ensure Indigenous voices are translated into meaningful influence and systemic change.

Higher Education Caucus

The Higher Education Caucus zeroed in on how unions are pushing back against political interference to keep academic freedom alive. Key challenges highlighted included safeguarding professional autonomy and research integrity, defending democratic participation within higher education institutions, and building solidarity across an increasingly fragmented workforce.

Youth Caucus

Participants explored what the future of unionism looks like and how young educators are shaping it.

In addition to discussing findings from the EIAP Youth Research Study, the Caucus featured a dynamic young workers voices panel:

Roselyn Timauku (COPE Youth Chair) discussed establishing robust youth structures in unions to strengthen young unionists’ engagement and leadership.Galbadrakh Bilegdemberel (FMESU Youth Committee Head) shared how youth participation helped create a successful campaign for better teacher salaries in Mongolia.Maksimus Masan Kian (Head of PGRI East Flores NTT) highlighted how targeting youth recruitment and engagement helped build union presence across the country.Day 3: Go Public! Fund Education, Climate Caucus, and session on AI in educationGo Public! Fund Education

Public education is the cornerstone of a strong democracy and a just society. Yet across the Asia-Pacific, education systems face chronic underfunding, growing teacher shortages, and rising privatisation pressures.

During this session, union leaders shared campaigns and strategies to address teacher retention and recruitment, enhance the status of the teaching profession, and put educators at the heart of social transformation.

AI in Education

The session on artificial intelligence examined the ethics, risks, and opportunities of AI in education, exploring what it means to keep teachers at the heart of innovation.

Key presentations included:

Norzah Binti Muhamad (NUTP Executive Council Member) on Malaysia’s progressive integration of AI into education through a digital learning platform.Richardus Eko Indrajit (PGRI Vice President) on how Indonesia’s digital divide necessitates a human-centered approach to AI to prevent further educational inequalities.Ji-hee Kim (KTU Vice President) on how Korea’s COVID-era digital infrastructure has now expanded to include AI-powered digital textbooks and adaptive learning technologies.Gurumurthy Kasinathan (IT for Change Director) with a critical examination of AI and its implications for education, human cognition, social relationships, and technological inequality.Climate Caucus

The Climate Caucus brought together education union leaders, educators, and climate advocates to discuss the growing challenges confronting communities as the climate crisis impacts lives, livelihoods, and education systems across the region.

Highlights included:

Alanah Torralba (EIAP Consultant) reflecting on the progress, lessons, and impact of the Educators for Sustainable Development program.Mega Novita (PGRI) on why heat stress in the classroom is a climate justice issue and why climate protection in schools should be a public health and public education priority.Dr. Ranjana Das presenting key findings from the study “Towards Quality Climate Education for All: A Critical Assessment of Climate Education Policies in India and the Philippines”.Mr. C. L. Rose (AIFTO Secretary General) addressing how climate change is transforming the teaching profession and how education unions can lead just transition pathways in the sector.

These topics will be unpacked further during plenaries and breakout sessions throughout the conference.

You can follow along and join the conversation on social media using #EIAP2026.