IIE Blog: Negotiating Space in International Academic Partnerships: Lessons from South Africa

Clare Banks, Assistant Director of International Partnerships and IIE Initiatives discusses key points from Naureen Madhani’s chapter in the recent IIE publication Global Perspectives on Strategic International Partnerships: A Guide to Building Sustainable Academic Linkages. Banks explains how to navigate the space between two parties in a partnership and ensure equal collaboration and attribution that favors both sides, irrespective of their status or level of development and resources. "[Faculty members] created opportunities for frequent interaction with their partners by hosting them at home or, for example, accompanying them on site seeing. They were able to develop long-term relationships through a process of informal interaction. This development of trust and understanding enabled them to move their partnerships beyond good intentions to explicit articulation of shared outcomes and strategies—to a negotiated space."