2026 Asia Capability Forum

The 2026 Asia Capability Forum, co-convened by the ASEAN-Australia Centre and the Sydney Southeast Asia Centre, will bring together leaders and practitioners from universities, government, business, education and community organisations to consider practical ways to strengthen Australia’s Asia capability.

The Forum will focus on effective practices, scalable models and opportunities for greater coordination across sectors. Informed by recent national policy developments, discussions will aim to generate practical recommendations that can be progressed through collaboration between universities and their partners.

Program

8:30 am
Registration

9:00 am
Welcome to Country and opening remarks

9:10 am

Panel 1: Solving the language pipeline

Asian languages in crisis and Indonesian literacy in Australia

This session will explore the challenges facing Asian-language education in Australia, with a particular focus on Indonesian literacy. The discussion will consider opportunities to strengthen language education pathways, participation and Australia’s long-term Asia capability.

10:20 am

Panel 2: Universities as guardians of sovereign capability

Hubs, compacts and research

This panel will examine the role of universities in supporting Australia’s sovereign capability, particularly in the context of science, technology, defence and artificial intelligence. The discussion will consider how research, education and institutional partnerships can help develop and sustain expertise relating to Asia.

11:10 am

Panel 3: Building Asia capability beyond the classroom

Government, business and the future

This session will spotlight successful examples of cooperation between government, education and business. The discussion will consider how cross-sector partnerships, professional pathways and international experiences can build Asia capability beyond formal classroom settings.

12:00 pm

Closing session

The Forum will conclude with the presentation of a joint communiqué highlighting the key themes, priorities and recommendations arising from the panel discussions.

12:40 pm
Lunch

When: Thursday, 5 November 2026, 8:30am–1:00pm

In person: The Refectory, level 5, The University of Sydney Business School

Registration is essential, as venue capacity is limited.