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In December, Robin Banerjee, Pro-Vice-Chancellor for Global & Civic Engagement, and Peter Boddy, Head of Global Partnerships, travelled to Bangkok to take part in Mahidol University’s International Partnerships Week. The visit brought together Mahidol’s closest strategic partners and offered an opportunity to reflect on how long-standing relationships can translate into meaningful day-to-day collaboration across research, education and capacity building. 

The Sussex–Mahidol partnership grew from close academic links - particularly through the Sussex Centre for Migration Research - and has since developed into a broad institutional relationship spanning collaborative research with impact, student mobility, and shared approaches to academic development. Because the two universities know each other well, collaboration is not limited to individual projects or funding calls, but extends to sharing best practice, institutional insight and long-term ambition. 

A key mechanism supporting this work is the Mahidol-Sussex Seed Fund, jointly supported by both institutions. Round 4 opens this month. The fund helps catalyse new and emerging collaborations, supporting visits between research groups, interdisciplinary project development, joint publications and the preparation of external funding bids. Alongside this, the closeness of the partnership itself enables the sharing of experience and expertise, strengthening capacity on both sides. 

That closeness was clear throughout the week, with Sussex featuring prominently in Mahidol’s partnership showcase across academic collaboration, research, mobility and capacity building. Mahidol highlighted our articulation pathways, progression to postgraduate study and joint initiatives such as the Seed Fund, alongside student perspectives that reflected how closely the two institutions work together. 

Research collaboration was a particular focus, with the Sussex–Mahidol migration partnership recognised as a flagship area of joint activity. The Sussex delegation visited laboratories and teaching spaces and met with faculty across disciplines, exploring new opportunities ranging from nutrition and conservation science to physical geography, chemistry and international development. 

Education and student pathways were also central to discussions. Alongside existing Life Sciences articulation routes - allowing students to begin their studies in Bangkok and complete their final undergraduate years at Sussex - conversations focused on expanding these pathways, including through creating new opportunities for  ICT students to spend time at Sussex, and exploring the co-delivery of an iPGCE to support teacher development and capacity building in Thailand. 

Across a busy and thoughtfully designed week, partners shared not only research strengths but also approaches to partnership development itself. The visit reinforced a shared view that collaboration is about more than papers and grants - it is about sharing knowledge, opportunity and confidence in what can be built together next. 

Sussex thanks Mahidol University and the Global Partnerships Division, led by Assoc. Prof. NopraenueSajjaraxDhirathiti, for their warm welcome and excellent coordination. The visit strengthened an already close partnership and set a clear, forward-looking agenda for the next phase of collaboration.