IAUP VI “Sir Enan Galaly” Seminar on Leadership Development for New Presidents and Emerging Leaders
Mexico City, Mexico welcomed for the second time the IAUP "Sir Enan Galaly" Seminar on Leadership Development for New Presidents and Emerging Leaders, held from May 31 to June 3, 2026 at Santander Headquarters.
Since its inception, this prestigious seminar has traveled across the globe, with previous editions hosted in Denmark, Qatar, and Mexico. Its sixth edition marked a return to Mexican soil, four years after the city first hosted the event in 2022.
Over the course of four days, attendees had the opportunity to engage with a distinguished roster of current and former university presidents and higher education experts from across the globe.
Through keynote sessions, roundtable discussions, and one-on-one mentoring, participants deepened their understanding of the most pressing challenges and opportunities facing higher education today, while sharpening the leadership and management skills essential to a successful presidency.
The sixth edition brought together a select cohort of newly designated presidents, emerging leaders, and senior academics with presidential aspirations, representing higher education institutions from Mexico, the United States, Spain, China, the UAE, Qatar, Bangladesh, Georgia, Morocco, and Ecuador, fostering a truly international exchange of ideas, best practices, and lasting professional connections that transcend borders.
Panel Sessions
The academic program was designed to reflect the full complexity of university leadership today.
Over three days, sessions covered everything from governance and institutional planning to artificial intelligence, internationalization, and student success, topics that any new president will inevitably face, often at the same time.
The conversations were practical by design, drawing on real experiences from speakers who navigated those same challenges themselves.
Some of the most engaged discussions came around themes aren't usually the focus in more tradicional academic gatherings: how to diversify institutional revenue, how to manage a crisis before it manages you, and how to lead with purpose on issues like sustainability, gender equality, and inclusion.
Participants noted that what set these sessions apart was not just the relevance of the topics, but the way they were handled: with candor, depth, and genuine openness to the questions and realities each leader brought to the room, making this seminar unique in its approach.
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