Invitation to submit papers for the Asia-Pacific Open Education Conference (OpenAP 2026)

Topic: “Open Future: Promoting Equitable and Inclusive Higher Education in the Asia-Pacific Region”
Host institution: University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam
Date: October 23, 2026
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam
 
OVERVIEW OF THE WORKSHOP
Across the Asia-Pacific region, higher education is being reshaped by rapid technological change, an expanding digital ecosystem, programs that broaden access to education, and growing expectations for a more equitable and inclusive learning environment. At the same time, the region continues to face significant disparities in access to knowledge, infrastructure, institutional capacity, and language, creating a pressing need for educational approaches that are both regionally and internationally connected.
In this context, OpenAP 2026 cordially invites academics, educators, practitioners, librarians, policymakers, learning experience designers, and educational institution leaders to discuss how open education can contribute to building a more equitable and inclusive future for higher education. The conference welcomes international participation, with particular emphasis on experiences, challenges, innovations, and emerging forms of collaboration in the Asia-Pacific region.
The OpenAP 2026 conference is organized by the Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam. The conference will provide a forum for dialogue between research, policy, and practice. It will focus on open education, open pedagogy, and Open Educational Resources (OER), while encouraging contributions to responsible artificial intelligence, digital innovation, institutional change, collaboration, and other developments within the broader open movement related to higher education.
By combining regional and international perspectives, OpenAP 2026 aims to strengthen networks, showcase context-relevant activities and research, and highlight ways to expand access, support inclusion, and promote more sustainable forms of knowledge sharing across the Asia-Pacific region.
WORKSHOP TOPICS
The OpenAP 2026 conference places open education, open pedagogy, and Open Educational Resources (OER) at its center, while welcoming contributions exploring the broader conditions, challenges, and emerging developments shaping openness in higher education. The conference welcomes diverse intellectual contributions, including empirical research, case studies, policy analysis, conceptual and theoretical work, technology demonstrations, and research by doctoral students. While the primary focus is on higher education, contributions relevant to the broader learner community and the lifelong learning context are also encouraged. Research papers may be related, but are not limited to, to the following conference topics:
1. Open educational resources, open curricula, and open resource development.
This topic focuses on the creation, adaptation, management, reuse, and long-term sustainability of open educational content in higher education.
Topics may include:
- Develop, adapt, and localize Open Educational Resources (OER).
- Open textbooks and other open learning materials
- Managing, reusing, redistributing, and disseminating open resources.
- Ensuring the quality, evaluation, and impact of OER
- Sustainable models for resource development and maintenance
- Copyright, open licensing, and legal issues in creating, adapting, and reusing Open Educational Resources (OER).
2. Open pedagogical approach: teaching, learning, and assessment
This theme explores how openness shapes pedagogical practices, curriculum design, engagement, and assessment in higher education, while also welcoming contributions relevant to the broader learner community and the lifelong learning context.
Specific topics include:
- Open pedagogical approaches in higher education and related learning contexts.
- Designing teaching and learning methods that promote openness.
- Evaluation methods suitable for open practice.
- Student and learner participation, co-creation, and autonomy.
- Innovate the curriculum and provide professional development for open teaching.
3. Equity, inclusion, and the context of participation in open education.
This topic examines how open education is shaped by social, cultural, linguistic, geographical, and structural inequalities within a region, including how these conditions affect student participation, diverse learner groups, and lifelong learning.
The specific details include:
- Comprehensive and accessible approaches to open education
- Inequalities in education, digital technology, and knowledge.
- Language, culture, and local context in open practice
- Open education for disadvantaged communities, remote areas, marginalized people, or non-traditional learners.
Equity, participation, representation, and social legality in higher education and lifelong learning.
4. Policy, Leadership, Strategy, and Organizational Change
This topic addresses the organizational, strategic, and policy conditions that facilitate, restrict, or shape open education.
Topics may include:
Institutional strategies for open education
- Leadership and governance for transparency
- National, regional, and interdisciplinary policy approaches
- Organizational change and capacity building
- Building and maintaining open practices at the institutional level.
5. Digital Innovation, Responsible Artificial Intelligence, and Open Education Support Systems
This topic will explore how tools, digital platforms, and emerging technologies can support open education in ethical, practical, and inclusive ways.
Topics may include:
- Digital platforms and tools that support open education.
- Applying artificial intelligence responsibly in teaching, learning, and academic support.
- Use educational technology ethically.
- Storage, systems, and technical support for access and sharing.
- Technology-based innovation for inclusive open education
- Ethical, legal, and licensing issues in open, digital, and AI-powered education.
6. Open academia, collaboration, and new directions.
This theme creates space for research connecting open education with broader developments in the open movement, including interdisciplinary, cross-disciplinary, and emerging issues.
Topics may include:
- Open academics and knowledge sharing in higher education.
- Open research activities related to teaching and learning.
- A community of cross-border practice and cooperation
Libraries, networks, and partnerships support openness.
- Emerging and interdisciplinary trends in the areas of openness, education, and community engagement.
TYPES OF SUBMITTS AND PRESENTATION FORMAT
OpenAP 2026 welcomes contributions from researchers, educators, practitioners, librarians, instructional design experts, policymakers, students, and community partners working in and around the open education sector in the Asia-Pacific region and globally.

Submission method	Word limit	Representation	Presentation format	Presentation time	Duration
Full text	Maximum 6,000 words	In-depth research or practice papers presenting completed or nearly completed work.	Research paper	20 minutes	30/05/2026
Quick summary	Maximum 6,000 words	Short presentations introducing new ideas, initiatives, projects, or early-stage research, presented in a lightning talk format.	Short presentation	5 minutes	30/06/2026

IMPORTANT DAYS

Landmark	Day
Deadline for submitting the full text	30/05/2026
Deadline for submitting briefs for Lightning Talks	30/06/2026
Announce the results for all submissions.	31/07/2026
Deadline for submitting the complete (camera-ready) version.	20/08/2026
Early bird registration deadline.	31/08/2026
Registration deadline for presenters	10/09/2026
Conference dates	23/10/2026

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMITTING ARTICLES
All submissions must be written in English and adhere to the conference template and formatting guidelines, which will be posted on the conference website. Submissions will be reviewed by experts or editors, depending on the type of submission.
Selected full articles may be considered for publication by Hanoi National University Press, subject to the publisher's requirements and editorial process.
LOCATION
The conference will be organized by the University of Social Sciences and Humanities (USSH), Vietnam National University, Hanoi, Vietnam.
The University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi (USSH) is one of Vietnam's leading educational institutions in the fields of social sciences, humanities, and interdisciplinary research, with a strong commitment to international academic cooperation and innovation in higher education.
CONTACT:
OpenAP 2026 Conference Secretariat: Asia-Pacific Conference on Open Education
University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi
E-mail:nguyenthingocthao@vnu.edu.vn
Website:https://gogn-apac.org/en/news/openap-2026/
Join us in Hanoi!
OpenAP 2026 cordially invites colleagues from across the Asia-Pacific region and beyond to attend a conference in Hanoi in October 2026 to share research, experiences, and collaborations aimed at supporting a more open, equitable, and inclusive future for higher education.
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CALL FOR PAPERS
Asia-Pacific Conference on Open Education (OpenAP 2026)
“Open Futures: Empowering Fair and Inclusive Higher Education in the Asia-Pacific”
Host: University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi
Date: 23 October 2026
Location: Hanoi, Vietnam

CONFERENCE OVERVIEW
Across the Asia-Pacific, higher education is being reshaped by rapid technological change, expanding digital ecosystems, widening participation agendas, and growing expectations for more equitable and inclusive learning environments. At the same time, the region continues to face significant differences in access to knowledge, infrastructure, institutional capacity, and language, creating an urgent need for educational approaches that are both locally grounded and internationally connected.
In this context, OpenAP 2026 invites scholars, educators, practitioners, librarians, relying, learning designers, and institutional leaders to consider how open education can contribute to fairer and more inclusive futures for higher education. The conference welcomes international participation while giving particular attention to the experiences, challenges, innovations, and collaborations emerging from across the Asia-Pacific.
Hosted by the University of Social Sciences and Humanities, Vietnam National University, Hanoi, OpenAP 2026 will provide a forum for dialogue across research, policy, and practice. The conference places open education, open pedagogy, and Open Educational Resources (OER) at its center, while also encouraging contributions on responsible AI, digital innovation, institutional change, collaboration, and other developments within the wider open movement that are relevant to higher education.
By bringing together regional and international perspectives, OpenAP 2026 seeks to strengthen networks, showcase context-sensitive practice and research, and highlight how openness can expand access, support inclusion, and foster more sustainable forms of knowledge sharing across the Asia-Pacific.
CONFERENCE TRACKS
OpenAP 2026 places open education, open pedagogy, and OER at its core, while welcoming contributions that explore the wider conditions, challenges, and emerging developments shaping openness in higher education. The conference welcomes a broad range of intellectual contributions, including empirical research, case studies, policy analyses, conceptual and theoretical work, technology demonstrations, and doctoral research. Although the primary focus is higher education, relevant contributions addressing broader learner communities and lifelong learning contexts are also encouraged. Submissions may engage with, but are not limited to, the following tracks.
1. Open Educational Resources, Open Textbooks, and Resource Development
This track focuses on the creation, adaptation, curation, reuse, and long-term sustainability of open educational content in higher education.
Topics may include:
- Development, adaptation, and localization of OER
- Open textbooks and other open learning materials
- Curation, reuse, remixing, and dissemination of open resources
- Quality assurance, evaluation, and impact of OER
- Sustainability models for resource development and maintenance
- Copyright, open licensing, and legal issues in the creation, adaptation, and reuse of OER
2. Open Pedagogy, Teaching, Learning, and Assessment
This track explores how openness shapes pedagogical practice, curriculum design, participation, and assessment in higher education, while also welcoming contributions that engage with broader learner communities and lifelong learning contexts where relevant.
Topics may include:
- Open pedagogy in higher education and related learning contexts
- Teaching and learning design for openness
- Assessment approaches aligned with open practice
- Student and learner participation, co-creation, and agency
- Curriculum innovation and professional learning for open teaching
3. Equity, Inclusion, and Contexts of Participation
This track examines how open education is shaped by social, cultural, linguistic, geographic, and structural inequalities across the region, including how these conditions affect participation for students, diverse learner groups, and lifelong learners.
Topics may include:
- Inclusive and accessible approaches to open education
- Educational, digital, and knowledge disparities
- Language, culture, and local context in open practice
- Open education for underserved, remote, marginalised, or non-traditional learner communities
- Fairness, participation, representation, and social justice in higher education and lifelong learning
4. Policy, Leadership, Strategy, and Institutional Change
This track addresses the organizational, strategic, and policy conditions that enable, constrain, or shape open education.
Topics may include:
- Institutional strategies for open education
- Leadership and governance for openness
- National, regional, and cross-sector policy approaches
- Organizational change and capacity building
- Embedding and sustaining open practice at institutional level
5. Digital Innovation, Responsible AI, and Enabling Systems for Open Education
This track explores how digital tools, platforms, and emerging technologies can support open education in ethical, practical, and inclusive ways.
Topics may include:
- Digital platforms and tools supporting open education
- Responsible AI in teaching, learning, and academic support
- Ethical use of educational technologies
- Repositories, systems, and technical support for access and sharing
- Technology-enabled innovation for inclusive open education
- Ethical, legal, and licensing issues in digital and AI-supported open education
6. Open Scholarship, Collaboration, and Emerging Directions
This track provides space for work that connects open education with wider developments in the open movement, including interdisciplinary, cross-cutting, and emerging issues.
Topics may include:
- Open scholarship and knowledge sharing in higher education
- Open research practices relevant to teaching and learning
- Communities of practice and cross-border collaboration
- Libraries, networks, and partnerships supporting openness
- Emerging and cross-cutting directions in openness, education, and public engagement
SUBMISSION TYPES AND PRESENTATION FORMATS
OpenAP 2026 welcomes contributions from researchers, educators, practitioners, librarians, instructional designers, retaining, students, and community partners working in and around open education across the Asia-Pacific and beyond.
 
IMPORTANT DATES