On 25 August 2024, the 13th ASEAN Education Ministers Meeting in Buriram, Thailand, adopted the Joint Declaration on the Common Space in Southeast Asian Higher Education. This ministerial statement marks a new milestone in regional efforts to transform an imagined space into a discernible regional space, bringing all Southeast Asian higher education systems closer together.
Over the last 16 years, the ‘imagined common space’ has been shaped by ideas conceived from both inside and outside Southeast Asia. The 2024 declaration signals a shift towards an inside-out region-building strategy, guided by the core belief that a region’s inner strengths and capabilities will build a sustainable future.