Against the backdrop of worldwide social, political and economic transformations internationalization represents a substantial requirement in higher education according to Maassen et al. (2023). This is particularly important in teacher education where such processes can provide global competencies and agency which can broaden the notions of being a global citizen in an age of uncertainty. To integrate an international perspective in the structures of (initial) teacher education in a meaningful, inclusive and sustainable way, resilient collaborative partnerships are required. In this presentation we highlight lessons learnt from a collaborative process between two institutions within the context of global north and global south. Such partnerships are important and successful if they are based on corresponding cultures, understandings and goals (Meyer et al 2007, Coombe 2015). However, there is a paucity of research dealing with the advancement and achieving of this kind of partnership process. We address the question of how a collaborative interaction, embedded in the context of an international inter-institutional partnership was developed. We employed collaborative auto-ethnography (Campbell 2016) as research method and methodology to document and understand our personal experiences and used complexity theory (Clarke & Collins 2007) to interpret the data. Key findings indicate that partnership development operates as a complex system that needs time and complex interactions to produce meaningful and successful partnerships.

Campbell, E. (2016): Exploring autoethnography as a method and methodology in legal education research. Asian Journal of Legal Education, 3(1), 95-105. Clarke, A./ Collins, S. (2007): Complexity science and student teacher supervision. Teaching and Teacher Euducation, 23 (2), 16-172. Clarke, A./ Collins, S. (2007): Complexity science and student teacher supervision. Teaching and Teacher Euducation, 23 (2), 16-172. Coombe, L. (2015): Models of interuniversity collaboration in higher education - How do their features act as barrieres and enablers to sustainability? Tertiary Education and Management, 21 (4): 328-348, DOI: 10.1080/13583883.2015.1104379. Maassen, P./ Jungblut, J./ Stensaker, B./ Griffith R./ Rosso, A. (2023): Navigation competition and collaboration - The way forward for universities [online] https://koerber-stiftung.de/site/assets/files/28887/navigating_competition_and_collaboration_complete_study_maassen_et_al__2023_web.pdf [11.10.23] Meyer, J. W./ Ramirez, F. O./ Frank, D. J. & Schofer, E. (2007): Higher Education as an Institution, In: Gumport, P. J. (Ed.): Sociology of Higher Education. Contributions and their Contexts. Baltimore, 187-222.