To mark its first anniversary and provide a platform for sharing ideas and experiences, SEACAF is organizing its first regional conference in Bangkok, Thailand, from 3–4 November 2025. The conference will bring together academics, researchers, students, and civil society actors from across the region to exchange knowledge, explore emerging challenges, strengthen networks, and foster solidarity in the defense of academic freedom.

“Reclaiming the Space,” as the conference title conveys, reflects the urgent need to recover and protect intellectual and democratic spaces that have been shrinking across Southeast Asia. It signifies the assertion of academic autonomy, resistance to censorship, and reaffirmation of the university as a space for critical thought, open inquiry, and dissent.