With nearly three decades of experience in the education field and over 25 years of dedicated service at the International Islamic University Malaysia (IIUM), Dr. Nor Zainiyah Norita Mokhtar is a passionate educator, global collaborator, and scholar whose work continues to impact communities across nations. She holds a PhD from the University of Sheffield, United Kingdom, specializing in linguistics with particular expertise in Pragmatics, Semantics, and Intercultural Communication from a linguistic lens. Dr. Nor Zainiyah’s academic pursuits center around teaching and learning strategies, literacy challenges in primary education, and the intersection of language, culture, and communication. Her commitment to bridging theory and practice is evident through her leadership in flagship initiatives such as the High Immersive Programmes (HIP) under the National Education Philosophy of Malaysia, where she spearheads collaborative educational programs with schools in Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand. A strong advocate for sustainability, she is also an active contributor to the River of Life Flagship at IIUM, focusing on river conservation and environmental stewardship. Her contributions extend into curriculum design and educator development, particularly in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), where she played a key role in designing course modules and training trainers nationwide. Dr. Nor Zainiyah's global academic footprint includes her recent tenure as a Visiting Professor at the University of Brawijaya, Indonesia, where she taught TPACK (Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge) in language learning. She also served as an Adjunct Professor at Shenandoah University, Virginia, USA (August–December 2023), where she taught Intercultural Communication and led a First-Year Seminar titled "You're a Creative Genius" under the Department of Mass Communication. A pioneer in Collaborative Online International Learning (COIL) and virtual exchange education, Dr. Nor Zainiyah’s journey began in 2021 as a COIL fellow with the Barzinji Project at Shenandoah University. Since then, she has collaborated in 14 COIL projects with universities and schools around the world, significantly enhancing cross-border student engagement and intercultural understanding. Her leadership was instrumental in hosting Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kelley Crowley and Prof. Abigail Gomez for a Barzinji Institute-funded mobility program at IIUM’s Gombak and Pagoh campuses in November 2024. She has been internationally recognized as a guest speaker at a national COIL conference in the Philippines, engaging over 20 universities, and currently supports Bukidnon State University and Marinduque State University in institutionalizing COIL practices. Additionally, she is actively developing a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) with San Pedro College to launch joint research in virtual exchange pedagogy. In alignment with UNESCO’s global vision, Dr. Nor Zainiyah is also a certified facilitator of the UNESCO Story Circles methodology—a dialogue-based tool that fosters intercultural empathy and narrative understanding. She has conducted story circles for a wide range of audiences, including during the COIL Spring Fellows Training 2022, at Ahmad Dahlan University (Indonesia) during a mobility programme, SMK Tengku Mahmud Iskandar, and across her classes at IIUM. Dr. Nor Zainiyah’s multifaceted contributions reflect her deep belief in inclusive, experiential, and globally connected education—a vision she champions both in the classroom and on the international stage.