Speaker:

• Dr Charles CHEN Yidan, Founder, Yidan Prize

The only thing that’s certain in this world is that change is inevitable. We need to equip education systems to thrive and adapt in the face of change. In this keynote, we will explore the need for building resilience in today’s world and how resilience can propel us forward in uncertain futures.

Speaker:

• Alicia Herbert, Director of Education, Gender and Equality and Special Envoy for Gender Equality, Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO), United Kingdom

It’s harder than ever for learners to plot a path for the future: jobs for life are fast becoming a thing of the past, and technology constantly reshapes the working world. So how do we set them up with the skills to find their way through a changing world? Our speakers will discuss the opportunities and challenges.

Speakers:

• Dr Vee Kativhu, Girls Education Activist and Founder, Empowered by Vee
• Arshdeep (Arsh) Singh Randhawa, The Education University of Hong Kong

Moderator:

• Angeline (Angie) Murimirwa, 2020 Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate; CEO, CAMFED

Educators remain the single greatest influence on learners. It’s a responsibility that needs large reserves of resilience. And it can also affect their well-being. Our panel will look at how we equip teaching professionals with the right skills while ensuring their well-being.

Speakers:

• Angele Law, Director of Strategy & Programs, CATALYST Education Lab
• Lauren Minnie, English Teacher, Yew Chung International School of Hong Kong
• Hon Adrian Piccoli, former New South Wales (Australia) Minister for Education
• Dr Dennis Sinyolo, Regional Director for Africa, Education International

Moderator:

• Liz Willen, Editor-in-chief, The Hechinger Report

Speaker:

• Professor Yang Zongkai, President, Wuhan University of Technology

In the context of multiple crises, global education systems face immense pressures to adapt and continue. How do we learn from each other to build resilient systems that can adapt to different pressures? Our panel will examine different issues around crisis management and explore how we can foster effective strategies and cross-border cooperation that drive change and build resilience in education.

Speakers:

• Professor Sultan Barakat, Professor of Public Policy, Hamad Bin Khalifa University
• Dr Javier Gonzalez, Director, SUMMA
• Dr Becky Telford, Chief, Education Section: UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency

Moderator:

• Andrew Jack, Global Education Editor, Financial Times

Few people have done more to put education front and center in demography than Professor Wolfgang Lutz. His work reconstructing and forecasting population data from 1950 to 2100 deepens our understanding of how education underpins human progress. In this fireside chat, Wolfgang discusses why universal education is so central to global development — from health to well-being, economic growth, and equity. And how it’ll help us tackle one of the most critical challenges of our time: building resilience to climate change.

Speaker:

• Professor Wolfgang Lutz, 2024 Yidan Prize for Education Research Laureate; Distinguished Emeritus Scholar, International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis

Moderator:

• Dr Christopher Thomas, Director of Partnerships, Yidan Prize Foundation

Resilience is essential for children living in conflict-affected and resource-constrained areas. In this fireside chat, we hear from the team behind War Child Alliance’s ‘Can’t Wait to Learn’ evidence-based intervention: Professor Mark Jordans, Marwa Zahr, and Luke Stannard. They discuss how they use technology to create an engaging, culturally relevant, and effective way for marginalized learners to build crucial skills in reading and mathematics.

Speakers:

• Professor Mark Jordans, 2024 Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate; Director — Research and Development, War Child Alliance
• Luke Stannard, 2024 Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate; Program Director — Can’t Wait to Learn, War Child Alliance
• Marwa Zahr, 2024 Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate; Implementation and Practitioner Lead — Can’t Wait to Learn, War Child Alliance

Moderator:

• Fred de Sam Lazaro, Executive Director, Under-Told Stories Project; Special Correspondent, PBS News Hour

Speaker:

• Lucy Lake, Director of Global Engagement, Yidan Prize Foundation; 2020 Yidan Prize for Education Development Laureate