Transformative Peace Education*

What is transformative learning? What are the core elements that encourage transformative learning experiences? When it comes to formal education, what is a possible framework for curricula and syllabi design that invites learners to engage with peace-building and conflict transformation questions?

Learner Agency as an Enabler of Change

In this session, we will explore how we might consider empowering the learners of today to support one another in enabling the change necessary for a sustainable future. The session will focus on an exploration of what it means to cultivate a learning community that enables Learner Agency. As we explore the dispositional nature of Learner Agency and the purpose it serves, how might we consider moving towards using Learner Agency as an enabler of change?

Education Under Siege – Dutch Education During Nazi Occupation

It is our mission to unite people, nations and cultures for peace through education. But what happens with ideals and missions like these when we find ourselves under extreme circumstances? In my presentation I will talk about choices made, and actions taken by Dutch school leaders, teachers and students during the Nazi occupation of the Netherlands. Hopefully the case studies can be a starting point for a conversation about our values and goals in education.

Mirrors and windows – Reflecting and Amplifying Children's Lived Experiences Through Literature and Learning Resources Focused on Diversity

This presentation will share the story of the UWCSEA Dover Infant School’s DEI Literacy Project, supported by a 50th Anniversary Innovation Grant. The aim of this project was to create and curate a collection of books, lessons and resources for teachers and parents of young children, in support of conversations centred on issues of DEI.

We will share the resources developed, the challenges and opportunities faced, and what we learned along the way.

What Might Teaching for Peace Look Like in a Classroom?

Figuring out what 'educating for peace' means started for me at UWC Atlantic College and continued after I graduated whilst I tried to figure out how to put my 'peace education' into practice in the real world. That led me to teaching at UWCSEA (and still trying to figure out what peace education really means). I’m a little closer to finding out after using my Masters Thesis to research what it could mean in a Language Arts classroom. I’m looking forward to sharing what I found out.

Seeing the Whole Child – Using a Holistic Lens to See Our Students Within a Broader Context

As a College, we provide a holistic education, yet when we discuss students who may need support we sometimes focus on singular evidence. In this interactive workshop, we introduce protocols and tools to help us think about and plan to support the whole child in a broader context.

Our holistic lens includes ecological factors, the unique cultural experiences of students in international schools, as well as the valuable insight offered by parents as partners and those gained through engaged listening to the student voice. We will consider how we can gather the information we need to bring a holistic perspective throughout the whole school.

Reciprocal Partnerships for Social Change

Learn about processes and tools that build student agency and create sustainable partnerships with local Singaporean Volunteer Welfare Organisations (VWOs). Participants will explore the importance of student collaboration with VWO partners. This is an opportunity for educators to deepen their understanding of how to facilitate students through the process of taking informed, sustainable action.

The UWC Movement

At this session, Musimbi Kanyoro, Chair of UWC International, Leon Toh, UWCSEA Governor  and Carma Elliot, UWCSEA College President will have a conversation about the role of UWC in building a more peaceful and sustainable future.

As they reflect on 50 years of making education a force for good, they will also look to the future of the UWC movement, the role of UWCSEA within the movement and the need for the global UWC community to ensure our mission remains both an inspiration and a positive call to action.

How Ethical Behaviour Affects your Future

Coming soon.

Format

Online and in-person audience

Music and Dementia – Innovation and Service Learning

Learn about processes and tools that build student agency and create sustainable partnerships with local Singaporean Volunteer Welfare Organisations (VWOs). Participants will explore the importance of student collaboration with VWO partners. This is an opportunity for educators to deepen their understanding of how to facilitate students through the process of taking informed, sustainable action.

Understanding Student Conceptions of Peace

This session shares the process and findings of a qualitative research study, which sought to better understand UWCSEA students' conceptions about peace, a central concept in the UWC mission. The session will explain how students' thinking about peace differs across the K-12 continuum, and how we can take developmental approaches to teach peace education. 

The research study was conducted at UWCSEA's two campuses in Singapore during UWC Day celebrations on 21 September 2021.

Format

Online

Moving Towards an Inclusive Linguistic Community

We will take participants on a journey to understand the why, what, how we have developed our thinking and practices around linguistic diversity at Dover. The session will be interactive, and designed to explore how our languages and the linguistic landscape of our College connect to our mission. 

We will also reflect on the roles that each of us can play in this process, whether we are students, teachers, parents or other members of the community around our learners.

Sustainability and Partnerships

If we are to stop choosing convenience above climate, we require a carefully curated culture change that offers a systems-based approach in ensuring our alignment across all facets of life, and that will propel us forward towards our climate change goals.

Building on the theme of partnerships, this session will explore the idea that there is education in everything and how everybody on campus can actively support our students' learning objectives. In doing so, we enrich students' experience and at the same time offer members of staff a sense of belonging and shared purpose.

The Power of Education - Transforming the Lives of Refugees

As the recent events in Ukraine and Afghanistan have shown, the number of refugees grows every year and today there are now more than 80 million displaced people around the world. It is often young people who bear the heaviest burden of displacement. As they get uprooted, their education is disrupted and future dreams shattered. Five years ago,  two UWC alumni, Polly Akhurst and Mia Eskelund Pedersen founded the organisation Amala to solve a growing, global problem: the lack of high quality education available to young people who are displaced.

Amala has created the first international high school diploma programme for young refugees and also offers transformational non-formal educational programmes in countries that host large refugee populations including Jordan, Kenya, Greece and Malaysia. UWCSEA has been a committed partner since Amala’s founding, as staff, students and parents and supported Amala’s mission through curriculum development, providing expertise, volunteering, fundraising and raising awareness.

In this session, Polly and Mia will talk about their experiences of setting up Amala, the power of education in creating peaceful and sustainable futures in refugee communities and present on the future of their collaboration with UWCSEA and how the UWCSEA community can get involved. 

Can the 21st Century Remain Peaceful?

In this dialogue, Kishore Mahbubni and Carma Elliot will continue the conversation they began in September 2021 on the topic of peace in the 21st century. Covering themes including changes in global geo-political landscapes, the war in Ukraine and the role leaders in maintaining international peace, the conversation will be a fitting final session for our Forum, as we explore the learning that will shape the future.

Learner Agency as an Enabler of Change

In this session, we will explore how we might consider empowering the learners of today to support one another in enabling the change necessary for a sustainable future. The session will focus on an exploration of what it means to cultivate a learning community that enables Learner Agency. As we explore the dispositional nature of Learner Agency and the purpose it serves, how might we consider moving towards using Learner Agency as an enabler of change?

The Internet of Things (IoT) and Its Impact on Sustainability

Our lives are changing without us knowing it. Analysis of usage habits, smart tracking, adding sense and control is helping to optimize resources, reduce wastage, and educate people on sustainable living. Industries and institutions can benefit a lot by digitization, predictive maintenance, and enabling data based decisions. 

The Internet of things has the ability to play a significant part in combating climate change and protecting the environment. This presentation will outline how the latest innovations in the IoT space are aimed at making the enabling technologies simpler, affordable and ubiquitous in our lives.

Reciprocal Partnerships for Social Change

Learn about processes and tools that build student agency and create sustainable partnerships with local Singaporean Volunteer Welfare Organisations (VWOs). Participants will explore the importance of student collaboration with VWO partners. This is an opportunity for educators to deepen their understanding of how to facilitate students through the process of taking informed, sustainable action.

Education and the Climate

How can we educate so that we promote a desire to protect?

Outdoor Education at UWCSEA – Why, How, What Next?

Join UWCSEA Heads of Outdoor Education as they present concepts, practice and ideas around the importance of outdoor education in a world that is changing at an unprecedented pace.

Coming of Age in the Natural World: The Role of Outdoor Experiences in a Sustainable Holistic Education

Over the past eight years, Drs. Gassner and Wolsko have been conducting a longitudinal investigation into the effects of the UWCSEA Outdoor Education programme on adolescents’ development and psychological well-being.

This presentation emphasizes the unique characteristics of learning outdoors, the critical importance of maintaining a multidimensional connection with nature in an ever-urbanizing world, and the powerful and enduring Outdoor Education experiences of students at UWCSEA. For more background on this work, see these UWCSEA Perspectives links:

• Flourishing People in Place: Understanding the Impact of Outdoor Education (first published in Dunia magazine 2017/2018)
• Journey as a Destination: Evaluating the UWCSEA Outdoor Education Programme (first published in Dunia magazine 2014/2015)

A number of key research findings are highlighted from several years of focus groups, in-depth interviews, participant observations, and surveys with students in Grade 6 and up:

• Consistent patterns of experience on outdoor expeditions facilitate positive socioemotional development among students, as reflected in the UWCSEA profile
• In turn, such positive development predicts higher psychological well-being and academic achievement
• Resilience, social bonding, and connection with nature are among the most profound experiences realized in Outdoor Education at UWCSEA
• Students who experience more connection with nature on their Outdoor Education expeditions report higher psychological well-being one and two years later
• Students who demonstrate more resilience on their Outdoor Education expeditions report higher levels of grit one and two years later

The logistical challenges of maintaining an effective Outdoor Education programme during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the necessity of initiating local Singapore trips, have coincided with UWCSEA’s increased focus on deeply understanding and mitigating of the ecological consequences of travelling far and wide to experience the outdoors. With an eye on sustainability, this talk concludes by examining the trade-offs associated with exploring nearby nature versus accessing unique environments abroad.

The UWC Movement

At this session, Musimbi Kanyoro, Chair of UWC International, Leon Toh, UWCSEA Governor and Carma Elliot, UWCSEA College President will have a conversation about the role of UWC in building a more peaceful and sustainable future.

As they reflect on 50 years of making education a force for good, they will also look to the future of the UWC movement, the role of UWCSEA within the movement and the need for the global UWC community to ensure our mission remains both an inspiration and a positive call to action.

Coffee Sustainability

Coffee sustainability is an effort to bring the importance of smallholder farmers and their livelihood into the equation and also the adoption of shade grown coffee to support forest conservation.

Indradi will share tips on how to create new collaborations with like-minded individuals and organisations to contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially Goal 17: Partnership for the Goals. This session is drawn from Indradi's lecture topic at Singapore University of Social Sciences.

Future of Work – Inclusion, Sustainability and Innovation

In this session, four parents from different worlds of work discuss the connection between the world of learning and the future of work. How do we ensure that we are developing innovators? How do we honour differences in our learning styles and capabilities so that all kinds of people enter the world of work with confidence and the ability to bring their unique perspectives to their interactions with others? How do we ensure that our students are able to bring their passion for sustainable ideas and their commitment to an equitable culture to the workplace?

Hosted by Nick Alchin, Head of UWCSEA East, this panel discussion, incorporating questions from the audience, will bring together different ideas and perspectives as we define the future of work.

Sustainability and Partnerships

If we are to stop choosing convenience above climate, we require a carefully curated culture change that offers a systems-based approach in ensuring our alignment across all facets of life, and that will propel us forward towards our climate change goals.

Building on the theme of partnerships, this session will explore the idea that there is education in everything and how everybody on campus can actively support our students' learning objectives. In doing so, we enrich students' experience and at the same time offer members of staff a sense of belonging and shared purpose.

Climate Change – the Roles of the Public and Private Sector

This session explores climate change and the different roles played by the public sector and private sector. While public sector is setting the frameworks for regulatory action, the private sector is also getting involved in solving the challenge. But what’s in it for them? 

Career Journey Towards Sustainability

The Dover PA Sustainability team will share the career transitions that helped to further align them with their sustainability aspirations and the importance of lifelong education.

Our guest speakers will highlight the need to include sustainability at every level of organisation and the opportunities for professionals to start their journey in sustainability as we drive the required change for a sustainable future.

Good Work for Our Time – From Ideas to Impact

Drawing on two decades of qualitative research as one of the Founding Directors at the Harvard Graduate School of Education Good Project, and sharing insights from recent research on the role of education in a good society, Professor Gardner will explore the meaning of good work and civic participation.

After a 30 minute lecture, Professor Gardner and members of his team will answer questions from the audience as we explore the nature of education and its power as a force for good in society.

The Nature and Benefits of Inspirational Teaching and How Schools Can Nurture It*

A workshop designed to get educators to think about what it means to be an inspirational teacher, why it matters, how we can strive to be more inspirational, and how schools can impact our ability to inspire our students.

Digital Decolonisation

Coming soon.

The Internet of Things (IoT) and Its Impact on Sustainability*

Our lives are changing without us knowing it. Analysis of usage habits, smart tracking, adding sense and control is helping to optimize resources, reduce wastage, and educate people on sustainable living. Industries and institutions can benefit a lot by digitization, predictive maintenance, and enabling data based decisions. 

The Internet of things has the ability to play a significant part in combating climate change and protecting the environment. This presentation will outline how the latest innovations in the IoT space are aimed at making the enabling technologies simpler, affordable and ubiquitous in our lives.

Holistic Education in a High-Tech Era

Andreas Schleicher will share reflections on teaching and learning in a post-pandemic world, and the role of mission-led schools offering holistic education in an every-changing world.

Future of Work – Inclusion, Sustainability and Innovation

In this session, four parents from different worlds of work discuss the connection between the world of learning and the future of work. How do we ensure that we are developing innovators? How do we honour differences in our learning styles and capabilities so that all kinds of people enter the world of work with confidence and the ability to bring their unique perspectives to their interactions with others? How do we ensure that our students are able to bring their passion for sustainable ideas and their commitment to an equitable culture to the workplace?

Hosted by Nick Alchin, Head of UWCSEA East, this panel discussion, incorporating questions from the audience, will bring together different ideas and perspectives as we define the future of work.

Music and Dementia – Innovation and Service Learning

This session will present the ongoing innovation project, named Project Fu Xi, which was made possible by the UWCSEA 50th Anniversary Innovation Grants. The presentation will highlight how UWCSEA’s culture of autonomy and innovation made it possible to bring together many parts of our learning programme and members of the wider community to develop a healthcare solution for persons with Alzheimer’s and dementia. This exciting project is a great example of the UWC mission in practice!

East-Dover Virtual Reality (VR) Portal – a Window Into the Future of VR at UWCSEA

Learn how both UWCSEA campuses are working together to create powerful learning experiences within Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR). As a pilot project to explore the potential of VR/AR technologies in the school context, the UWCSEA libraries have been facilitating the development of an East-Dover VR Portal, a VR “Ready Player One” book club and encouraging students to develop skills as active creators and developers for and within VR/AR. 

The recent growth of VR/AR technologies is rapidly altering the global information landscape. These changes offer incredible learning opportunities for students right now, while enabling them to develop the information literacy skills they will need to engage with this technology ethically and effectively in the future.

World of Work – Towards the Future

This session leads with a discussion on the importance of holding on to one's ideals when embarking on a career; the need to remain curious as an important career life-skill while the future grows more complex and uncertain; and an exhortation to students to use their generation's technologies to do good in the world.

Forrest and his team will then take questions from the audience. 

Network Based Learning – How Technology Enabled P2P Learning is Saving Lives

The session focusses on the real impact of inclusive peer or cohort based learning. Using examples from the medical world, where peer to peer learning amongst doctors is saving lives, the session takes real life examples from doctors across South East Asia and highlights how technology is enabling doctors to connect, to drive better outcomes for their patients and ultimately to save lives. The session concludes by summarising how these examples from the healthcare world can be applied to all facets of our lives. 

Climate Change – the Roles of the Public and Private Sector

This session explores climate change and the different roles played by the public sector and private sector. While public sector is setting the frameworks for regulatory action, the private sector is also getting involved in solving the challenge. But what’s in it for them? 

Learner Agency as an Enabler of Change

In this session, we will explore how we might consider empowering the learners of today to support one another in enabling the change necessary for a sustainable future. The session will focus on an exploration of what it means to cultivate a learning community that enables Learner Agency. As we explore the dispositional nature of Learner Agency and the purpose it serves, how might we consider moving towards using Learner Agency as an enabler of change?

Is UWCSEA Inclusive?

UWCSEA has embarked on several inclusive activities and should now take it to the next level; what might that look like?

This may entail clarifying our individual values towards ‘disabilities’ and nurturing an inclusive community within UWCSEA that resonates Singapore’s aspiration to always be an Inclusive Nation.

Mirrors and windows – Reflecting and Amplifying Children's Lived Experiences Through Literature and Learning Resources Focused on Diversity

This presentation will share the story of the UWCSEA Dover Infant School’s DEI Literacy Project, supported by a 50th Anniversary Innovation Grant. The aim of this project was to create and curate a collection of books, lessons and resources for teachers and parents of young children, in support of conversations centred on issues of DEI.

We will share the resources developed, the challenges and opportunities faced, and what we learned along the way.

What Might Teaching for Peace Look Like in a Classroom?

Figuring out what 'educating for peace' means started for me at UWC Atlantic College and continued after I graduated whilst I tried to figure out how to put my 'peace education' into practice in the real world. That led me to teaching at UWCSEA (and still trying to figure out what peace education really means). I’m a little closer to finding out after using my Masters Thesis to research what it could mean in a Language Arts classroom. I’m looking forward to sharing what I found out.

Seeing the Whole Child – Using a Holistic Lens to See Our Students Within a Broader Context

As a College, we provide a holistic education, yet when we discuss students who may need support we sometimes focus on singular evidence. In this interactive workshop, we introduce protocols and tools to help us think about and plan to support the whole child in a broader context.

Our holistic lens includes ecological factors, the unique cultural experiences of students in international schools, as well as the valuable insight offered by parents as partners and those gained through engaged listening to the student voice. We will consider how we can gather the information we need to bring a holistic perspective throughout the whole school.

The UWC Movement

At this session, Musimbi Kanyoro, Chair of UWC International, Leon Toh, UWCSEA Governor and and Carma Elliot, UWCSEA College President will have a conversation about the role of UWC in building a more peaceful and sustainable future.

As they reflect on 50 years of making education a force for good, they will also look to the future of the UWC movement, the role of UWCSEA within the movement and the need for the global UWC community to ensure our mission remains both an inspiration and a positive call to action.

Commitment to Change

Faith Abiodun, new Executive Director of UWC International, will share his vision for the Movement, followed by an onstage conversation with a student panel, including questions from the audience. The conversation will be wide-ranging, from the origins of the Movement to the change we must embrace to ensure we stay relevant and active in an evolving global community.

How Ethical Behaviour Affects your Future

Coming soon.

Music and Dementia – Innovation and Service Learning

This session will present the ongoing innovation project, named Project Fu Xi, which was made possible by the UWCSEA 50th Anniversary Innovation Grants. The presentation will highlight how UWCSEA’s culture of autonomy and innovation made it possible to bring together many parts of our learning programme and members of the wider community to develop a healthcare solution for persons with Alzheimer’s and dementia. This exciting project is a great example of the UWC mission in practice!

All Inclusive? Diversity and Division and Inclusion

Coming soon.

Future of Work – Inclusion, Sustainability and Innovation

In this session, four parents from different worlds of work discuss the connection between the world of learning and the future of work. How do we ensure that we are developing innovators? How do we honour differences in our learning styles and capabilities so that all kinds of people enter the world of work with confidence and the ability to bring their unique perspectives to their interactions with others? How do we ensure that our students are able to bring their passion for sustainable ideas and their commitment to an equitable culture to the workplace?

Hosted by Nick Alchin, Head of UWCSEA East, this panel discussion, incorporating questions from the audience, will bring together different ideas and perspectives as we define the future of work.

Breaking Access Barriers to Leaders and Mentors

The session will focus on importance of breaking access barriers to leaders and mentors for aspiring female leaders.

The Power of Education - Transforming the Lives of Refugees

As the recent events in Ukraine and Afghanistan have shown, the number of refugees grows every year and today there are now more than 80 million displaced people around the world. It is often young people who bear the heaviest burden of displacement. As they get uprooted, their education is disrupted and future dreams shattered. Five years ago,  two UWC alumni, Polly Akhurst and Mia Eskelund Pedersen founded the organisation Amala to solve a growing, global problem: the lack of high quality education available to young people who are displaced.

Amala has created the first international high school diploma programme for young refugees and also offers transformational non-formal educational programmes in countries that host large refugee populations including Jordan, Kenya, Greece and Malaysia. UWCSEA has been a committed partner since Amala’s founding, as staff, students and parents and supported Amala’s mission through curriculum development, providing expertise, volunteering, fundraising and raising awareness.

In this session, Polly and Mia will talk about their experiences of setting up Amala, the power of education in creating peaceful and sustainable futures in refugee communities and present on the future of their collaboration with UWCSEA and how the UWCSEA community can get involved. 

Is UWCSEA Inclusive?

UWCSEA has embarked on several inclusive activities and should now take it to the next level; what might that look like?

This may entail clarifying our individual values towards ‘disabilities’ and nurturing an inclusive community within UWCSEA that resonates Singapore’s aspiration to always be an Inclusive Nation.

Return to Travel – Managing the Health and Safety of Your Staff and Students

With borders opening as we enter the era of endemicity, travel as we once knew it has changed. What can schools do to prepare staff, students, and even parents, for the new travel reality? In line with the UN SDG3, this session aims to address: 

1. How schools can manage the good health and wellbeing, as well as safety, of participants (students and staff) as school trips resume?
2. How can digital tools and technology help schools to prepare for trips? 
3. How can partnering with a health and safety provider help

Reciprocal Partnerships for Social Change

Learn about processes and tools that build student agency and create sustainable partnerships with local Singaporean Volunteer Welfare Organisations (VWOs). Participants will explore the importance of student collaboration with VWO partners. This is an opportunity for educators to deepen their understanding of how to facilitate students through the process of taking informed, sustainable action.

Outdoor Education at UWCSEA – Why, How, What Next?

Join UWCSEA Heads of Outdoor Education as they present concepts, practice and ideas around the importance of outdoor education in a world that is changing at an unprecedented pace.

Coming of Age in the Natural World: The Role of Outdoor Experiences in a Sustainable Holistic Education

Over the past eight years, Drs. Gassner and Wolsko have been conducting a longitudinal investigation into the effects of the UWCSEA Outdoor Education programme on adolescents’ development and psychological well-being.

This presentation emphasizes the unique characteristics of learning outdoors, the critical importance of maintaining a multidimensional connection with nature in an ever-urbanizing world, and the powerful and enduring Outdoor Education experiences of students at UWCSEA. For more background on this work, see these UWCSEA Perspectives links:

• Flourishing People in Place: Understanding the Impact of Outdoor Education (first published in Dunia magazine 2017/2018)
• Journey as a Destination: Evaluating the UWCSEA Outdoor Education Programme (first published in Dunia magazine 2014/2015)

A number of key research findings are highlighted from several years of focus groups, in-depth interviews, participant observations, and surveys with students in Grade 6 and up:

• Consistent patterns of experience on outdoor expeditions facilitate positive socioemotional development among students, as reflected in the UWCSEA profile
• In turn, such positive development predicts higher psychological well-being and academic achievement
• Resilience, social bonding, and connection with nature are among the most profound experiences realized in Outdoor Education at UWCSEA
• Students who experience more connection with nature on their Outdoor Education expeditions report higher psychological well-being one and two years later
• Students who demonstrate more resilience on their Outdoor Education expeditions report higher levels of grit one and two years later

The logistical challenges of maintaining an effective Outdoor Education programme during the COVID-19 pandemic, and the necessity of initiating local Singapore trips, have coincided with UWCSEA’s increased focus on deeply understanding and mitigating of the ecological consequences of travelling far and wide to experience the outdoors. With an eye on sustainability, this talk concludes by examining the trade-offs associated with exploring nearby nature versus accessing unique environments abroad.

Coffee Sustainability

Coffee sustainability is an effort to bring the importance of smallholder farmers and their livelihood into the equation and also the adoption of shade grown coffee to support forest conservation.

Indradi will share tips on how to create new collaborations with like-minded individuals and organisations to contribute to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), especially Goal 17: Partnership for the Goals. This session is drawn from Indradi's lecture topic at Singapore University of Social Sciences.

 East-Dover Virtual Reality (VR) Portal – a Window Into the Future of VR at UWCSEA 

Learn how both UWCSEA campuses are working together to create powerful learning experiences within Virtual and Augmented Reality (VR/AR). As a pilot project to explore the potential of VR/AR technologies in the school context, the UWCSEA libraries have been facilitating the development of an East-Dover VR Portal, a VR “Ready Player One” book club and encouraging students to develop skills as active creators and developers for and within VR/AR. 

The recent growth of VR/AR technologies is rapidly altering the global information landscape. These changes offer incredible learning opportunities for students right now, while enabling them to develop the information literacy skills they will need to engage with this technology ethically and effectively in the future.

Music and Dementia – Innovation and Service Learning

This session will present the ongoing innovation project, named Project Fu Xi, which was made possible by the UWCSEA 50th Anniversary Innovation Grants. The presentation will highlight how UWCSEA’s culture of autonomy and innovation made it possible to bring together many parts of our learning programme and members of the wider community to develop a healthcare solution for persons with Alzheimer’s and dementia. This exciting project is a great example of the UWC mission in practice!

Sustainability and Partnerships

If we are to stop choosing convenience above climate, we require a carefully curated culture change that offers a systems-based approach in ensuring our alignment across all facets of life, and that will propel us forward towards our climate change goals.

Building on the theme of partnerships, this session will explore the idea that there is education in everything and how everybody on campus can actively support our students' learning objectives. In doing so, we enrich students' experience and at the same time offer members of staff a sense of belonging and shared purpose.

The Power of Education - Transforming the Lives of Refugees

As the recent events in Ukraine and Afghanistan have shown, the number of refugees grows every year and today there are now more than 80 million displaced people around the world. It is often young people who bear the heaviest burden of displacement. As they get uprooted, their education is disrupted and future dreams shattered. Five years ago,  two UWC alumni, Polly Akhurst and Mia Eskelund Pedersen founded the organisation Amala to solve a growing, global problem: the lack of high quality education available to young people who are displaced.

Amala has created the first international high school diploma programme for young refugees and also offers transformational non-formal educational programmes in countries that host large refugee populations including Jordan, Kenya, Greece and Malaysia. UWCSEA has been a committed partner since Amala’s founding, as staff, students and parents and supported Amala’s mission through curriculum development, providing expertise, volunteering, fundraising and raising awareness.

In this session, Polly and Mia will talk about their experiences of setting up Amala, the power of education in creating peaceful and sustainable futures in refugee communities and present on the future of their collaboration with UWCSEA and how the UWCSEA community can get involved.