Festival of Just Futures
In March, our entire student community came together for the final student-led conference of the year, the Festival of Just Futures, an event crafted and led by students from the pioneering curriculum the Systems Transformation Pathway: Leadership for Just Futures. The Festival explored solutions for a more just and sustainable world, featuring collaboration with key global partners and supporters.
Over two impactful days, nearly 400 student change-makers engaged with over 30 global external speakers to explore some of the world’s most pressing issues across key systems - food, biodiversity, energy, migration, and education. The conference adopted a systems thinking approach to respond to complex challenges and emphasised the importance of imagining, practising, and gesturing towards just futures.
The highlights included interactive workshops, a 400-person Warm Data Lab, and a reality roundtable discussion on the trajectory and likely outlook for our global energy system.
The festival featured a distinguished lineup of speakers, including:
- Nate Hagens: Director, Institute for the Study of Energy & Our Future
- Derek Walker: Future Generations Commissioner, Wales
- Kate Raworth: Economist and creator of Doughnut Economics
- Sue Pritchard: CEO, Food, Farming & Countryside Commission
- Patrick Holden: Founding Director, Sustainable Food Trust
These students are special, they are articulate and engaged – they describe themselves as systems leaders and rightly so.
The conference highlighted the importance of intergenerational collaboration and equipped the next generation of systems leaders with practical tools to respond more effectively and collaboratively to today's most urgent challenges. This type of world-centered education is fundamental to our Systems Transformation Pathway, and this conference was a way to immerse our entire College community in it.
External speakers shared powerful feedback, underscoring the exceptional engagement of the students. Tim Logan, Co-Lead of the IB Festival of Hope, commented: “Don’t tell me that young people can’t handle the enormity of the challenges and opportunities we’re facing! They’re asking the best questions, making reflective local interventions in systems, and seeking help and support to go deeper.”
Dr. Laura Penn echoed these sentiments, saying: “These students are special, they are articulate and engaged – they describe themselves as systems leaders and rightly so.”
The Festival of Just Futures was made possible by the dedication and hard work of the student organisers, Eimy, Kendra, Leona, Melia, and Satya, mentored by our Vice Principal Learning Innovation Marija Uzunova Dang and supported by our Conference Lead Claudia Valarino. The organising team’s leadership and vision were inspiring and impressive. The involvement of the entire Systems Transformation Pathway team - all 76 students and 12 teachers - in leading workshops and activities was integral to the success of the event.
As the world continues to grapple with multiple overlapping challenges posed by the metacrisis, it is essential that educational institutions take seriously the responsibility of equipping the next generation to lead with a systemic outlook, knowledge, skill, humility, and compassion.
To view more images please visit our Festival of Just Futures Flickr album.