Reimagining Peace Altogether
With 183 conflicts currently unfolding worldwide, the imperative for effective peacebuilding has never been more pressing. This urgency is felt acutely by 46,000 young people globally, who have identified Peace as their top priority in the Youth Talks report.
An apt response to this need comes from the LearningPlanet Festival, a joint initiative of the Learning Planet Institute and UNESCO. The Festival was created to celebrate the International Day of Education (24 January), and it highlights transformative actions in peace education. This year, in its sixth edition, in person in Paris and online worldwide, the Festival united a global coalition of youth leaders, educators, researchers, and peacebuilders to reimagine a peaceful future in a collaborative, innovative and actionable way.
Women’s Leadership in Peacebuilding
Kicking off this vital conversation with an in-person roundtable at the Learning Planet Institute, “United Generations for Peace”, we bring together leading voices in women’s leadership and peacebuilding to explore their vital role in conflict resolution, including Céline Bardet, president of We Are Not Weapons of War; Frédérique Bedos, Founder and President of Projet Imagine; Adeline Hazan, President of UNICEF France; Behishta Nazir, Alumna of HEC Imagine Fellows; Noha Voisin, Student and UNESCO x Women@Dior mentee (2024-25). Their discussion underscores the transformative power of storytelling in shaping narratives, the urgency of addressing inequalities from an early stage, and the role of young women in fostering intergenerational solidarity for peace.
Cultivating the Next Generation of Young Peace Builders
Opening a global online programme, the session “Cultivating the Next Generation of Young Peace Builders – In the Context of the UNESCO Chair in Learning Sciences” offers a bold reimagining of peace education and education for peace. This panel explores how to enhance and scale the impact of peace solutions by fostering synergies between institutions, researchers, educators, on-the-ground practitioners, and youth peacebuilders.
Co-authored and moderated by Pavel Luksha, Founder and Director of Global Education Futures, this vital conversation gathers global experts from UNESCO, academia, on-the-ground practitioners, and young changemakers, including Christopher Castle, Director of the Division for Peace and Sustainable Development at UNESCO; Prof. Hilary Cremin, Professor at the University of Cambridge, Faculty of Education; Candice Mama, Independent author and speaker; Rina Malagayo Alluri – Assistant Professor at the University of Innsbruck and UNESCO Chairholder of Peace Studies; Ilgin Pasli-Brombach, Founder and Executive Director of the planIMPACT.
- Read: Cultivating the Next Generation of Young Peacebuilders – Lookback on the UNESCO Chair in Learning Sciences Session
- Learn more about key takeaways from this session and watch a full replay
Transformative Grassroots Practices for Positive Peace
Two dynamic sessions, “In the MOOD for Peaceful Futures,” connect high-level conversations and on-the-ground impactful practices in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. These discussions are co-created and moderated by Pavel Luksha, founder and director of Global Education Futures, spotlighting experienced peacebuilders—true artisans of peace—and showcasing how they bridge divides and tackle unique challenges with resilience and creativity. Both sessions feature practices from the Atlas of Peaceful Futures, celebrating the ingenuity and impact of on-the-ground solutions, amplifying these voices, and accelerating the cultivation of positive peace ecosystems.
As a part of the profound cooperation between Learning Planet Institute and Global Education Futures, supported by international partners, a joint initiative, the Peaceful Futures Programme aims to train and empower hundreds of young changemakers worldwide. Central to it is the Atlas of Peaceful Futures—a dynamic, open directory of transformative grassroots practices fostering “positive peace” across communities, economies, and governance systems
The first part highlights diverse voices from Asia, Africa, and Europe, including Raghda ElHalawany, CEO of MasterPeace; Parul Jagdish, Global Head of Impact at AIME; Manjula Dissanayake, Founding Executive Director of Educate Lanka Foundation; Kristine Arzumanova, President of the International Association of Mediators & Poly-Experts (IAMPE); Ruphin Kungwa, Lead Weaver at YouthxYouth; Kara Stonehouse, Meshworker and Graphic Facilitator at The Hague Center for Global Governance Innovation and Emergence.
The second session showcases practices from North and South America, featuring Catalina Cock Duque, President of Fundación Mi Sangre; David Gershon, CEO of Empowerment Institute; Paula Drouin, Founder and Director of ADR Learning Institute; Mandar Apte, Executive Director of Cities4Peace; Katia Ramos, Executive Director of Câmara de Conciliação, Arbitragem e Mediação Intercultural (CCAMI).
- Read: In the MOOD for Peaceful Futures: Building Global Bridges for Peace
- Learn more about best practices for peaceful futures and watch full replays
Youth Driving Positive Peace
The overarching narrative of all sessions—empowering young leaders as beneficiaries and co-creators, strategists, and changemakers in conflict transformation—would be impossible without spotlighting young changemakers, who bring positive peace to their communities. The 100% youth-led event, The Ripple Effect: Youth Driving Positive Peace Across Intersections, is organised with and by youth, including Elizabeth Chukwu, a peace researcher and LearningPlanet Peaceful Futures Ambassador.
This session features inspiring on-the-ground initiatives, celebrating the diverse contributions of youth globally, including Weronika Knowska, Board Member of Youth Peace Ambassadors Network; Liana Liu Ioannides, Cypriot peace activist and peacebuilder; Dennis Lallienzuol Hmar, Founder of The Bridge School Project; Christelle Barakat, Researcher at the Lebanese Center for Policy Studies (LCPS); Felipe Gobatto Scheibler, Policy and Research Coordinator at Youth for TPNW; Abhishek Vyas, co-chair of the Cambridge Peace Education Research Group.
- Read: The Ripple Effect: Youth at the Centre of Peaceful Futures
- Learn more about the youth contribution towards a peaceful future and watch full replay
Towards a Peaceful Future
Aligned with this global movement for change, Learning Planet Institute and Global Education Futures are starting a joint initiative – Peaceful Futures: Cultivating the Next Generation of Young Peacebuilders Programme. Together with international partners and leading experts, we aim to train and empower young leaders worldwide. Built around the co-design and acceleration of sustainable and scalable peacebuilding change projects tailored to their local contexts, the programme is based on strategic foresight thinking, conflict transformation tools, and a peace-oriented mindset.
