“We need to develop the ability to think and challenge the status quo. We need to ask why things are the way they are, how can they be better?” – Elizabeth Chukwu, Youth Council.

Echoing the passion of Elizabeth Chukwu – a young peace researcher, Youth Council member, and Youth Fellow from Nigeria – young people from across the globe came together at this year’s LearningPlanet Festival to engage in spirited dialogue on reimagining education, cultivating peace, and driving societal change.

Youth Leadership at the Festival Opening

This year’s festival kicked off with an opening by Divya Sharma, a Youth Fellow, Youth Council member, social impact consultant, and disability rights advocate, at the UN at Your Doorstep: Quality Education session. She passionately  advocated for equal access to quality education and highlighted the importance of critical thinking, awareness, and inclusive governance in shaping a better future. These themes were further emphasised during the Building Bridges for a Better Future roundtable, where Divya stated: “The education system is too structured. It limits collaboration between fields, and that’s why we see it working in isolation. To break these barriers, students need to have the platform to take initiative and collaborate with each other.”

Adding to the Festival’s impact, Youth Fellow and Youth Council member, Daniel Persky, played a key role by participating in person at the Learning Planet Institute and actively contributing to the UNESCO Learning Expedition, bringing valuable insights to the discussions. Daniel also joined the session “How shall we learn in the age of AI?”  alongside Learning Planet Institute Founder, Dr. François Taddei, exploring the future of education in an AI-driven world.

Youth-Led Events Driving Change

The LearningPlanet Festival 2025 featured not one, not two but three Learning Planet Youth Leaders led events with more than 500 registrations, each showcasing the dedication and creativity of young changemakers.

• Learning Planet Youth Design Challenge Virtual Expo – An astounding 1,062 participants from 105 countries signed up, resulting in nearly 300 final programmes submitted. This year’s 12 finalists presented their learning programmes for reimagining Education, across the themes of Engagement, Flourishing, and Sustainability.  Following these presentations, the Youth Design Challenge Virtual Expo provided a dynamic space for participants to exchange ideas, share insights, and discuss their innovative programmes, fostering a global dialogue on the future of learning. Learn more here. 

• The Ripple Effect: Youth Driving Positive Peace Across Intersections – A powerful, fully youth-led panel exploring young people’s peacebuilding efforts, celebrating diverse contributions, and examining how we can collectively foster a global culture of positive peace. The session featured speakers from around the world, including Felipe Gobatto Scheibler, Christelle Barakat, Dennis Lallienzuol, Weronika Knowska, and Liana Liu Ioannides, and was moderated by Elizabeth Chukwu, Youth Council .

• Building Bridges for a Better Future: Youth Collaboration for Education Transformation – brought together the Learning Planet Youth Council  from around the world to rethink education systems, challenge systemic barriers, and explore how youth can drive meaningful, long-term change. Moderated by Matthew Persky, this session focused on reimagining education systems to tackle global challenges and drive meaningful, long-term change.  

The discussion highlighted key issues, including the lack of critical thinking and real-world skills, as education often prioritises memorisation over problem-solving. Educational inequality with marginalised communities facing limited access and resources and disconnect between education and urgent global issues was equally highlighted by many of your youth council members .

As Winnie Pon, our soon-to-be 17-year-old Youth Council member, put it: “Educational access is deeply unbalanced—some communities have far more resources than others. Bridging these gaps isn’t the effort of one person, but of a team and a community.”

Further amplified by Sean Park, Youth Council member passionate about Sustainability and Financial Literacy: “Systemic change takes time, but that doesn’t mean we should wait—we should act where we can.” 

Youth Voices Shaping the Future

The LearningPlanet Festival 2025 was a powerful reminder that young people are not just participants in global discussions – they are leading them. As Sayed Amjad, Youth Council from Afghanistan,  aptly stated, “We understand the problems with education firsthand, and we also know the solutions and how to implement them effectively.”

From education reform to grassroots peace initiatives, the message was clear: Learning and Peace must be accessible, intersectional, and deeply rooted in everyday realities. 

With every session, every story shared, and every solution proposed, this festival reinforced that youth are not waiting for permission to create change – they are already doing it. Now, the challenge is to build on this momentum, ensuring that young voices continue to shape policies, communities, and the future of education. As we move forward, the commitment remains: to listen, to support, and to act – because the world is already being shaped by those who dare to reimagine it.

Learn more about the LearningPlanet Youth Fellows here.