We are seeking Theme convenors.

The UKFIET Conference 2025 will be organised around a number of themes, representing different aspects of the overall conference theme “Mobilising knowledge, partnerships, and innovations for sustainable development through education and training”  Each of these themes will be led by 2 co-convenors drawn from different organisations to facilitate critical dialogue across constituencies – research, policy, practice, etc.

The theme co-convenors will play a critical role in shaping both their sub-theme and its place within the conference, and the overall format of the Conference through membership of the 2025 Conference Committee. The Conference Committee comprises a conference chair and two deputy-chairs, conference manager, BAICE representative and the theme co-convenors.  The UKFIET engagement fellow is also a member of the committee.

The list below outlines the key tasks for theme convenors; it is hoped convenors will undertake tasks collaboratively with their co-convenor including sharing attendance at the Conference Committee meetings to limit the demands on colleagues’ time.

  1. To contribute to the overall conference strategy and format as a member of the Conference Committee and to attend all conference committee meetings. (We anticipate meetings in December (shaping the themes), April (agreeing acceptances), July (programming) and meetings either side of the conference itself in September 2025; the meetings will be a mixture of virtual meetings and face to face meetings in London where necessary and feasible.)
  2. To develop their conference theme. To compose a narrative for their sub-theme inviting abstracts for individual papers and symposia as agreed with the Conference Committee.
  3. To review submitted abstracts for their sub-theme and put forward a selection for inclusion in the conference in line with the policy agreed by the Conference Committee (approximately 50 to 100 abstracts).
  4. To organise sessions for their sub-theme in consultation with other members of the Conference Committee to ensure a coherent programme; identifying and contacting sessions chairs and contributors.
  5. To support planning for a successful hybrid approach to the conference.
  6. To oversee the smooth running of sessions within their sub-theme at the conference.
  7. To contribute a short blog piece for the UKFIET website, one from each co-convenor; one on the key ideas emerging in their theme, the other retrospective on the theme following the conference. This could be written or an audio/video file for example a conversation between the 2 co-convenors.

Convenor contributions to the UKFIET Conference 2025 will be recognised with a fee waiver for the conference and three nights of accommodation in Oxford for the conference (16 – 18 September 2025).  All reasonable expenses for meetings etc, including travel within the UK, will be reimbursed.  

Ideally but not exclusively, Convenors should be associated with UKFIET member organisations and no more than 1 convenor will be from any one organisation to ensure that a broad range of organisations have the opportunity to input to the conference.

We invite expressions of interest in this role; please send a summary CV and short note outlining your area of expertise and to which theme(s) it aligns to Sarah Jeffery (UKFIET Conference manager) by  30 September s.jeffery@ukfiet.org

Theme: 

“Mobilising knowledge, partnerships, and innovations for sustainable development through education and training” is a theme that encapsulates the essence of collaborative learning and knowledge exchange across diverse educational contexts. This theme highlights the importance of harnessing local, regional, and global perspectives to advance innovative, inclusive, and sustainable practices at all levels of education—from primary to tertiary and from formal to informal and lifelong learning. Participants are invited to explore education’s transformative potential for sustainable development valuing localised knowledge within broader international frameworks, dialogues and commitments. The theme encourages discourse on the mechanisms of knowledge mobilisation that facilitate educational equity, bridge cultural and geographical divides, and contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals. Through this lens, the conference will also explore the role of mobility of knowledge, individuals, institutions, policies, practices, technologies, and resources for enhancing local and global partnerships and cultivating environments that nurture resilient learning communities worldwide.

Skills and knowledge for sustainable futures

  • Futures literacy
  • Eco-conscious curriculum design
  • Neurodiversity in learning
  • Cognition and metacognition
  • Transdisciplinary learning approaches
  • Application and ethics of AI and technology in education
  • Creative problem-solving and innovation

The Sustainable Development Goals

  • The role of all levels of education and training in achieving SDG4 and all other SDGs
  • Review of achievements and challenges
  • Politics of data in tracking SDG targets
  • Beyond 2030: post-SDG frameworks

  Mobility and equitable partnerships

  • Supranational (regional and global) partnerships in education
  • Cross-border collaborations for educational equity and quality
  • Using technology for education and research collaborations
  • The role of international mobility/exchanges/partnerships in education in achieving the SDGs

Inclusion and intersectionality

  • Interplay of religion, gender, ethnicity, race, sexuality, and disability in education.
  • Approaches to gender issues and systemic inequalities in education.
  • Investment policies in education.
  • Life skills education for evolving societal needs.
  • Data disaggregation and definitional issues in education (e.g., disability definitions, non-binary, rurality etc.)
  • Girls’ education as the key to women’s empowerment

Climate and environmental justice

  • Education sector responses to environmental crises.
  • Wealth distribution and its impact on environmental sustainability.
  • Investments in education to address environmental challenges
  • Educational and multi-sector coalitions for environmental action.
  • Climate science and activism within educational curricula.
  • Adaptive learning environments in response to environmental changes.

Learner safety and wellbeing

  • Effects of war and crises on educational environments.
  • Humanitarian support in education.
  • Learners’ safety and wellbeing in educational planning and implementation.
  • Social emotional learning programs.
  • Safety from home to educational institutions.
  • Professional development for educators in support of learner wellbeing.
  • Socio-emotional life skills in education.

Systems thinking

  • Structural and relational drivers of education systems
  • Intersectoral collaboration for systemic impact
  • Results-based financing
  • Deconstructing development paradigms
  • Decolonisation of donor agendas
  • Political economy and behavioural change in educational systems