The Learning Future Podcast with Louka Parry

They discuss moving towards a human paradigm in education, emphasizing well-being, collaboration, and social intelligence. The importance of investing in people for positive impact and the challenges of subjective understanding of systems. Exploring the role of optimism, collaboration, and societal factors in driving change. Embracing hopefulness as a strategy in the face of complexity and radical change.

In a Covid world, all of us have experienced loss. So how might we understand grief and powerfully acknowledge the fact that all things come to an end, including our lives and those of others around us? In today's powerful episode we speak with Zenith Virago about the rites of passage in our lives and how we can powerfully experience loss and death. Zenith is a maverick and respected pioneer, teaching both nationally and Internationally, with her work best described as assisting people to die well, and for families and friends to have a healthier bereavement, especially involving sudden death or trauma, assisting people to know and reclaim their legal rights, and co-create their own social rites of passage. Zenith is the Executive Officer and founding member of the Natural Death Care Centre Charity for over 25 years. She is committed to cultural change, informing, educating and empowering individuals and communities and co-author of The Intimacy of Death and Dying, and subject of Zen & the Art of Dying, and patron of the Good Funeral Guide, UK.

What is education for? And how might we create a new definition of success, that enables us all to thrive in life, society, and on our planet? In today’s episode, we speak with Valerie Hannon, co-founder of Innovation Unit, a social enterprise creating new ways for people to belong and contribute to thriving societies. We discuss learning ecosystems, how we define success, and what kind of new school we need for the learning future. Valerie Hannon’s career spans leadership of education systems, research, teaching, and capacity building. She has supported education change programmes in numerous systems, including the UK, Europe, USA, Australia and Africa, and is a founding member and Co-Chair of the Global Education Leaders Partnership (GELP). Valerie was Director of Education for Derbyshire, and an advisor on creativity in the Department for Education. She has led many Innovation Unit education programmes, including Next Practice projects, Learning Futures (in the UK), and Learning Frontiers (in Australia). She has been consultant adviser to Finland, British Columbia in South Africa (KZA) and is an established thought leader in the field of education innovation. Valerie is an expert adviser on education to the OECD, and a frequent contributor to the World Summit on Innovation in Education (WISE). She is a regular keynote speaker and facilitator at international conferences and workshops. Valerie’s new book, published by Innovation Unit Press, is called THRIVE: schools reinvented for the real challenges we face. thelearningfuture.com

Join us for a reflection on Season One, with Louka Parry sharing highlights and themes shared from the 18 different guests that contributed their thinking against the uncertainty of 2020. A year of disruption, and a year that might be seen as one of the most important in the history of education. Thanks for joining us so far on the journey as we inquire, examine, question and illuminate the possibilities that exist for our learning future.