Equinox Summit Learning 2030 brings together education innovators

WATERLOO, Ont. (Monday, Aug. 19, 2013) – A “street-fighting” mathematician and an 18-year-old who took on global education systems in a provoking book are amongst those who will assemble for Equinox Summit: Learning 2030, an innovative global summit tackling the future of high school education, in Waterloo, Ontario, Canada from September 29 to October 3, 2013.

Learning 2030 is the second event of the Equinox Summit series presented by Waterloo Global Science Initiative (WGSI), a partnership between two leading Canadian institutions, Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and the University of Waterloo. The inaugural event, Equinox Summit: Energy 2030 took place in June 2011.

“The high school graduates of 2030 are the 134 million children who were born in the last 12 months. They will face some of the most complex global problems of our time,” said Summit Curator, Dr. Michael Brooks (UK), quantum physicist, journalist and author of 13 Things That Don’t Make Sense and Free Radicals: The Secret Anarchy of Science. “For Equinox Summit: Learning 2030, we have assembled a room full of people who are not just pointing out the problems with education but are actively implementing new strategies in classrooms around the world. Together with a group of talented and highly motivated young people, we have assembled a powerful combination of insight, experience, creative thinking, energy and drive that will spark real change for the children of tomorrow.”

During three days of intense working sessions, the multigenerational, multidisciplinary, and multinational group of participants will investigate a variety of approaches to high school learning that are based on the most promising initiatives, communities, technologies, and emerging resources from around the world.

Dr. Sanjoy Mahajan (USA), author of Street-Fighting Mathematics: The Art of Educated Guessing and Opportunistic Problem Solving, is a member of the Learning 2030 Quorum (group of experts). He brings a depth of experience from his current position at Olin College and his past roles at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), and the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS) to the Summit.

Eighteen-year-old Nikhil Goyal (USA), of the Forbes 30 Under 30: Education list, whose own high school experience inspired him to write One Size Does Not Fit All: A Student’s Assessment of School, is a part of the Learning 2030’s Forum of young, global leaders. “Unlike most events, Equinox Summit Learning 2030 will feature a unique roster of voices and perspectives that are dedicated to transforming high school learning and ensuring that young people are handed the reins of their education,” said Goyal.

Equinox Summit: Learning 2030 Participants

Visit wgsi.org/participants for a full list of participants.

Chernor Bah (Sierra Leone) – Chair of the UN Malala Day Youth Takeover and Chair of the UN Youth Advocacy Panel for Education First

Graham Brown-Martin (UK) – Founder of Education design labs, author of World Innovation Summit for Education (WISE)’s 2013 book, Learning {RE}Imagined

Adrian Lim Lye Heng (Singapore) – Principal of the innovative Ngee Ann Secondary School, a Microsoft Partners in Learning School

Kristiina Kumpulainen (Finland) – Professor of Teacher Education at the University of Helsinki, Finland

Noor Siddiqui (USA) – 19-year-old recipient of a $100 000 Thiel Fellowship in 2012

About the Inaugural Equinox Summit: Energy 2030

In June of 2011, the first Equinox Summit: Energy 2030 brought visionaries and experts together to create a technological roadmap for a low-carbon, electrified future.
View the presentation of the 2011 Equinox Communiqué at bit.ly/18kWBBO Read their recommendations in the Equinox Summit: Energy 2030 Blueprint at wgsi.org/energy2030

About Waterloo Global Science Initiative

Waterloo Global Science Initiative (WGSI) is a non-profit partnership between Perimeter Institute for Theoretical Physics and the University of Waterloo; a pairing that has previously resulted in the distinguished Perimeter Scholars International program and the University of Waterloo’s pioneering Institute for Quantum Computing. The mandate of WGSI is to promote dialogue around complex global issues and to catalyze the long-range thinking necessary to advance ideas, opportunities and strategies for a secure and sustainable future through the Equinox Summit Series, Equinox Blueprints and Impact Activities. For more information visit wgsi.org