Learners’ Voice Programme kicks off in Spanish capital

Learners Voice Programme 2014 particpants along with HE Sheikh Abdulla bin Ali al-Thani in Madrid.

The second residential session of the 2014 Learners’ Voice Programme of World Innovation Summit for Education (Wise) has started in the Spanish capital Madrid.Part of a year-long executive education programme, the fortnight-long gathering is engaging the learners in a full schedule of lectures and workshops on a range of topics such as social entrepreneurship, education, team building and leadership. The Wise Learners’ Voice Programme is supported by Banco Santander, through its Santander Universities Global Division. Wise established the Learners’ Voice Programme in 2010 to bring the talents and energies of young people to the task of rethinking education. The learners tackle issues relevant to youth and beyond, from education to leadership and employment, and participate in high level events around the world. This year’s learners, aged 18 to 25, come from 23 countries. The full community of Wise learners now is more than 100. HE Sheikh Abdulla bin Ali al-Thani, chairman, Wise, said: “The Learners’ Voice Programme provides a unique opportunity for students and recent graduates to build their communication, entrepreneurship, and leadership skills to effectively engage with key decision-makers in the world of education. By the end of the year, the 2014 participants will be prepared to utilise the abilities developed during the sessions in Madrid to propose innovative solutions to some of the most challenging global education issues. Assisted by our partner, Banco Santander, this year’s learners will apply their abilities as the next generation of education decision-makers.”Emilio Botin, chairman, Banco Santander, stated: “For Banco Santander, it is a great satisfaction to support the Learners’ Voice Programme from Qatar. Connecting this magnificent leadership programme to our network of co-operation agreements with top universities worldwide is one of our main contributions to the programme.”In addition to the courses and workshops, teams of learners bring together the skills and experience gained through the programme to collaborate in conceiving, designing, and developing real world projects. These collaborative projects address diverse challenges in health, environment, technology, and the arts toward identifying new creative solutions in education. Selected projects will be presented at the 2014 Wise Summit on November 4-6, in Qatar.