2026
Watch the opening plenary recording in Spanish or Portuguese.
Around the world, few education systems are equipping all children and young people to thrive today—let alone prepare them for tomorrow. Efforts to reform these systems are failing not for lack of effort or evidence, but because existing systems tend to reproduce the very challenges they seek to address: knowledge flows downward, decisions are made far from classrooms, resources fail to reach those who need them the most, and the actors closest to the challenges are treated as beneficiaries rather than agents of change.
What is needed is not incremental reform, but a fundamental rethinking of the purpose of education—and a rebuilding of systems around that purpose. Transforming education systems requires more than policy and global expertise alone. The voices, knowledge, and lived realities of those routinely excluded from these conversations must be included as well.
On June 4, join the Center for Universal Education at Brookings, Educación para Compartir, and Vozes da Educação for a symposium on education systems transformation, which will feature panels, interactive workshops, and ample time for strengthening relationships and building new connections. Grounded in Latin American perspectives, the symposium will center Indigenous communities, educators and learners in marginalized contexts, and young people whose experiences offer critical insight into what it takes for children and young people to thrive. The program will showcase collaborative research and action as an approach that bridges research, practice, and policy, while elevating locally rooted solutions on key issues such as education in emergencies, youth workforce, and pedagogical transformation.
This event is a part of the Global Symposium Series 2026 and builds on the collaborative work of the Knowing Doing Network (KDN). It is co-hosted and co-designed by An Giang University, the Center for Universal Education at Brookings, EducAid Sierra Leone, Educación para Compartir, Mizizi Elimu Afrika, Society for Access to Quality Education (SAQE), and Vozes da Educação.
This event will be open to attend in person in Mexico City with most sessions held in Spanish and limited sessions interpreted into English. The opening plenary will be available to watch online in English, Spanish, and Portuguese.
Agenda
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June 4
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Welcome coffee
8:30 am - 9:00 am
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Opening plenary
9:00 am - 10:00 am
Youth perspectives on thriving in today's world
Fireside chat: collaborative research and action for education systems transformation
Jennifer L. O’Donoghue Deputy Director - Center for Universal Education, Senior Fellow - Global Economy and Development -
Introduction activity and coffee break
10:00 am - 10:30 am
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Concurrent workshops
What do young people need to thrive and how do we understand it across countries?
10:30 am - 11:30 am
In-person participants are invited to select preferred workshops during registration. Workshops will be preassigned as space allows.
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Workshop: Building safe and ethical AI environments for youth
10:30 am - 11:30 am
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Workshop: Perspectives on agency with girls in marginalized contexts
10:30 am - 11:30 am
This workshop will be conducted in English with interpretation into Spanish.
Anya Kasubhai Senior Project Assistant - Global Economy and Development, Center for Universal Education
Dasmine Kennedy Assistant Chief Education Officer - Educational Planning Unit, Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Jamaica, 2017 Echidna Global Scholar - Global Economy and Development, Center for Universal Education @dasmine_kennedy
Jennifer L. O’Donoghue Deputy Director - Center for Universal Education, Senior Fellow - Global Economy and Development -
Workshop: Young child-centered methodologies in humanitarian response
10:30 am - 11:30 am
Juanita Morales Senior Project Coordinator and Research Assistant - Global Economy and Development, Center for Universal Education juanita-morales -
Coffee break
11:30 am - 11:45 am
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Concurrent workshops and panels
What does it take to build strong education ecosystems around young people?
11:45 am - 12:45 pm
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Panel: The role of civil society and the private sector in building education ecosystems for young people
11:45 am - 12:45 pm
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Workshop: Data as an anchor for building strong early childhood education ecosystems
11:45 am - 12:45 pm
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Workshop: What matters in education? Interrogating priorities and mindsets across education systems
11:45 am - 12:45 pm
This workshop will be conducted in English with interpretation into Spanish.
Juanita Morales Senior Project Coordinator and Research Assistant - Global Economy and Development, Center for Universal Education juanita-morales -
Workshop: Building strong partnerships and trust between families, educators, and students
11:45 am - 12:45 pm
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Lunch
12:45 pm - 2:00 pm
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Afternoon kickoff
2:00 pm - 2:15 pm
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Concurrent workshops
Whose knowledge is valued in education research—and whose is missing? What does it take to build more inclusive, participatory, and community-centered research practices?
2:15 pm - 3:15 pm
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Workshop: Making invisible knowledge visible in research for gender equality in and through education
2:15 pm - 3:15 pm
Magdalena Rodríguez Romero Co-Founder and Co-Director - ProSociedad, 2024 Echidna Global Scholar - Brookings @anamagdarr -
Workshop: Who gets to decide? Community led approaches to education research and action
2:15 pm - 3:15 pm
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Workshop: Lessons from the SPARKS project on collaborative research
2:15 pm - 3:15 pm
Rachel Dyl Project Manager and Research Analyst - Global Economy and Development, Center for Universal Education rachel-dyl -
Workshop: Power, voice and knowledge in education systems transformation
2:15 pm - 3:15 pm
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Coffee break
3:15 pm - 3:30 pm
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Closing plenary
3:30 pm - 5:00 pm
Panel: How can education systems respond to crisis and emergency contexts while supporting equity and well-being?
Keynote and closing reflections
Dasmine Kennedy Assistant Chief Education Officer - Educational Planning Unit, Ministry of Education, Skills, Youth and Information, Jamaica, 2017 Echidna Global Scholar - Global Economy and Development, Center for Universal Education @dasmine_kennedy
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