Programme

The conference combines keynote addresses from leading international researchers with discussion panels, workshops, and dedicated sessions where NEPC partners and members are invited to present and share their own work in the field of ecological justice and sustainable education. We believe that the most valuable knowledge in this space already exists — in classrooms, schools, and organisations across our region — and this conference is designed to make that knowledge visible and shareable.

Keynote Speakers

Arjen Wals — Professor of Transformative Learning for Socio-Ecological Sustainability and UNESCO Chair at Wageningen University, Netherlands. One of the world’s leading voices on social learning for sustainability, whole-school approaches, and transformative education. A longtime friend of NEPC, Arjen first contributed to our learning community at the NEPC Summer School in Primošten back in 2012.

Mike Bottery — Emeritus Professor of Education at the University of Hull, UK, and author of Educational Leadership for a More Sustainable World and The Educational Leader in a World of Covert Threats. Mike’s work on the values underpinning educational leadership and the role of school leaders in navigating a world of ecological and societal challenge speaks directly to the heart of this conference.

Jelena Puđak — Sociologist and researcher at the Ivo Pilar Institute of Social Sciences in Zagreb, editor-in-chief of Socijalna ekologija, and member of Scientists for Climate. Jelena’s research on the sociology of climate change, public attitudes toward climate policy, and the structural conditions for meaningful climate action brings a vital perspective on why education must be part of the response.