Global Schools Forum’s inaugural Learning Festival: A journey of rebellion, wisdom & gratitude

Global Schools Forum is a collaborative community of 170+ inspiring organisations across 70+ countries dedicated to transforming the education of children in low resource settings in the Global South. Over two transformative days, this global community convened for the inaugural GSF Virtual Learning Festival. The Festival challenged the status quo in education, shared stories of strength, fear and wisdom, and ignited collective action to bridge local and global perspectives through collective learning.

Our inspiring facilitators and storytellers brought decades of experience, bold ideas, and actionable wisdom to the conversation. With representation from diverse parts of the globe, the energy in the (virtual) room was electric - filled with vulnerability, courage, and a shared commitment to reimagining education. 

Over two invigorating days, attendees deep dived into stories, tools, and collaborations that challenged the status quo. In this article, we share reflections from the incredible voices that have guided these conversations. 

Day 1: From bold rebellion to cross-border collaboration 

1. Opening the space: GSF’s story of learning 

Alina Lipcan (Global Schools Forum) set the stage with vulnerability, sharing how GSF owns failures—like trying to "solve everything" early on - taught three key lessons: 

• Focus on catalytic challenges. 
• Diffuse learnings as fiercely as you create them. 
• Bridge local wisdom and global evidence. “Psychological safety to fail is the bedrock of progress.” 

2. Igniting rebellion: Stories that moved us 

Robert, Haroon and Chandni shared bravely, each challenging a status quo with raw honesty: 

• Robert Alhadeff - Jackfruit Network : “Banks said schools were ‘too risky.’ So I lent my own saving. But 9 of 10 schools repaid. Now we’re changing finance systems.” 
• Haroon Yasin - Taleemabad : “23 million out-of-school children in Pakistan? We built evening schools for working kids. One student is now a data engineer—rebellion is a tiny choice repeated daily.” 
• Chandni Chopra - Simple Education Foundation : “Stop blaming teachers. We co-design with 150K+ of them—because systems change when we listen.” 

Emerging questions:  How can we centre teacher voices in policy design? How do we frame local experiments so they are taken seriously in policy spaces? 

3. Networking Lounges: Collaboration across borders 

Participants dived into themed spaces, asking: 

• EdTech Lounge: “Does your tool survive a power outage? Innovations must solve urgent, non-negotiable problems for schools, communities, or governments — not just nice-to-have add-ons Oluwaseun Kayode - Schoolinka  
• Government Partnerships: “How do we turn ‘red tape’ into ‘red carpet’? Trust, not transactions.” How do we stop seeing local bureaucrats as obstacles, and instead as partners with wisdom?  Olanrewaju Oniyitan - SEED Care & Support Foundation
• Latin America & Early Childhood: “Play is resistance. Data proves it builds executive function—let’s reframe it as ‘social-emotional infrastructure.’ “Are we gatekeeping our own learnings by not diffusing failures enough?”  Victoria Arciniegas Gómez - aeioTU

Soft Spaces: The Connection Buffet revealed childhood hobbies, superpowers, and objects that hold meaning (like Sanchi’s coaster: "The best things in life aren’t things."). 

Day 2: From failure to gratitude 

1. Failure Alchemy: Compost for growth  Priya, Leslee, and Rosalin transformed pain into wisdom: 

• Priya Agrawal - Antarang Foundation :  “A  failed expansion taught us: Budget for ‘Year Zero’—systems change needs patient capital.” "Now we laugh at our mistakes. Failure isn’t hidden; it’s a checkpoint." 
• Leslee Udwin - Think Equal : “Why I stopped making films and started changing minds"— "Violence isn’t the disease—it’s the symptom. The disease is not teaching kids to value others." 
• Rosalin Abigail Kyere-Nartey - Africa Dyslexia Organisation described her journey as a dyslexic student – was told she’d "damage her school’s reputation," later founding an organisation to advocate for neurodiverse learners. "Millions are unseen like I was. If no one came for me, I’ll go for them." 

2. GSF Toolkits: From theory to practice 

Participants embraced live toolkits: "Scaling Roadblocks" (Impact at Scale Toolkit); "Partnership Pain Points" (Government & Non-State Partnerships Evidence Hub); "ECED in Emergencies (Early Childhood Education and Development in Emergencies Evidence Hub)".  

3. Closing with Gratitude: Story on the magic of opening doors & the virtual tree 

Aashti Zaidi Hai 's reflection on “people, relationships, and kindness” grounded us.

The Gratitude Circle bloomed with shout-outs for the incredible support offered by organisations across GSF Community for each other.  

“Rebellion snowballs.”  Let’s keep pushing, failing, and growing—together. We have much more to share from this festival, and will hopefully do that in meaningful ways 😊 

Stay tuned for more reflections and takeaways from our Virtual Learning Festival.