The Chulalongkorn School of Integrated Innovation (ScII) was host to a special event to mark the UN International Day of Education 2023, which included three ambassadors and representatives from international organizations, academia, diplomacy, and voluntary organizations as well as educators and students from a range of schools and universities.

The celebrations kicked off with the Ambassador of Malaysia to the Kingdom of Thailand and President of the Board of Directors of the Diplomatic Council, Dato’ Jojie Samuel, delivering the opening remarks. “Three aspects are crucial: education is a human right, it is key to sustainable development, and it plays a key role in empowering individuals,” he said. There are 258 million children who are not attending school, but what is even more troubling is that most of them are from marginalized groups. While UNESCO estimates that 375 million were not enrolled in school in 2000, the situation has improved as the number has come down to two-thirds of the world figure. However, what is troublesome is that one-fifth of children and young people still did not attend school last year.

Welcoming the delegates on behalf of the President of Chulalongkorn University, Prof. Bundhit Eua-arporn, ScII Executive Director Professor Worsak Kanok-Nukulchai stressed the need to prepare the next generation of global leaders. “Our mission is to develop well-rounded, forward-thinking individuals with the skills and competencies necessary to thrive in a rapidly changing world characterized by economic, social, technological, and environmental shifts. Our approach to education, which includes transdisciplinary learning, project-based instruction, partnerships with industry, and international exchange programs, aligns with the theme of this year’s International Day of Education, which is to invest in people and prioritize education.” The ScII Executive Director added that the school is committed to the vision enunciated in Sustainable Development Goals 4, 8, and 9, which focus on quality education, decent work and economic growth, and industry, innovation and infrastructure.

Founder of the Pitch at School Entrepreneurial Mindset Education Programme Dato’ Steve Cheah elaborated on developing an entrepreneurial mindset education programme that helps students gain hands-on experience in solving real-world problems and managing the entrepreneurial process firsthand to unleash their creativity and apply and sharpen their analytical and problem-solving abilities. “We need to stress investing in people, prioritizing education and unlocking entrepreneurial mindsets for the young,” said Dato’ Steven Cheah. “Traditionally, education systems have been designed to produce workers who fueled economic mechanisms. The problem with our current education system is that it tests memorization skills, not learning intelligence,” he added. “However, reports suggest that two billion jobs will disappear by the year 2030. To combat this cataclysmic change, new skills and competencies are needed.”

The founder of the Mechai Bamboo School, Mechai Viravaidya, Thailand\'s \"Mr. Condom,\" for his pioneering work in family planning and HIV/AIDS prevention in Thailand, spoke about the string of innovations being implemented at the secondary school, which is actively engaged in community development. The Mechai Bamboo School is an innovative rural boarding school that was established in Buriram in Thailand to develop into a lifelong learning center. It is also a hub for social and economic advancement in the surrounding villages. Highlighting the innovations conceived at the school, Mechai Viravaidya stated that the school was not meant just for children but also for people from the surrounding communities where they learn agriculture, energy, community development, cooking or writing, among others. In 2017, the UN’s Population Fund (UNFPA) described the school as among the “world’s most innovative schools.”

Two teams of secondary school students, one from Satit Panyapiwat Institute of Management Demonstration School and another from Wattana Academy pitched their sustainability projects before a live audience. A first-year BAScii student from Nigeria, Ms Atamfon Wilson Udofia, highlighted the path-breaking way ScII was helping students learn about innovation.

A panel discussion titled “Investing in People and Prioritizing Education” had four expert panelists leading the discussion: H.E. Dr. Pichet Durongkaveraj, former Minister of the Digital Economy and Society and Former Minister of Science and Technology of Thailand, Mr. Ilja Riekki of UNESCO’s Non-Formal Education and Literacy program, Mrs. Pamela Kiptinness, Educationist and Ambassador’s spouse, Embassy of Kenya, Dato’ Steve Cheah, Founder of GEN Thailand. The panel discussion was moderated by the Deputy Executive Director of Industrial and Global Alliances at ScII, Dr. Pietro Borsano.

The event was co-hosted by GEN (Thailand), Diplomatic Council, and Pitch@School and supported by the Faculty of Education, Chulalongkorn University.