Second International Forum “Steering Education” will be held in Riga

On June 8th, the second high-level international forum "Steering Education: From Engagement to Empowerment" will take place in Riga, Latvia. This year's forum is dedicated to changing the approach to adult education and skills development, both at organizational and national level. World-renowned futurists and experts from Switzerland, the USA and Finland will offer three different perspectives on the future interaction of people, skills, and technology, with a need for employers, training providers, and human capital development policymakers to strategically review adult education offering, investment goals, and quality standards. The event is organised by the Ministry of Education and Science and the State Education Development Agency (VIAA) in support of the European Year of Skills initiative.

The forum will look for solutions on how to support and motivate employers to play a greater role in adult education, how to ensure the provision of modern and future-proof education and training offer, and how to promote cooperation and coordination between national agencies, ministries and stakeholders in order to work on systemic improvements in adult education and skills development.

The event will be opened by The Minister of Education and Science Anda Čakša. "Digitalisation, artificial intelligence and the inevitable presence of various technologies have brought changes in our daily lives. It encourage us to make strategic decisions that will change the approach to adult education. A wide offer for different target audiences has been created, but when reviewing the future investment strategy, it is necessary to set clear goals, manage quality and results both on the state and labor market level. Personal motivation is also an important aspect. We are at the forefront of changes in leadership and management approaches - those who will create an inclusive culture in organizations, achieving measurable results, will be more successful,” emphasizes A Čakša.

During the forum, a futurist and humanist, keynote speaker, filmmaker, author of five books, including “Technology vs. Humanity” Gerd Leonhard, Switzerland, will highlight the importance of artificial intelligence in the future of human work, learning and training, Forbes TOP 50 futurist, employment and organization development expert, researcher and author Heather E.McGowan, USA, will emphasize the importance of human-centered leadership and constant learning in adapting to a changing world, while futurist, future scenario researcher Elina Hiltunen, Finland, will outline megatrends and the future of skills. 

Education and business sector leaders, politicians and public partners will participate in discussions on global trends of adult education and its development in Latvia. The event will be closed by the inspirational story of Raimonds Thomsons, the best Sommelier of the World 2023, Latvia.

Anyone interested will be able to watch the live broadcast of the event on the Delfi.lv portal, the forum website, as well as on the VIAA Facebook page. The event will be held in English, with translation into the latvian language. More information about the International Forum "Steering Education: From Engagement to Empowerment" is available on the forum website www.futures2050.lv