“This world is what you make of it. So go ahead and leave your mark, starting right here.”
This was the message on the front cover of the notebook given to each of the 2000 middle and high school students from North America and Europe who attended last week’s EF Tours Global Leadership Summit in Davos, Switzerland.
The students explored the theme ‘The Power of Communication’ through design thinking while enjoying an impressive line-up of keynote speakers (Clint Smith, Kai Kight, Ann Curry, David Hogg, and more), taking in performances by iLuminate, and participating in workshops taught by organizations such as the Nobel Prize Museum, African Leadership Academy, Anne Frank House, The School of the New York Times, UNICEF USA, The Validation Project, and others.
NewTechKids’ taught workshops on the way human vs. AI approach the design process. During our workshops, students learned about concepts such as generative design, mutation and selection by participating in multiple design cycles before creating a physical prototyping with craft supplies.
Building Leadership Skills Early
Helping students develop leadership skills from a young age is common in certain parts of the world, especially North America.
One of the most powerful aspects of the Summit was the cross-cultural collaboration and teamwork which it enabled. Kids from all over the world had a venue where they could meet, discuss their similarities and differences, and collaborate on a series of challenges. All the while, they were exploring the concept of leadership (characteristics, behaviours and mindset) and practising these very things.
The students were divided into teams and throughout the Summit, developed ideas related to improving communication across the globe. The ideas (prototypes) from winning teams will be exhibited in the Nobel Prize Museum in Stockholm, Sweden.
In our globalized world, cross-cultural collaboration and teamwork are critical, especially in the field of technology.
NewTechKids is proud to be involved with EF Tours, an organization on the cutting-edge of leadership development among students, and looks forward to continued collaboration.
EF Tours’ 2020 Global Leadership Summit topic: the Impact of Sports & Wellness.