• IPEN signs memorandum of friendship with KHDA
• Students, educators, should lead charge towards positive education
• Positive education experts Lord James O’Shaughnessy, Sir Anthony Sheldon, Héctor Escamilla, Charlie Scudamore lead workshop
• Schools need positive education framework
• Global call for collaborative education efforts 

Dubai-UAE: 13 February, 2017:  The first day of the fifth edition of the World Government Summit (WGS 2017) commenced with a workshop and panel drawing positive education visionaries moderated by the International Positive Education Network (IPEN). The panel of experts led simulating discussions on the importance of positive education, future research, and academia in the 21st century. 

On February 11 (Saturday), IPEN also signed a memorandum of friendship with the Knowledge and Human Development Authority (KHDA), a branch of the Government of Dubai.

The session titled ‘Global Perspectives on Positive Education in Collaboration with IPEN’ hosted world-class academics and researchers in the field of positive psychology including Sir Anthony Seldon, Vice-Chancellor of The University of Buckingham, Lord James O'Shaughnessy, UK Parliamentary Undersecretary of State at the Department of Health, Héctor Escamilla, President of TecMilenio University, and Charlie Scudamore, Vice Principal at Geelong Grammar School. 

Lord James O'Shaughnessy, Chair of the Steering Committee of IPEN, said: “IPEN believes positive education is achieved through bridging mental health and academia. The UAE is doing a wonderful job in this field. It is safe to say that today we will learn from UAE-based initiatives as much as from any international effort.”

Héctor Escamilla, the creator of the first Wellbeing Institute in Mexico, added: “It is an honor to be here today in Dubai. Positive education fosters leaders. College education represents only four to five years of your life, and we believe there is more we can do. Our mission is to be happy and adopt positive psychology to yield greater returns on education investments. Everything we do is for the students. Positive education is all about developing individuals to feel a sense of purpose in their life and encouraging them to seek and aim for better.”

Addressing the audience, Sir Anthony Seldon, the pioneer of positive education, said: “This summit comes at a moment of massive significance. Positive psychology is about who we are. We still have a 19thcentury education system around the world. It is fundamentally learning facts. It is necessary but not sufficient. We need to learn about well-being, character traits and skills of modern living to really excel in the 21stcentury. Exams only address memory, we need entrepreneurial learning. The UAE and Australia are leading this endeavor through shaping the 21stcentury education approach. It is all about building capacity to cope.”

For his part, Charlie Scudamore added: “Listening to everyone, I sit here with goosebumps. Everyone here believes in the power of positive education. It is vitally important to note that students should also lead this charge, not only educators.”

The World Government Summit (WGS) 2017 has drawn the participation of more than 4,000 personalities from 139 countries around the world, reflecting the leading stature of the summit on regional and international levels and the high interest from governments, global organizations, private and public sector entities, decision makers, entrepreneurs, academics and university students as well as scientists and innovators. WGS 2017 features 150 speakers across 114 sessions that highlight the world’s most pressing challenges and showcase best practices and cutting-edge solutions to deal with them.