Jackie Williams

Head of Year, Teacher, Mentor for Global Schools Programme UNSDN, Switzerland

Workshop Information:

An interactive workshop is designed to empower educators/school leaders/ students to take informed, purposeful action inspired by their learning using the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as a framework.

Participants will explore practical strategies for integrating the SDGs into classroom instruction and curriculum with intentionality, ensuring global competencies are meaningfully embedded across subject areas. 

Drawing on my four years of volunteering  with the UN SDSN Global Schools Programme, first as an advocate and now as a mentor for educators, I will share approaches and best practices. 

Recently, I had the opportunity to present a global online professional development session for the Global Schools Programme community on this topic. 

The session focused on how to design lessons and units that align with the SDGs in ways that are relevant, interdisciplinary, and actionable. 

While my focus was on literacy for that conference, the principles and strategies are adaptable to any subject area. 

This session is ideal for educators seeking to deepen their students’ understanding of global issues and to cultivate a classroom culture of critical thinking, empathy, and action.

Session Outcomes:

• An understanding of how to use the SDGs as a planning lens for curriculum development.

• Concrete examples of SDG-aligned lesson design.

• Tools and resources to inspire student agency and global citizenship in any educational context.

Biography:

An accomplished educational leader with extensive expertise in teaching, curriculum design, instructional mentorship, and professional development. My career has evolved primarily within schools delivering the rigorous, inquiry-driven curriculum framework of the International Baccalaureate (IB) Primary Years Programme (PYP). I am an active member of the IB Educator Network undertaking several key roles. I am deeply committed to integrating education for sustainable development, aligning teaching and learning with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) to empower students as responsible, globally minded citizens. I am passionate about fostering excellence in teaching and mentoring aspiring educators and schools in instructional practices and curriculum design. I speak three languages fluently, English, French, and Spanish. I have had the good fortune of spending most of my life in Switzerland.