Plenary 1

Senior Fellow, Guerrand-Hermes Foundation for Peace - GHFP Research Institute - United Kingdom

Dr Scherto Gill is Senior Research Fellow at the GHFP Research Institute. She is also a Visiting Fellow and an Associate Lecturer at the University of Sussex’s School of Education, and a Director of a UNESCO Research Project on ‘Healing the Wounds of Slavery’. Scherto’s research interests centre on understanding peace, human well-being and flourishing as holistic and dynamic processes. The key concepts she is developing include human-centred education, positive peace, deep dialogue, ecology of well-being, and global governance. Through research and project work at the GHFP Research Institute, she has been actively exploring ways to apply these concepts and ideas in educational innovation, peacebuilding, and social transformation.

Email: scherto.gill@ghfp.org
Web: www.sussex.ac.uk/education/people/peoplelists/person/136057

Co-Founder and President, Taos Institute; Mustin Professor of Psychology, Swarthmore College - USA

Kenneth J. Gergen, Ph.D., is a founding member, President of the Taos Institute and Chair of the Board, and the Mustin Professor of Psychology at Swarthmore College. Gergen also serves as an Honorary Professor at the University of Buenos Aires. Gergen received his BA from Yale University and his PhD from Duke University, and has taught at Harvard University and Heidelberg University. He has been the recipient of two Fulbright research fellowships, the Geraldine Mao fellowship in Hong Kong, along with Fellowships from the Guggenheim Foundation, the Japanese Society for the Promotion of Science, and the Alexander Humboldt Stiftung. Gergen has also been the recipient of research grants from the National Science Foundation, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and the Barra Foundation. Gergen is a major figure in the development of social constructionist theory and its applications to practices of social change. Gergen has published over 300 articles in journals, magazines and books, and his major books include Toward Transformation in Social Knowledge, The Saturated Self, Realities and Relationships, An Invitation to Social Construction, Relational Being, and The Relational Imperative.

Email: kgergen1@swarthmore.edu
Web: www.swarthmore.edu/kenneth-gergen

Consultant, Trainer, Facilitator - France

Through a diversified experience ranging from the promotion of basic education in the Global South with Aide et Action to research on alternative paradigms for education with UNESCO, Sheela develops the conviction that systemic educational change is a social, cultural and moral necessity. In this endeavour, she participates in advisory committees and accompanies teachers, schools and organizations through conferences, workshops or training programs. Her most recent collaborations include the Organisation of Educational Cooperation and the French Education Ministry.

Email: pimpare.sheela@gmail.com
Web: https://atelierducomplexe.org/en

State Secretary; Expert on Education; Policy-maker; Founder and Co-Founder of United World College in Mostar & Helsinki International Schools; Adjunct Professor, University of Helsinki - Finland

Dr. Pilvi Torsti has served in leadership and expert roles in the fields of education, learning, research, science, innovation, public policy and start-up companies in Finland and globally since 1990s. Her most important public positions include MP of the national parliament 2017-2019, State Secretary & Special Advisor in ministries of Education & Culture 2013-15, Economic Affairs & Employment (2011-13 and 2019) and Traffic & Communications (2019-on-going). She is a vice-chair Helsinki city council. Before her political career Dr. Torsti was a scholar and teacher at the University of Helsinki becoming adjunct professor in 2013. She earned her PhD in 2004. Over the years Dr. Torsti has published broadly for scientific and general audiences. 2020 she was nominated as the adjunct professor of the year 2020. Her latest two publications are from 2021.

Dr Torsti is founder and co-founder of peace education and start-up education initiatives United World College in Mostar & Helsinki International Schools – HEI Schools. For the UWC work she has received two peace awards. Dr. Torsti is a UWC graduate (1995) and an Eisenhower Fellow (2013) and serves and has served in several profit and non-profit boards including being the chair of board of the Foundation Education in Action in Bosnia and Herzegovina and member of Advisory Board of Dream a Dream in India.

In addition to education issues during the past ten years Dr. Torsti has also been involved in a broad range of issues as a State Secretary of three ministries. Such issues include employment, communication and network policy (5G), AI, digitalization, data politics, immigration, culture, strategic planning of transport and climate policies.

Email: pilvi@pilvitorsti.fi
Web: www.linkedin.com/in/pilvitorsti/