A year has passed since the last entry, and it was a busy year. Ideas that were born last summer are coming to fruition, an educational summer retreat is going to take place in the South of Styria in two weeks’ time. It is the beginning of a series of events organised by the newly created association “International Forum for the Future of Education” (IFFE).

And it all started with memories of the Pestalozzi Programme Summer Schools (Council of Europe) being shared on Facebook by a number of alumni of these summer schools between 2013 and 2017. And the memories were good; and they sparked creativity and desire to do something about it so that motivated education practitioners can come together and discuss the burning and fundamental issues, share experiences and explore solutions.

So we set out to design the Retreat21 “Retreat to better strike” to take place in Gamlitz, a small town in the wine-growing region of Southern Styria, on 9 – 11 July 2021. The town offered its support for the event, investing this into potential future developments. And over 50 education practitioners from across Europe enrolled despite the uncertainties and restrictions the pandemic imposes on travelling.

Learn more about the event here “Retreat21“. The outcomes of the intensive debate will also be published there in due time.