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Future Leaders Summit in Bled, organised by the Future Tense powered by Lürssen conference and IEDC – Bled School of Management, brought together school pupils and university students, as well as representatives of the academic and business communities, to discuss the future of education and the labour market.
The summit provided an opportunity for an equal exchange of ideas and views on the key challenges we face, and for exploring how best to prepare young people for a world that is changing at speed.
„Transforming education is not a matter of instant change; it requires focused and continuous effort from all sectors of society. If we want to prepare young people for the future, we must first acknowledge that we cannot do so with a system designed for the past. The world has changed, and schools – as one of its foundations – must change too.“, said Prof. Mislav Ante Omazić, PhD, President of IEDC – Bled School of Management. Omazić stressed that the issue is not only what we teach, but also how we teach and how those skills are applied in real life: „In a world where nearly 40% of today’s skills will lose relevance over the next five years, the greatest competitive advantage is no longer knowledge itself, but the ability to keep learning and continuously reinvent oneself.“
Through keynote talks and a panel discussion, school pupils, students, business leaders and representatives of academia discussed the importance of critical and analytical thinking, resilience, and adapting education systems to rapid technological change. Participants drew inspiration from working sessions and talks by Korado Korlević, educator and astronomer; Prof. Snježana Prijić-Samaržija, PhD, former rector and professor at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Rijeka, and member of the Board of the Lürssen Foundation; Prof. Mislav Ante Omazić, PhD, President of IEDC – Bled School of Management; and Milena Prodanić Tišma, founder and principal of Bright Horizons School.
„Thinking about the future of education has produced a wide range of scenarios, from desirable and wise adaptations to new paradigms of communication, learning and research, to those that would completely reshape the education system, redefining the value of degrees and curricula while introducing non-traditional providers of educational content. Europe carries a special responsibility in this process – not only to preserve its values, but to embed them meaningfully into the education of the future, because this is about the most important work in the world.“, emphasised Prof. Snježana Prijić-Samaržija, PhD, professor at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Rijeka and member of the Board of the Lürssen Foundation.
„Today it is clear that education is not only preparation for a first job. It shapes how we think, how we collaborate, and what kind of society we leave behind.“, said Manuela Šola, owner of Komunikacijski laboratorij and founder of the Future Tense powered by Lürssen conference. The event provided a platform for open dialogue between those entering the labour market and those helping to shape it.
The education system must equip young people not only with knowledge, but with the ability to take responsibility, drive change and lead in a world that is constantly being redefined. The first Future Leaders Summit showed that collaboration between education, the business sector and different generations is what creates the foundations for a more resilient and relevant society. That same energy and open dialogue launched at the Future Leaders Summit will continue and deepen at the Future Tense powered by Lürssen conference, where the same questions will be examined from a global and strategic perspective.
On 22 April in Zagreb, the Future Tense powered by Lürssen conference will feature Mikko Hyppönen, global cybersecurity expert; futurist Rik Vera; Dr Susanna Søberg on longevity; Simon J. Evenett on geopolitics; and Märtha Rehnberg on sustainable practices and the transformation of traditional industries.
Future Tense powered by Lürssen brings together leading business figures and representatives of the academic and scientific communities, and through its collaboration with the Copenhagen Institute for Futures Studies (CIFS), IEDC – Bled School of Management, the Association for the Promotion of Smart Industries, and the European Forum, it supports the development of a new generation of leaders ready to meet future challenges.
More information is available on the Future Tense conference website.
