Future Challenges
This thematic area equips student leaders to understand and respond to transformative global issues. It tackles emerging megatrends and sustainability challenges, encouraging proactive, future-focused leadership.
Upcoming Sessions
Future Skills and Megatrends
In a fast-changing world, student leaders must not only adapt but lead transformation. This session introduces strategic foresight—an approach to understanding long-term societal shifts and megatrends. You’ll explore how these trends influence education, governance, and activism, and which skills are essential for future leadership. Using future-oriented tools and participatory methods, you’ll reflect on your own context and leadership journey while imagining possible futures. How can student leaders stay agile, informed, and visionary in a complex world? Through interactive exercises and group discussion, this session invites you to develop the mindset and capacity to anticipate change and influence positive outcomes in your institutions and communities.
Iris Kimizoglu – ESU
Iris is the President of the European Students’ Union (ESU) for the 2024/25 term. She previously held student representative roles at local, state, national, and international levels in Germany and has served on the ESU Executive Committee and Presidency team since 2022. Her work focuses on public responsibility, academic freedom, higher education governance and financing, and student social policy. She is pursuing an M.A. in Political Management, Public Policy, and Public Administration at the University of Duisburg-Essen.
James Kodjie – AASU
James KODJIE is the Senior Programmes Officer at the All-Africa Students Union (AASU), where he leads initiatives on education rights, digital inclusion, democracy, climate action, capacity building and pan-Africanism. His work includes coordinating the Digital Inclusion Campaign across 11 Southern African countries and conducting the Student Governance Survey across Africa. James is pursuing a PhD in Interdisciplinary Studies (Public Policy and Social Change) at the University of Professional Studies, Accra (UPSA).
Digitalisation and Digital Transformation
Digitalization is reshaping the world—and leadership must evolve with it. In this session, you will explore the impact of digital transformation on communication, governance, and leadership. From artificial intelligence and algorithms to digital tools and platforms, this session helps you understand how emerging technologies affect decision-making and operations. You’ll reflect on the ethical use of data, digital inclusion, and how to lead effectively in online and hybrid environments. Through interactive simulations and case studies, you’ll gain skills to drive innovation, champion transparency, and engage meaningfully with digital change.
Ngobia B. Benson – KCA University
"I am a storyteller with a bias towards digital and new media in storytelling. I love travelling and discovering new things. Currently, I serve as the Dean of Students at KCA University and look forward to interacting with students from various backgrounds."
Charles Walcher – FH OOE
Charles Walcher is Vice Chairman of the Student Union of the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria (ÖH FHOÖ), a role he has held for two years until May 2025. He also works as a Scientific Research Assistant at the university’s Digitalization Centre, supporting AI workshops and related projects for students and staff.
Sustainability and SDGs
How can student leaders become agents of sustainability? This session introduces you to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and challenges you to turn global goals into local action. Developed in collaboration with UNESCO partners and sustainability experts, this session brings student leaders together from Africa and Europe to exchange perspectives and learn practical strategies. You’ll explore how to build alliances, communicate your vision, and design actions that create real change. Through dialogue, teamwork, and practical exercises, you’ll gain the confidence and tools to promote sustainability on campus and beyond. Leadership for the SDGs begins with you—collaborative, ethical, and impact-driven.
Silke Preymann – FH OOE
Silke Preymann is the head of the Master's programme in Human Resource Management and the scientific head of the Diversity Management department at the University of Applied Sciences Upper Austria. Her research focuses on organizational learning in higher education institutions. She is and was involved in a number of international projects (in some of them as a project manager) in the field of student engagement/ student belongingness and diversity management in higher education.
Co-funded by the European Union. Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Education and Culture Executive Agency (EACEA). Neither the European Union nor EACEA can be held responsible for them.
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