From the finer points of intergenerational leadership to reducing school food waste, the Swiss Schools Sustainability Summit 2024<\/a> \u2013 hosted for the third consecutive year by Aiglon College \u2013 was brimming with insight, inspiration and ideas for positive change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cWe live in a world that is facing mounting challenges \u2013 more than ever, we need creative leadership, innovation and free thinkers,\u201d speaker Nick Bubb, CEO of international conservation organisation Tusk<\/a>, told more than 100 student delegates. \u201cWe also need resilience and steely determination, attributes that a life lived outside and in nature, will help us develop.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
With the theme in mind, students heard from \u2013 and questioned \u2013 experts from across the sustainability world. Marie-Claire Graf, Co-Founder of the Global Climate Youth Negotiators<\/a> Academy<\/a> provided a valuable insight, connecting directly from COP29 in Baku, Azerbaijan, into how Conference of the Parties (COP) summits work. \u201cWhile countries are encouraged to have high ambitions, of course, we are aiming for the lowest denominator,\u201d she said. \u201cThese COP Summits are an important effort, particularly for countries which are hardest hit by the climate crisis, and the least responsible, so it’s a mechanism to show solidarity and support especially as the climate crisis is impacting more areas around the world\u201d. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Indeed, Gill Einhorn, Head, Innovation and Transformation at the World Economic Forum\u2019s<\/a>Centre for Nature and Climate,<\/a> emphasised the importance of collaboration. She cited the CEO Climate Leaders Alliance \u2013 a group of companies collectively responsible for $4 trillion of revenue \u2013 which has cut emissions by ten per cent between 2019 and 2022. \u201cThat is a massive shift, more than any country has managed.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Antony Dixon, Chairman of The Alliance for Sustainable Schools (TASS), a non-profit network of schools working together for a sustainable future, presented his organisations efforts to work with members and partners to address systems-level sustainability challenges in school uniforms, school food, school buses and school buildings. Aiglon is officially a founding member of The Alliance for Sustainable Schools<\/a>, and the first school in Switzerland.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The Summit is just one part of Aiglon\u2019s dedication to making a positive impact on the environment and society, putting sustainability<\/a> at the centre of all its decision-making processes \u2013 and students at the heart of the process. The school\u2019s student sustainability team, for example, recently reviewed Aiglon\u2019s sustainability strategy, as Director of Sustainability, James Pigott explains. \u201cOur job is to prepare our students to play their part with confidence, creativity and resilience \u2013 putting them in charge, with the tools and support they need to making change is key to them developing the skills they will need to foster innovative solutions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n