OSLO 2 – 3 FEBRUARY 2026
Education Unscripted:
The Quest for Truth, Collaborative Transformation & Solidarity
Highlights From the 2026 SDG Conference
“Education Unscripted – The Quest for Truth, Collaborative Transformation & Solidarity” was the theme of this year’s SDG Conference, where more than 350 participants came together to share knowledge, ideas, and hopes for the future. Over two days, attendees engaged with keynote speakers, panel debates, workshops, and vibrant discussions on how education can drive sustainable and just societal transformation.
Program day 2
Day 2 had a wide range of parallell sessions. Explore the program here:
The magnificent Oslo City Hall was the venue for the first day of the conference.
Keynotes, discussions, and challenge-driven interactions among invited stakeholders were live-streamed and made available to the broader public.
Both minds and bodies were moved, as we relocated to Oslo’s award-winning public library Deichman Bjørvika for Day 2.
The library is situated right next to Oslo Central Station and the Opera house.
The Complexity:
Provocations and
Perspectives
Together we will close the gap between what we say we do and what we actually do, in a creative-critical introspection of education’s role in society.
Provocation 1:
How will we manage to mainstream sustainability in education, as the indicator for target 4.7 says we should do by 2030?
Provocation 2:
Education is clearly not enough to act. How will we ensure that education leads to more democracy, justice and prosperity for all, and simultaneously aids to reverse the acceleration towards planetary tipping points?
Provocation 3:
How will we make sure that educational institutions integrate sustainability across all practise areas, not just teach sustainability or convey that others must change their behaviour or policies?
Provocation 4:
We need a learning society if we are to embrace the level of transformative change desired, but who promotes this and how is it promoted? What role does educational institutions and especially higher education institutions play in promoting social learning?
Provocation 5:
Youth, students and lifelong learners are seldom invited to the table when the big decisions are made. How can we promote inter-generational collaboration and collective leadership in education?
The Quest? Integration of Ideas, Knowledge and Networks. We aim to find solutions for and answers to provocations in frank, future-oriented conversations at the SDG conference 2026.
This year’s theme
There has never been more educated people on this planet. How can we not just learn, but also act on the knowledge that we in 2025 crossed 7 out of 9 planetary boundaries?
It is time to rethink education as something we practice together, across divides, borders and sections in society. What will the immediate future(s) look like, with mis- and disinformation threatening the very foundation of quality education and lifelong learning, the common search for truths, knowledge and fact-based evidence? How does this impact our ability to reach the SDG goals by 2030?
The Recommendation on Education for Peace, Human Rights and Sustainable Development strengthens the commitment to international solidarity and a global consensus on the role of education in society. The AI technology race combined with the global polycrisis is making it pertinent to join forces.
We invite you to two full days of engagement with provocations, ideas, insights and suggestions for a sustainable ”unscripted” education for the future. Will you be there?
Read more about the theme and concept behind the SDG Conference 2026.