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Transformative education

Since January 2026

Growing together – ESD in times of crisis

A one-year training series

(Part-time) further training

8 weekend modules between September 2026 and September 2027

Registration for the training course is open until [date]. 15.06.26 is possible.

Contact for questions: fortbildung@knoe.org / 0341

Remain able to act together

How do you feel in the face of global challenges and crises, and how do young people or the participants in your events feel? Overwhelmed, anxious about the future, angry, hopeful? Right now, it's crucial that people find strength and continue to work together for a good life for all. We can support this through transformative education.

This training course expands your skills for your work as an education officer in education for sustainable development and global learning; in particular with regard to the challenges,

Who is the training suitable for?

The training is primarily aimed at people who already have experience in educational work with young people or adults and would like to deepen and expand this experience.

Further training is also possible for newcomers.

What does transformative educational work mean?

We understand education as "transformative" when it involves not only an expansion of knowledge or skills, but also a fundamental qualitative change in self- and worldviews—that is, how we see and understand the world and ourselves within it. Emotional and experiential learning plays a crucial role in this process.

In such learning spaces, we reflect on patterns of thought, feeling, and action that people have learned in their upbringing and that are shaped by societal ideals, norms, and values. This includes, for example, our relationship to other people and to the natural world: How do I actually feel connected to other people—locally and globally? What connects me, what separates me—from whom? How do I actually understand "nature"? Am I a part of it? To what extent may nature be "used"? Transformative education addresses these questions not only individually, but also within the context of global and societal power relations: How do exploitative ways of living and producing actually come about? Who benefits from them, and who bears the "costs"? What stabilizes them, and who has what power and opportunity to change them?

We connect the past, present, and future – and strengthen an understanding of how they are interconnected. This also means developing visions of alternative models for global justice and asking how and to what extent we can be effective when we work towards a sustainable future.

Scope – What you can expect

The total number of hours is between 160 and approximately 200 hours.

Digging deeper, relating again

– Gesturing Towards Decolonial Futures collective

Operation

We want to provide a learning space that is filled with the diverse perspectives, experiences, emotions, thoughts, and desires of the interested people. This means we want to discuss and learn with each other, listen to each other, share our concerns and hopes, work with our bodies, and take action ourselves. Open and empathetic interaction with one another is important to us, and we do our best to recognize, visualize, and address power hierarchies.

The methods we use stem from the approach known as "transformative education." They address structural relationships and involve holistic learning involving head, heart, and hands. All subsequent module topics are consistently related to how they can be implemented in the spirit of such education.

Important dates and key topics

Module 1: Getting to know each other and getting started

11. to 13. September 2026

This module is about getting to know each other and creating a common working and content basis.


Module 2: Global Crises and Emotions

8. to 11. October 2026

Global crises have a profound impact – emotionally and socially. In this module, we will explore the complexity of global crises and injustices. What emotions do they trigger, and how can we effectively address them?


Module 3: Sensitivity to discrimination

19. to 22. November 2026

What does a critical and discrimination-sensitive approach to power dynamics mean in educational work? Why is it important? We will explore these questions, decolonial perspectives, and practices in this module.


Module 4: Alternatives and Utopias

January 22th to 24th, 2027

What would a globally just and sustainable world look like? Why are utopias important? What alternatives already exist? In this module, we will explore levels of action and concrete alternatives.


Module 5 TestSocio-ecological Transformation

12. to 14. March 2027

How do societal change processes take place? There are many different approaches and answers to this question. We examine past experiences, scientific perspectives on them, and our own understanding of societal change. This also involves exploring the role of education in societal transformation.

Module 6: The entire institution in view

21. to 23. May 2027

In this module, we'll explore the so-called "Whole Institution Approach," which explores how we can institutionally embed values ​​of global justice and principles of sustainability.

Module 7: Digitalization

July 2-4, 2027

In this module, we will examine digitalization as an opportunity and/or challenge for sustainability, global justice, and its integration into educational work.

Module 8: Conclusion

10. to 12. September 2027

In the final module of the series, we look back on the qualification program: What were the key lessons learned? What's still open? We also address the topic of giving and receiving feedback and applying it to one another.

organizational

In cooperation with Bread for the World

Past events

People involved

Funded by