NEW YORK, NY, USA, 12 May 2021—Today, Deloitte and the World Economic Forum (the Forum) announced the launch of The WorldClass Education Challenge, a joint initiative inviting educators, entrepreneurs and innovators to work alongside Deloitte professionals to advance solutions that will support access to a quality education for more of the world’s students . In collaboration with the Forum, Deloitte is seeking submissions via UpLink to discover, invest and scale novel educational approaches that have proven successful at advancing learning during the pandemic. The world is at a critical junction to prepare the more than one billion school-aged children for the jobs of the future, which will require a lifelong commitment to learning.
This Innovation Challenge builds upon the existing efforts of Deloitte’s WorldClass initiative to support 100 million individuals by 2030 in accessing the quality education, skills and opportunities required for the future of work.
The COVID-19 pandemic disrupted students' education worldwide while also illustrating the possibilities for what learning in the future could look like. Unless urgent action is taken now, this moment could prove to be a year of lost learning, exacerbating education inequity. Deloitte and the Forum have been inspired to launch this Innovation Challenge to improve the educational outlook for more of the world’s students. Solutions in Africa and Asia, where the majority of the world’s children and youth will live and learn over the next decade, are the primary focus.
The Cohort selected will receive up to US$1 million in professional services on a pro bono basis, financial grants, a dedicated relationship manager to support the organisations’ collaboration with Deloitte and participation in selected Forum and Deloitte events, projects and communities.
“Education is a fundamental building block for a strong, well-functioning society. It is essential business play a role in preventing the impacts of COVID-19 from exacerbating the education gap,” says Punit Renjen, Deloitte Global CEO Emeritus. “This is a moment to catalyse change and this Innovation Challenge will allow us to identify and support bold, high-impact ideas and approaches to address the global education crisis.”
Submissions will be accepted via the Forum’s UpLink WorldClass Education Challenge page from 12 May 2021 – 9 July 2021.* Proposals must demonstrate the ability to reach scale and address one, or more, of the following areas:
“We are thrilled to be launching the WorldClass Education Challenge on UpLink; this is our first Innovation Challenge to address SDG 4: Quality Education,” says John Dutton, Head of UpLink, World Economic Forum. “It is a real opportunity for us to surface the creativity and ingenuity which we know exists within local ventures and to connect these to influential networks with the resources and the drive to scale them.”
Deloitte is launching this Innovation Challenge via UpLink – a free and open digital platform which Deloitte designed and developed in collaboration with The Forum and Salesforce. UpLink is a platform to crowdsource solutions, which address the world’s most pressing issues, as outlined by the Sustainable Development Goals and seeks to connect the most-promising submissions to the expertise, resources and networks which can scale the venture and accelerate their impact.
*Original deadline of 20 June 2021 was extended to 9 July 2021 to accommodate for more submissions.
Deloitte’s purpose, to make an impact that matters, compels us to act on the increasingly complex challenges society faces today. We are committed to responsible business practices, serving the public interest and working to create a better, more sustainable world for people, our clients and the planet.
Through WorldClass we aim to develop job skills, improve educational outcomes and expand opportunities for 100 million people worldwide by 2030. Our WorldClimate strategy sets out our approach to achieve net-zero emissions by 2030 and engage our professionals and collaborate with our clients to address the climate crisis. Our ALL IN diversity, equity and inclusion strategy supports a culture where all Deloitte people have equal opportunities to grow, develop and succeed.
Learn more about our commitments here.
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