RAISING >2 BILLION HUMANS INTELLIGENCES BY 25 YEARS. After helping with recovery 1970 cyclone killing half a million of his compatriots, Fazle Abed was nearly assassinated by his employer Royal Dutch Shell and the Pakistani army. Fortunately he spent his remaining 50 years celebrating intelligence development of the poorest 2 billion parents notably growth of 1billiongirls. For over quarter of a century all networking was done by word of mouth and sight of book because in Asia 20th c village life still meant no access to electricity grids or telephone lines. Fortunately both Computing Whizs Jobs & Gates were both partly dis-satisfied with western apps of pc networks which they had begun in 1984. Around 2001 they both hosted silicon valley 65th birthday wish parties for Abed as global village tech envoy. Partners in life critical challenges had begun to bring abed's village mothers solar and mobile to co-create with. Abed changed the way Jobs saw tech futures of education (see ) and how Gates saw global health fund foundations and overall the valley's university stanford started to see as far as intelligence of Women and Youth goes the most life critical knowhow for 2 billion humans wasnt directly measurable in 90 day monetary flows; it was measurable in increased life expectancy by over 25 years during Abed's community servant leadership. Probably the greatest lift in intelligence until celebrations of what Fei-Fei Li opened the worlds eyes to in 2012, and Melinda Gates and Nvidia's Jensen Huang were first to helped AIforall lift since 2014.

Friday, October 29, 2021

5.1 4.6 yidan/abed luminaries 1.6 5.3


abed's last global education prize awarded by charles yidan (cofounder tencent) now leading hong kong and ?world's largest education foundation collaboration- adapting abed language  yidan luminaries invite sustainability world's greatest to explain/debate education's role in sustainability generation

4.6 yidan report on education's future june 2021 -yidan partners asian development bank aug 2021

yidan at facebook ; at youtube - web out of hong kong


imagine education-casts were as frequent as weathercasts and gave maximum 5 minutes of hope for girls futures that anyone lucky enough to tap into abed's latest innovations enjoyed - our notes on luminary clubs are here

update on yidan luminary agarwal- have you left abed's orbit with sale of edx

 local global village mapmaking 2021 to 1972 small beautiful large scale replication essential as billion women fought to end poverty's extremes

5.1 100000 villager field lab 1972 

50 years ago in 1972 the world's largest ngo partnership of 2020s started up in the most frugal and entrepreneurial way http://www.girlsworldbank.com

step 1 building metavillage  fazle abed who in his 12 years after graduating in ship engineering from glasgow university to being regional ceo for his homeland at royal dutch oil shell company sold his london flat for about 30000 dollars in 1072 money got a slightly bigger grant from oxfam and built 15000 village homes about 100000 people using his engineering knowledge sourcing bamboo from india to his north - one million bmnboo logs were sent down the river - and tin from malaysia; while his project was the mot effective oxfam had ever seen -the bad news was that most men looked for work outside the metavillage; most mothers had no livelihoods but huge families of kids

so step 2 design microfranchises - positive cash flow village business mothers could own/work starting with most urgent foci- eg rice production to end starvation; distributing 10 most basic medicines t

90% of bangladesh was rural facing same challenges as brac's metvillages; the government had very little tax base but occupied itself with bangladesh's city of dhaka; - for much of the next 15 years rural bangladesh was built bottom up by replication whatever microfranchises worked- luckily some of the solutions abed found eg rural rehydration 3.1 were needed everywhere in tropical rural asia; chinese village women became best friends in swapping solutions; please note there was no investment or control of each other but literally the foundations of a billion women end rural poverty across asia came from open sourcing village microenterprises and occasionally appealing to common donors - eg unicef's james grant was delighted that both brac and chinese tropical villagers demanded grants to vaccinate the rural nation 3.3

studying 50 years of partnerships and alumni of brac is a game of two halves; for the first 25 yars all networks were geared to grassroots people to people networking in vilages without electrivity let alone telecoms; then came solar and mobile from 1996 and the chace to shape the worlds deepest tech partnerships in empowering a billion wmen to end extreme rural poverty

 4.6 new university

4.6 brac university was founded in 2001- a complementary platform to 5.1 the meta village test lab

during abed's 50 year of fightimg povery, bangladesh change from 90% rural to 70% and it is hope 50% by 2050; most of the immigrants from rural to city are children of the village mothers brac empowered; how could a new university influence the whole of education and science and arts in 21st c bangladesh; how could bracs new university partner other countries where sdgs remain youths most urgent challenge becuase they cant be solved by the sort of empire higher education that had spun colonisation

1.6 brac international opened operationally in 2002 though it emerged from a millennium goals brainstorm with mrs steve jobs soon after japanese and silicon valley people had helped fazle abed found 5,3 bracnet in 1996- the first time billion asian villagers without access to electricity grids could start connecting with any of 4 industrial revolutions - 1 machines for energy uses including electricity and city infrastructures; 2 machines for communications between 7.5 billion peoples; ir4 from 2020 as machine take over autonomous governance; ir3 how 100 rimes more tech every decade from 1957 von neumann's legacy change live and livelihood of being human

===============

the above story is so unusual it merits repetion


4.6 the purpose of all new universities from abed uni onwards new university its purpose may be the most exciting innovation of every way education spends peoples time since stanford was founded in 1885 as commitment to value all california youth- the exact opposite to adam smiths experience of oxford of the 1760s; 

brac's origin is valuing all bangladesh's poorest ; its field lab became a platform for designing solutions across villages; repeatedly china needed the same women end rural poverty solutions so whilst formal partnerships may not have existed individuals multiplied life critical knowhow as you can see from the publications like a quiet revolution by harvard professor mrs chen one of abed's founding policy team members- while my father's 1977 Economist survey of china rising praised the emergence of chinese capitalism around rural keynsianism- dad was only too delighted to recogise that bangladesh became the purest half century map of rural keynes while china had the advantage of multiplying its diaspora infrastructure models and every advance that von neumann expected a sustainable world to share before tech takes over real-time governance platforms - search economisrAI and related sources at the UN #aiforgood

GLOBAL UNI  POVERTY

brac university offers a chance to find partners wishing to study deeper sustainability challenges than top western universities on their own have access - eg see james grant school of public health at brac u as well as co-create wholly new movements for advancement - see early childhood playschools

the university is also well positioned to trace research journeys as brac goes international; until a turn of millennium dinner with mrs steve jobs, sir fazle abed had not considered extending brac's own delivery of projects outside bangladesh- from 2001 he has been carefully asking questions like these:

where does something brac in its first 30 years know how to solve an urgent analogous need abroad

how to pre-check whether a nation's government wants this program

does the national government want brac to help find one lead sponsor who will support the long term building of the program and the nation

=========================

while these may sound pretty choosy criteria, what has happened since is brac has become the world's largest ngo partnership; its international office that has become a fully legislated netherlands foundation is recognised as an unique hub for human development and also a connector of remittances back into bangladesh- a process that needed western connections to maximise affordability


as research into tech partnerships including innovation leapfroging has evolved brac university has increasingly sought to become part of 100 new university who share alumni, sdg collaboration solutions as well as world class case studies including thise based on sit fazle abeds knowhow -arguably the worlds number 1 end poverty engineer and women empowerment networker -more at abed the great listener




Thursday, October 7, 2021

4.6 5.6

 4.6 yidan monthly update august 

-major contributor to asian development bank 9th annual week long education skills summit; 4.4 4.1

yidan prizes 2021 to be announced end september; 

yidan supports brac early childhood 4.4 tanzania- see more brac africa 

================

 its only education connections in every skill imaginable and through real and virtual modes who can develop the first sustainability generation


our 1984 book on that was called the 2025report

we are delighted to recommend alumni of our 37th annual newsletter BROWSE THESE SORTS OF YIDAN HONG KONG LINK AS A HYPERCONNECTING PRIORITYIF YOU WANT TO HELP PREVENT EXTINCTION


From: Yidan Prize <info@yidanprize.org>
To: Christopher Macrae <chris.macrae@yahoo.co.uk>
Sent: Wednesday, 30 June 2021, 05:04:31 GMT-4
Subject: Education is our most powerful force for change

If you’re having difficulty viewing this, please click here
 




YIDAN PRIZE NEWS

Hello Christopher,

We have the key to a fairer and healthier future: education. That’s why the research we’re doing and conversations we’re having are opening the door to a better world.

Read our paper examining the evidence for the power of education


With the Wittgenstein Centre for Demography and Global Human Capital, we’ve explored how learning shapes lives—and what that means for our global future.

The research tells us that education helps us live longer and more productively. It physically moulds our minds, changing our behaviour for the better. And we can now see that—although education is a long game—we can take immediate actions to make progress.

Read the full report

Listen to Anant Agarwal and Sal Khan talk online learning on Homeroom


Between them, edX and Khan Academy have brought powerful learning platforms to tens of millions of students around the world. Who better to ask about the future of online learning than their founders?

In 2018, we awarded Anant the Yidan Prize for Education Development. He was once Sal’s teacher—now they now sit together on our Council of Luminaries. On the podcast, they talked about AI and machine learning, transformation of jobs, and the impact of the pandemic.

Watch Homeroom with Sal here

And catch up on our European conference online

In partnership with the University of Oxford’s Department of Education, we asked: what is innovation in education?

If you missed the discussion—or you’re keen to revisit—you can now watch recordings of our sessions with special guests including our 2020 laureates Professor Carl Wieman, Ms Lucy Lake, and Ms Angeline Murimirwa.

Watch the sessions

Join us for more education technology insight at High Touch High Tech


Our Director of Partnerships, Dr Christopher Thomas, luminaries, Professor Eric Hanushek and Ms Wendy Kopp, and Yidan Prize judges, Dr Elizabeth King and Mr Andreas Schleicher, are attending the conference, which runs from 29 June to 2 July. This year’s theme focuses on AI, and the broader question of how we can combine classroom technology (high tech) with hands-on learning, guided by experts (high touch).

See the program and watch the livestream here

Tell us what you’d like to hear about


We’ll send this newsletter monthly, and we want to make sure you’re getting the most out of it. What are the main reasons you’re reading? Let us know here

Awarded annually, the Yidan Prize recognizes individuals, or teams of up to three members, who have contributed significantly to education research and development.

We aim to build a global knowledge network and solutions bank of inspiring education ideas.

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Friday, October 1, 2021

4.6 yidan update 7 oct 2021

 

How can education make the world more equitable?

Inequality in education didn’t start with the pandemic—but it’s more starkly obvious now than ever before. We’re bringing together education and inclusion experts to explore how to level the playing field for all.

Together with CAMFED (the Campaign for Female Education) and the University of Cambridge, we’re hosting a seminar at Jesus College, Cambridge on 7th October 2021.

The event will have a strong focus on the global challenges facing education today, considering the inequalities exposed by the pandemic. Held three weeks before COP26, a key theme of this event will be the link between girls’ education and climate change, as a global priority. You can register here to hold your place.

We’ll speak about keeping marginalized learners in education

We’ll be joined by our 2020 Education Development laureates: CAMFED Co-Executives Lucy Lake and Angeline Murimirwa. They’ll share what they’ve learned about getting—and keeping—girls in school with Julia Gillard AC, Chair of the Global Partnership for Education and 27th Prime Minister of Australia.

And we’ll host panels on opportunities and challenges in global education

Our sessions cover:

  • inclusive education in the context of disruption exacerbated by the pandemic and climate change
  • education and mental health in challenging times
  • cross-sector support for global education

Our panels and keynotes will feature speakers including HRH Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands, Professor Pauline Rose of the Research for Equitable Access and Learning (REAL) Centre at the University of Cambridge, and Professor Usha Goswami and Dr Erum Mariam, who are members of our Council of Luminaries.

We look forward to welcoming Lord Jo Johnson, Chair of Tes Global and former Minister of State for Higher Education, Alicia Herbert OBE, Special Envoy for Gender Equality and Director of Education at the FCDO and Gargee Ghosh, President of Global Policy & Advocacy, Gates Foundation. Professor Sir Leszek Borysiewicz, former University of Cambridge Vice Chancellor and Board Director of the Yidan Prize Foundation, will give the closing remarks.

Sign up to attend our event

Register for the event here—it’ll only take a minute. We’ll keep you up-to-date with the latest plans, live-stream links, and opportunities to join us in person at Jesus College, Cambridge on the day.

Holly Ruffhead, REAL Centre Administrator,

On behalf of the conference organisers.

 

Holly Ruffhead

REAL Centre Administrator

University of Cambridge

Faculty of Education

184 Hills Road,  Cambridge CB2 8PQ

yidan prize 2021 4.6

 

DATE
9 October 2021
Is education the answer to our sustainability questions?

To meet the world’s sustainable development goals, we must start in the schoolroom

The UN has set 17 sustainable development goals (or SDGs). Every one of them is urgent and important: climate action, economic growth, reducing inequalities. So, where do we start? The evidence suggests we should focus our efforts behind one in particular: education.

One goal to boost them all

SDG 4 calls for inclusive, equitable, quality education. Obviously, that’s good in and of itself. But directly or indirectly, it can also help tackle other goals—according to more than 70 years of data.

Education sculpts our social and economic landscape. A recent report by the Wittgenstein Centre for Demography and Global Human Capital and Yidan Prize Foundation showed that a decent education had the strongest correlation with living longer—stronger even than a higher income. And when access to education is accompanied by quality schooling, that can lift a whole country out of poverty. The report concludes that “education is the key to making our world healthier, fairer, and richer”.

There’s no time like the present

The world is still navigating a once-a-century global crisis—one that hit schooling hard. But as we build back better after Covid, we have advantages we’ve never had before.

For a start, we know more than we’ve ever known about the art and science of teaching and learning. We can see that technology holds huge potential for shaping how, where, and when people learn. And we know who’s missing out: poor communities who can’t spare kids for school and lack connectivity; young women and girls; disabled students; young carers; and too many more. So we can target our efforts where they matter most.

And we must. The consequences of falling behind reach far beyond struggling to catch up with the term’s work: for adults, lost learning means lost earning potential. UNICEF reports that 214 million children—or one in seven—lost out on at least three-quarters of their face-to-face teaching time last year. As of today, one in three countries that shut schools has yet to take a single step to close the learning gap.

Meet the people moving us forward

Our best chance of making progress is recognizing the people that are already making an

impact, and giving them the resources and platform they need to scale up their work.

Through its annual education research and education development prizes, the Yidan Prize Foundation does just that. Its mission is to ‘create a better world through education’. To that end, each prize includes project funding, and community support for individuals or teams who are shaping the future of teaching and learning.  

Eric Hanushek puts quality before quantity

This year’s Yidan Prize education research laureate, Eric Hanushek, helped shape SDG 4 by reframing targets for learning outcomes. The Stanford University and Hoover Institution economist’s work shows that it’s how much students learn—and not how many years they spend in school—that boosts economies. Professor Hanushek’s now planning a research fellow programme in sub-Saharan Africa, supporting local researchers to gather high-quality data and translate it into plans policymakers can use.

Rukmini Banerji is leveling up learning

The Pratham CEO and 2021 Yidan Prize education development laureate, Rukmini Banerji, has a treasured ambition: “every child in school and learning well”. The ASER assessment approach pioneered by Dr Banerji and her team revealed literacy and numeracy gaps among children who had already been attending school for a number of years. Many of India’s state governments have since adopted and adapted Pratham’s Teaching at the Right Level (TaRL) approach, reaching 5 million children annually. Dr Banerji now has her sights set on expanding Pratham’s early years programme and collaborative approach to millions more.

A community of changemakers

Of the HK$30 million (or US$3.9 million) awarded to each person or team, half is a cash prize. The other half is a three-year commitment to funding laureates’ work, helping them expand or launch new projects. The foundation is an active partner, featuring laureates at conferences and events, and opening up spaces for collaboration.

One such space is the foundation’s Council of Luminaries, which draws laureates and other experts into a diverse, influential coalition of neuroscientists, psychologists, economists, statisticians, and technology pioneers. Together, they can speak with a collective—louder— voice on the most pressing issues in education.

And those with the power to effect change are listening. Because if we want people to live in the kind of fairer, safer, richer world the SDGs imagine, the evidence suggests we need to start in the schoolroom.  


This advertisement originally appeared in The Economist October 9th 2021 issue. No endorsement by The Economist is implied.