Highlights from the 12th Responsible Management Education Research Conference in Belgrade

The 12th Responsible Management Education Research Conference, co-organized by the Faculty of Organizational Sciences (FON), University of Belgrade and the PRME Anti-Poverty Working Group took place in Belgrade on 21-23 October, 2025. The Conference was held under the powerful theme: Rethinking Growth and Exploring New Possibilities for a Regenerative World, a theme that enabled a vivid discussion on unexplored management research and education areas that reconnect purpose to responsible business and leadership.

Based on 127 approved submissions from management educators and practitioners from 38 countries around the globe, the event included 24 tracks focused on exploring regenerative solutions across management, education, finance, entrepreneurship, technology, leadership, and beyond.

The keynote lineup, organized in three inspiring plenary blocks, was truly exceptional. It included prominent voices working at the intersection of business, science, and systems transformation whose insights stretched out perspectives and meaning of management education, leadership, purpose, and progress.

1. Conference Theme

Gemma Bridgman (Forum for the Future). Title: Unlocking value creation: the untapped potential of a just and regenerative mindset

2. Learning from Others

Gordana Vunjak-Novaković (Columbia University). Title: Learning from nature: Lessons in regenerative medicine

Ichak Adizes (Adizes Institute). Title: The Present Deficiencies of Leadership/Management Education and Training

3. Implications for Management Education

Raul Villamarin Rodriguez (Woxsen University). Title: Human-Centered AI for Inclusive Economic Growth

Pavel Luksha (Global Education Futures). Title: Leadership Education for the Regenerative Economy: Inspired by Nature

The programme also included two plenary panels:

• Partnerships for a Regenerative Society, a dynamic dialogue bringing together leaders from business, academia, civil society, and policymaking to explore how cross-sector partnerships can drive systemic change and regeneration in society and the economy.

• Cross WG-Chapter Panel: an interactive exchange among PRME Working Groups and Chapters, showcasing collaborative initiatives, shared learning, and the potential for future directions for strengthening the global PRME community.

Before the official opening, RMERC 2025 brought together a diverse group of participants in a series of dynamic and hands-on side events that set the tone for collaboration and innovation:

• PRME Champions Meeting: a strategic gathering of leading business schools committed to advancing responsible management education through PRME. This event was co-organized by the Faculty of Organizational Sciences and the PRME Secretariat and served as a vibrant space where innovation, purpose, and systemic change met in dialogue.

• Impact Five (i5) Workshop: Innovative Pedagogy for SDGs: a hands-on session on empowering students to tackle global challenges through creative, purpose-driven learning, delivered by Aurora Díaz Soloaga and Dr. Ekatarina Ivanova, Steering Committee Members of the PRME Chapter Eurasia.

• oikos International Workshop: From Competition to Collaboration: an interactive workshop exploring how management education can evolve from competition to collaboration, delivered by Patricija Zizyte.

• Post-Apocalyptic Simulation Workshop: interactive workshop that simulates post-apocalyptic zombie world and concludes with a discussion on the pedagogy of solving wicked problems in crisis situations, delivered by Radford University students led by Maja Anderson and Tay Keong Tan.

• Predator Games Simulation: interactive ethics and strategy challenges exploring citizenship behavior and decision-making under pressure, delivered by Radford University students led by Maja Anderson and Tay Keong Tan.

• PRME Chapter Central and Eastern Europe: internal hybrid meeting, continuing their shared efforts to regionalize impact while staying globally connected.

The Conference was enriched with a series of social events that included:

• Academic Choir Polifon: a choir of employees of FON, singing at the opening ceremony.

• Sightseeing: a tour to Belgrade City center just before sunset.

• Gala Dinner: an evening in Belgrade’s bohemian quarter, Skadarlija with authentic Serbian spirit.

• Management and Leadership Through the Lens of Rakia Tasting: a session that used taste, balance, and craftsmanship as metaphors to explore leadership, guiding participants through a reflective journey of rakia tasting, facilitated by Pavel Lebedev and Natasha Nana Zajec.

At the closing ceremony, the RMERC baton, brought in by Shiv Tripathy, a representative of BSBI, Berlin, the host of the previous RMERC, was handed over by FON to Kerstin Klen of PRME Chapter DACH, who announced that the 13th RMERC will be held in 2026 at Leuphana University, Germany.

Finally, at the closing ceremony, the PRME Anti-poverty Working Group delivered Distinguished lifetime achievement awards to Milenko Gudić and Al Rosenbloom, for “Outstanding achievement and distinguished service in championing and advancing global research and education in the fields of poverty alleviation and sustainable development,” a small gesture of appreciation for the tremendous contribution and dedication that Milenko and Al continue to show through their ongoing work with the PRME community.

After the conference, MIT World Peace University, Goa, in collaboration with FON and PRME Anti-poverty Working Group co-organized The Global Visioning Conference Series Roundtable – Connecting Continents, Transforming Learning, by the initiative of Dr. Shif Kumar Tripathi. Thirty participants attended a global dialogue on transdisciplinary curriculum, future-ready pedagogy, and regenerative leadership.

The 12th RMERC, and its programme, organizational and communication innovations would not have been possible without the visionary Program Committee and dedicated Organizing Committee supported by amazing student volunteers. These 30 people made the impossible seem possible and, for a week, marked Belgrade as a world center for discussing a better future and the steps for reaching a regenerative society.