Student initiatives are influential drivers of change on campus, and all of our movements make a critical statement for the future we imagine. After every purposeful action, our voices get louder, and we increasingly move into the spotlight within and beyond our schools. But we cannot do all this work alone. And we are not alone.
PRME Global Students (PGS) is a global platform for fruitful and creative collaboration, collective reflection, and joyful interactions between and beyond student organizations in the realm of responsible management education and sustainable development.
To lead the programmatic development of a global network by and for students, the PRME Secretariat established the PGS Regional Leaders team with nine student leaders from all five continents (see more details below). Together, the PGS Regional Leaders were able to map 312 operating student organizations within the PRME global community and actively engaged more than 40 of them in PGS’s programmatic development activities.
Divided into Research
and Design Phases, the PGS Collaborative Development Process engaged 65+ students from more than 25 countries to come together and co-create their own global network within PRME. From a network evolution perspective, the engaged students were simultaneously the pioneering ‘builders’ and the ultimate ‘users’ of the PGS network.
During the PGS Research Phase, students were gathered in 12 rounds of constructive global conversations called PGS Collective Circles. By engaging in a fruitful exchange of experiences, they shared the challenges faced by their organizations while taking action in the field and brainstormed potential ways for global cooperation that would ultimately benefit and empower their local student agency.
While hearing and learning from each other’s local affairs, participants agreed upon and established three strategic action-oriented directions entitled the PGS Fundamental Pillars – Awareness, Advocacy, and Collective Action.
The PGS Design Phase was comprised of 12 design think labs. The ultimate goal was to brainstorm a set of projects to address all three pillars' objectives. Once the PGS Portfolio was defined, we divide all participants into PGS Global Taskforces to develop and implement these projects by 2022.
The PGS Portfolio is composed of seven strategic projects:
Each project is currently coordinated by one or two PGS Regional Leaders who lead their global taskforces that together are comprised of 42 students from 18 different countries. Please check all PGS Global Taskforce members here.
Are you a student willing to come together with other student initiatives worldwide, share your experience, and begin an exploration together about what could ease and amplify the work you are doing?
or
Are you a professor enthusiastic about youth protagonism in global issues willing to contribute to PGS and get your students closer to our international network?
Please get in touch with the PGS Regional Leader in your continent (see specific contact information below) or write an email to pgs@unprme.org to get more information about how to engage with the PRME Global Students movement.
Students and/or their organizations can engage with the PGS movement in two exciting ways:
Active Engagement - "The Builders":
Students can apply to become PGS Regional Leaders or integrate the PGS Global Taskforces. In both positions, students will actively join efforts with other worldwide youth leaders to collaboratively build the PGS movement.
These are outstanding opportunities to engage with colleagues beyond your campus and countries, thus applying your knowledge and learning how to manage international projects and emphatically collaborate with contributors from diverse backgrounds. An extraordinary lab within the United Nations to develop the 21st Century Skills, which are much needed to advance sustainability and responsible management across the decades to go!
Passive Engagement - "The Users":
All networks are made by users who are equally vital as builders! So, if you don't have enough time or capacity to actively build PGS initiatives, we still need you! Please explore our projects as tools to empower your student agency and leverage the impact of your student organization!
OK, but, how may you engage?
See examples of user engagement below:
Latin America
Contact: pgs_latin.america@unprme.org
North America
Contact: pgs_north.america@unprme.org
East and Southeast Asia
Contact: pgs_east.southeast.asia@unprme.org
Central and South Asia
Contact: pgs_south.central.asia@unprme.org
Eastern Europe
Contact: pgs_eastern.europe@unprme.org
Western Europe
Contact: pgs_western.europe@unprme.org
Project Executive Leader
Contact: speroni@unglobalcompact.org
Her art is to spark trust, warmth, and an appetite for creativity in a team to allow talents to flourish. Her work is deeply rooted in her experience in the worlds of music, group facilitation, and dance and her loving understanding of what moves a human being.
Julia has contributed to developing the methodology for the PGS Design Phase. We are grateful for her leadership in designing and hosting the PGS Collective Circles.
With experience as an Entrepreneur and Business Executive, Ryan has a deep-seated passion for sustainable business practice and developing leaders of the future. Ryan believes in the power of business to shape our future and enable tomorrow's business leaders to achieve the UN's sustainability goals.
Ryan has provided PGS with strategic guidance in developing the PGS Design Phase and the governance & operations for the PGS Portfolio Management.