Director General Olli-Pekka will be arriving in Spain today for a three-day official visit. Olli-Pekka recently moved from Finland to the IB foundation office in Geneva, Switzerland.
The trip to Spain is his first official visit since taking office in May 2021, demonstrating the strong ties between Spain and the IB. Olli-Pekka will be meeting with government officials, school leaders, and students from Madrid, Andalusia Jerez de la Frontera, Seville, and Marbella.
Olli-Pekka will also be attending the ForumEduca education leaders' summit, where he will meet with education leaders and share his vision for the IB and experience as the former Minister of Education for Finland. ForumEduca is a unique gathering of education experts and schools from across Spain to discuss the latest trends in education.
"As the Director General of the International Baccalaureate, I look forward to meeting key government officials and educators who have worked alongside the IB for many years, modelling the learner profile for tomorrow's leaders. The challenges before us today are different than in the past. It is not enough for the heads of states and scientists to give us solutions, but those challenges are connected to each of us. Therefore, we must prioritize education in action and foster young people as agents of change. The curriculum of the future needs to be developed to contextualize the real world and with specific challenges in mind giving voice to issues around sustainability and student wellbeing.
In this unpredictable future, education is our most significant source of hope. Only by developing and empowering our youth can we equip them to become tomorrow's thinkers and engineers, ready to contribute to a better, more sustainable world for all”
noted Olli-Pekka Heinonen.
The IB has been operating in Spain since 1977, enabling Spanish students to direct their own learning pathway and develop the skills and confidence they need to thrive throughout their lives and contribute to making the world a better place. An IB education empowers teachers as the architects of learning excellence, working alongside engaged colleagues in a rewarding career supported by a robust global network.
Spain was one of the first countries to offer the IB, and currently has 175 IB World Schools that offer IB Programmes in English, Spanish and French, enjoying a solid reputation for successful outcomes that uplift the whole community.
