23 October 2025, Geneva, Switzerland – UNITAR, jointly with the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UNESCO, and Majmaah University, will host a Solutions Session at the Second World Summit for Social Development (WSSD) titled “Empowering Social Development through Higher Education Efforts: Scalable Leadership Solutions from LEAP‑FAST (Leaders in Higher Education Alliance and Programme - For Accelerating Sustainability Transformations).” The event will take place on 6 November 2025 from 15:00 to 16:15 Doha time in Room 3 of the Summit venue.

The session will highlight the transformative potential of higher education in driving poverty eradication, inclusive employment, and equitable opportunity. Anchored in the global vision of the Second World Summit for Social Development, the discussion will explore how academic institutions serve as catalysts for implementing the Summit’s priorities through innovation, capacity-building, and inclusive approaches.

LEAP-FAST’s future-oriented leadership development initiatives will be featured, demonstrating how early-career academics can gain the skills, values, and agency to navigate complex social realities and help build education systems responsive to regional challenges, especially in the Global South.

Participants will engage in dialogue around policy-relevant strategies for embedding collaborative governance, systems thinking, and inclusive innovation into academic leadership pathways. The session will also identify interest in regional adaptation and partnership, particularly in contexts where academic leadership ecosystems are nascent or fragmented, as well as strengthen global networks committed to fostering inclusive and locally grounded leadership programmes that align with global development goals.

Bringing together stakeholders from diverse regions and sectors, the session will invite ideas and close with a collective call to action - reinforcing higher education’s role in building the capabilities, values, and partnerships necessary for the social transformations envisioned in the WSSD Declaration.

Opening remarks

• H.E. Mr. Abdulaziz M. Alwasil, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, Permanent Representative of Saudi Arabia to the United Nations (tbc)
• Mr. Alex Mejia, Director, Division for People, UNITAR & Head, CIFAL Global Network
• Dr. Anasse Bouhlal, Higher Education and TVET Regional Programme Specialist, UNESCO Regional Office for the Gulf States and Yemen

Keynote speaker:

• Prof. Charles Hopkins, UNESCO Chair in Reorienting Education towards Sustainability, York University

Discussion:

• Speaking on the role of young voices: Ms. Mathuso Molapo, Stakeholder Group of Children & Youth
  Speaking on the role of leadership: Dr. Rumina Dhalla, Associate Professor and Director, Institute for Sustainable Commerce, University of Guelph & Board Chair, UN Global Compact Network Canada
• Speaking on the participant experience in the LEAP-FAST initiative: Prof. Patrick Paul Walsh, Global Affairs and Sustainable Futures, University College Dublin & Vice President of Education and Director of the SDG Academy, SDSN
• Speaking on the role of Majmaah University in sponsoring global leadership programme and regional insight: Dr. Aiman Albarakati, Director CIFAL Saudi Arabia, Associate Professor, Majmaah University