Financial Street, Beijing, a landmark in China’s financial sector, well-known for its concentration of financial institutions; integrating decision-making, information exchange and international cooperation.
Ben Dyer, co-founder of The Inspirational Learning Group and Rebecca Clarke, Head of Education and Programmes, were recently invited to participate in the Financial Street Youth Summit hosted by the Global Innovation Center, Beijing Financial Street Education Investment Company, Beijing Financial Street International Education Technology Company and SKT Education Group – The Inspirational Learning Group’s international delivery partner in China and Hong Kong. The Global Innovation Center integrates government, industry, academia and finance to promote global innovation exchange, working with leading Nobel prize winners and prestigious education institutions across the world.
The theme of the 2025 World Youth Forum was Driving innovative business models with Digital Finance, with speakers representing a wide range of businesses and financial institutions. Ben represented TILG in a panel discussion focussed on Talent Demand and Career Development in the Era of Digital Finance. From the discussions it was apparent that all nations are facing the same issues in relation to skills development in the face of an ever-changing employment market driven by rapidly developing technology.
Ben stated that technologies such as AI, data science and machine learning are no longer niche disciplines, they are skills that every young person must learn and understand. However, he also noted that soft skills such as empathy and interpersonal communication are the key drivers for fostering innovation and addressing and resolving crises. These skills are essential for the development and integration of new technologies into business and finance. Furthermore, he pointed out that improving work experience opportunities for younger students is crucial in enhancing their academic capabilities, stressing how vital it is to foster collaboration between industry and academia to better equip learners with a broader range of practical skills.
Day 2 of the conference was focussed predominantly on the education sector with an overarching theme of Emerging talent challenges in the AI era with key- note speakers from including, Zhao Gang -Director General of the Global Innovation Center, Wang Yuxi – General Manager of Financial Street Education and Li Quan – Director of The Financial Research Institute at Nankai University.
Ben joined a panel discussion entitled AI empowered innovation and new competency education and interdisciplinary practice, which looked at the challenges in bringing together different curriculum areas and employers to promote skills development in an interdisciplinary, cross-curricular approach. Ben asserted that AI can be a valuable tool, particularly in the field of education where it can help learners acquire knowledge faster and more effectively but emphasised the importance of teaching the skills to critically evaluate the information generated by AI. The panel acknowledged that the future of education is not built by one, but by all and that an educational ecosystem should be developed where AI empowers learners to thrive.
Rebecca was invited to join education experts from across the globe for a further panel discussion Reforming Youth Competency Assessment in the Digital Economy. Rebecca acknowledged that, like many other countries represented at the conference, the system of assessment in the UK did not accurately reflect the skills and competencies that employers are seeking in new hires. Echoing the thoughts of the other panel members, she emphasised how programmes like The National Careers Challenge can bring together employers, educators and different curriculum areas to help learners of all academic abilities to develop and recognise their transferable skills. Rebecca also stressed the importance of recognising these skills formally, showing that they are of equal importance to the more traditional academic competencies.
Following the conference, Ben and Rebecca were invited to join a meeting with representatives from the Financial Street local government, where it was agreed that it was of critical importance to support the development of entrepreneurial talent within the education sector, bringing together educators and employers from high- growth sectors including data, digital finance, digital broadcasting, animation and VR.
Finally, delegates were delighted to visit Beijing Financial Street Runze school, a high-end international school providing education to students aged 4 to 18. The name Runze means ‘Hidden but influential, wise and ambitious,’ with the school principal, Liu Changming, offering students a holistic education and a rich extra-curricular programme with a strong emphasis on drama and the arts.
It was an honour and privilege for The Inspirational Learning Group to be invited to attend this conference which has highlighted the global demand for multi-disciplinary, employer-led programmes which bring together employers and educators to prepare learners for future employment and career success. The conference also offered the opportunity to forge a closer relationship with SKT Education and to explore further TILG programmes that could be developed and delivered to schools in the region.
