The Digital Education for Impact Alliance (DEFIA) is an international alliance of senior academic experts and thought leaders committed to advancing transformative change in education and lifelong learning in response to digitalisation and evolving societal needs. Co-founded by the Global Enabling Sustainability Initiative (GeSI), the University of Coimbra (Portugal) and the Huanghe Science and Technology University (China), DEFIA aims to act as a “thought-and-do” platform, combining critical reflection with concrete, achievable action.
This by-invitation-only online event, organised within the framework of the Learning Planet Festival 2026, marks the official launch of DEFIA. It is designed as a high-level, interactive space for the co-founding institutions and newly invited members to meet, exchange perspectives and collectively shape the Alliance’s initial direction.
The event will open with short interventions by the three co-founders, outlining the vision, rationale and ambition of DEFIA. This will be followed by brief interventions from participants who have accepted the invitation to become members of the Alliance, introducing themselves and reflecting on the role DEFIA can play as a global “thought-and-do” platform, as well as on the type of impact it should aim to achieve during its first year of operation.
