The EPALE Community Conference brought together world-renowned policy makers, trainers, and professionals who focus on the powerful potential of our daily choices in teaching, providing education and training programmes for adults in different contexts.

The three-day online event took place between the 6th and 8th of October 2020 both on the  EPALE platform and on Facebook, to maximize attendance, to reach new audiences and to connect with a wide variety of people.

We had the chance to listen to fascinating stories, innovative ideas and mindsets, and be genuinely inspired. The conference was entitled Community Conference as a tribute to all the participants of this community. We believe that each of us is part of the change in adult education and we are together called to be innovate, find solutions and take meaningful actions.

Lots of exciting topics were addressed over the three days, exploring the problem of how to reach groups at risk of social exclusion and the issues of inequality in accessing digital opportunities, digital inclusion of rural areas and the need to make sure that technological platforms and solutions are inclusive and not exclusive. In fact, the recent - and unfortunately still ongoing pandemic - has amplified inequalities, hitting the most vulnerable groups hardest.

Thus, all the speeches at the conference touched on participation and engagement as key elements of inclusive education and effective outreach. “We have to unlearn how we learn” continues to resonate with the participants a few days on.

Critical thinking, collaborative learning and the need to explore different approaches are commitments that lead us to focus more on pedagogy rather than on technology. Even though technology, artificial intelligence and gamification took centre stage at the Conference. Artificial intelligence can effectively support the learning process, but it will never be able to replace teachers in the flesh.

These incredibly inspiring topics gave our community renewed energy to set and accomplish new goals, to experiment with new solutions… and to try innovative tools and techniques.

Whether you are a teacher, a librarian, a trainer, a tutor or a project manager in the field of adult education, a coach, a volunteer, a lecturer, a curator, a professor, a digital guide or one of the many different professional figures committed to adult education, this conference was created for you. So, don’t miss out on the chance to view the panels!

► Download the conference report here

► Have a look at the conference full program here

► Donwnload the conference resource kit here

► Watch the Adult Learning Exhibition here

► Read all the EPALE Community Stories here

► Go to the conference networking place here

Below you will find all the speeches, panels and workshops from the EPALE Community Conference!