Exploring Innovation and Impact at the Injini EdTech Conference
From the 4th until the 9th of November, members of Nature Connect’s Sustainable Schools Programme – Jocelyn Anderson, Melissa Zackon and Tamsyn Henshall – had the opportunity of attending the third annual South African EdTech Week.
This so called “unconference” conference is hosted by Injini in partnership with the Mastercard Foundation and was held this year at the Hasso Platner d-school Afrika based on the University of Cape Town’s middle campus.
The conference brought together leading voices in the South African Education Technology (EdTech) industry to discuss and envision pathways for meaningful educational transformation across Africa. Attendees included start-up founders, established industry thought-leaders, researchers, NGO representatives such as ourselves, and most importantly teachers – the key to ensuring meaningful, purpose-driven engagement throughout the event.
It was also an honour to be guided through the conference’s three-days of learning by none other than one of Nature Connect’s board members, Nicole Biondi as MC! Nicole outlined the programme clearly, introduced speakers with thoughtful personal details and allowed key moments of reflection and sharing among the group which added to the depth and richness of the conference.
Days were jam-packed with insights and organised according to themes of Supporting Teachers (Day 1), Impact Investment for Scaling (Day 2) and the Power of Partnerships (Day 3). The concept of “unconference” was incorporated throughout the event, meaning that action trumped passive listening, and all were required to get involved in co-creating the learning experience. Between panel discussions and keynote talks, a Design Thinking Challenge was launched with participants having the chance to come up with the first iteration of an EdTech solution to challenges facing teachers, learners and parents/community members that were identified as a plenary.
The Sustainable Schools Programme uses and offers EdTech in the form of the Sustainable Schools Hub – an online platform for teachers which provides access to CAPS-aligned resources, professional development opportunities, an extensive network of partner organisations and individualised support for sustainable action projects. By attending this conference, our team gained invaluable insights into new partnerships and strategies to further enhance the platform’s impact and the programme overall going forward.
A huge thanks to Injini for organising this inspiring event and providing a space for true collaboration and vision-building. By focusing on support for teachers, scalable impact through ‘patient’ capital, and partnerships that empower communities, the conference reinforced the importance of EdTech in creating educational systems that are resilient, inclusive, and transformative. We are excited to incorporate these learnings into our work, reinforcing our commitment to sustainable education across South Africa.
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