Global Student Forum

27/08/2026

🌍 What does meaningful international student solidarity look like in practice?

GSF Steering Committee member Anika Joshi facilitated a workshop with SAMOK - The Finnish National Union of University of Applied Sciences Students, bringing together its board and student representatives from more than 20 Finnish universities of applied sciences.

Participants explored how political conditions, institutional protections, tuition fees, accessibility, finances and visa barriers shape students’ ability to organise and participate.

The central lesson: global solidarity does not require students everywhere to share the same priorities or methods. It requires listening across different experiences, recognising unequal access to power and creating structures that enable more equal participation.

Read more: https://www.globalstudentforum.org/whose-activism-is-protected-lessons-on-global-student-solidarity/

26/08/2026

Australia orders university to end partnership with China

The Australian Government has directed the Australian National University (ANU) to terminate its teaching partnership with Shandong University in China.

The partnership allowed students to begin an undergraduate science programme in China before continuing their studies at ANU. While ANU has confirmed that students already enrolled at the university will not be affected, the future arrangements for other participating students remain unclear.

Governments may review international partnerships on security grounds, but students must not bear the consequences of decisions between institutions and states.

Affected students must receive clear information, meaningful consultation and guaranteed pathways to complete their education without additional costs, lost credits or unnecessary disruption.

20/08/2026

Five years have passed since the Taliban seized power in Afghanistan. For Afghan students, especially girls and women, these years have brought the systematic destruction of their right to education.

Afghanistan is now the only country in the world where girls and women are formally prohibited from education beyond primary school. An estimated 2.4 million girls are excluded from secondary education, while women have been banned from universities since December 2022.

The crisis extends across the entire education system. More than two million primary-school-aged children are out of school, and 93% of children completing primary education have not yet achieved basic reading proficiency. Shortages of qualified teachers, learning materials and sustainable funding continue to undermine the education of girls and boys alike in a country that cannot afford to be forgotten.

After five years, there is a growing danger that this situation becomes accepted as Afghanistan’s new normal, that attention moves elsewhere while an entire generation is denied its future. Let us not let Afghanistan become another forgotten crisis.

17/08/2026

Universities are embracing AI, but its growing energy demand is still largely absent from institutional climate strategies, according to Times Higher Education's reporting.

Net-zero commitments must include digital choices. Universities should measure AI’s footprint, demand transparency from technology providers, and ensure that new technologies support, not undermine, their climate goals. Responsible AI must also be climate-responsible.

04/08/2026

Almost one year ago, Global Student Forum Executive Director Jacob Blasius joined international experts at the 2025 Global Smart Education Conference in Beijing to discuss how artificial intelligence is reshaping higher education.

Today, the central questions are even more urgent. AI is developing faster than many institutional policies, universities are reconsidering teaching and assessment, and educators must decide which human capabilities education should continue to protect and strengthen.

The challenge is not simply to adopt new technology, but to ensure that AI supports critical thinking, creativity and ethical judgement, protects privacy and academic freedom, and does not deepen existing inequalities between students and institutions.

Read the full article: https://www.globalstudentforum.org/who-will-shape-ais-role-in-higher-education/

13/07/2026

Education systems are under growing pressure from conflict, climate change, discrimination, privatisation, fiscal constraints, and rapid technological change. At Transforming Education Summit +4 (TES+4) in Paris, the international community came together to take stock of progress since 2022 and accelerate action towards SDG 4.

The Global Student Forum was proud to be represented by Antoine Duwa, ensuring that the voice of students remains part of the global conversation on the future of education.

As the world looks beyond 2030, meaningful education transformation must be shaped with students—not only for students. Strong, resilient, inclusive and well-funded education systems require genuine student participation at every level.

19/06/2026

Peaceful student protest is a cornerstone of democratic participation in higher education.

The Global Student Forum and the National Union of Students in Denmark (DSF) have issued a joint statement expressing concern over the criminal prosecution of five students following a peaceful protest at the University of Copenhagen.

While universities have a responsibility to ensure safety and protect their communities, responses to peaceful student activism must remain necessary, proportionate, and consistent with democratic values and human rights.

Students must be able to organise, advocate, and express their views peacefully without fear of disproportionate disciplinary or criminal consequences.

We stand in solidarity with students everywhere in defending freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful assembly, and democratic participation in higher education.

Read the full statement: https://www.globalstudentforum.org/statement-on-the-criminal-prosecution-of-peaceful-student-protesters/

15/06/2026

Students and young people must be active partners in shaping the future of international cooperation, not merely beneficiaries of it.

At the ECOSOC Operational Activities for Development Segment, Falit Sijariya spoke on behalf of the Global Student Forum and the Education and Academia Stakeholder Group, highlighting the importance of meaningful student participation in discussions on the future of the UN Development System beyond 2030.

As decisions made today will shape the world students inherit tomorrow, their voices must be included in the design, implementation, and evaluation of global policies.

A special thank you to the Major Group for Children and Youth for bringing together this important conversation.

Read more: https://www.globalstudentforum.org/students-must-help-shape-the-future-of-multilateralism/

05/06/2026

Last few days had important conversations at the World Bank in Paris. Here, the board of the Global Partnership for Education came together to discuss financing of education. The Global Student Forum was represented by Executive Director .blasius serving as Technical Advisor to one of the civil society constituencies.

You might wonder why we as students don't have a seat at the board of our own, and this we have wondered too. We are working to improve that and make the Global Partnership for Education a true partnerships. But until then, we are supporting the work through civil society group 1.

Thank you to Plan International, Save the Children, Oxfam and all the others who are making it possible.

16/05/2026

The Global Student Forum invites PhD and doctoral student representatives from around the world to join a global networking meeting on the state of PhD students today.

Across countries and institutions, PhD students are facing growing pressures linked to funding, wellbeing, working conditions, academic freedom, supervision, and uncertainty about future careers in academia and research. At the same time, doctoral representatives and organisations continue to play an important role in defending student voices and improving conditions for doctoral candidates.

This meeting will create a space for doctoral student representatives to connect across borders, exchange experiences, discuss common challenges, and explore opportunities for collaboration and collective advocacy.

Sign up:

The Global Student Forum invites PhD and doctoral student representatives from around the world to join a global networking meeting on the state of PhD students today.