Global Pillars in Action: Students and Educators Gather for the 2026 Global Institute

This June, IES Abroad alumni, faculty, staff, and Center Directors, alongside educators from U.S. partner universities, gathered in Milan, Italy, for the 2026 Global Institute, a professional development experience designed to explore the future of global education through the Global Pillars initiative. 

Global Pillars courses at IES Abroad Centers are interdisciplinary, project-based classes that bring students together to tackle sustainability and equity issues in their host cities. Courses like Designing the Sustainable City and Equitable Living: The Human Right to Migration involve small team collaboration, local partnerships, field visits, and research to create solutions based on the local environmental, historical, and social contexts. At the end of their courses, students showcase their final project by presenting their collaboratively-developed solution to a sustainability or equity challenge local to their host city.

Past final projects include designing community land trusts in Berlin, enhancing recycling systems in Buenos Aires, retrofitting buildings in Milan for energy efficiency, and reimagining public spaces in Tokyo. Students earn a micro-credential in sustainability, equity, and project development upon completion.

Annually, IES Abroad alumni who have taken a Global Pillars course are invited to submit an application for the Global Institute to present their final presentations and connect with IES Abroad faculty and university partners from around the world. The winners of this year's contest strongly exemplify the goals and outcomes set forth by the Global Pillars initiative. 

The Alumni panel was held during the Institute’s opening day, in which winners of the Global Pillars Alumni Contest presented their final projects to their fellow attendees at the Global Institute. The panel was facilitated by Global Pillars Faculty Coordinator and Professor at IES Abroad Barcelona, Alejandra Calleros, and was followed by an engaging Q&A session. The alumni session gave Institute attendees the opportunity to see first-hand the methodology and impact of the Global Pillars teaching model with its focus on academic learning, field experience, and community engagement, and how they translate into lasting relevance beyond the classroom.

Along with our Global Institute Contest winners, the 2026 Global Institute welcomed approximately 45 participants, including IES Abroad faculty from various IES Abroad Centers, Center Directors, and faculty from partner institutions such as:

• Claremont McKenna College
• Columbia University
• Florida A&M University
• Hope College
• Penn State University
• Spelman College
• University of North Carolina at Charlotte
• University of Rochester
• University of Texas at Austin
• University of Wisconsin–Madison
• Whitman College

Global Institute Highlights 

Over the course of three-and-a-half days, participants experienced Milan as a living laboratory for the Global Pillars framework.

The Institute opened with a guided exploration of the city of Milan's layered history before participants gathered at the IES Abroad Milan Center for opening remarks, a Global Pillars overview, and a keynote plenary session led by Ezio Manzini, President of the Design for Social Innovation and Sustainability (DESIS) Network. His discussion challenged attendees to consider how communities can work collaboratively toward creating a more ecological and just society.

Additional sessions throughout the week explored topics including social innovation, sustainable fashion, and hyperreflexivity. Participants also visited spaces that promote sustainability and community engagement in practice, including BASE Milano and the Tortona District, as well as neighborhoods undergoing transformation to encourage social inclusion and public gathering.

Throughout the Global Institute, conversations reinforced a central theme of the Global Pillars initiative: meaningful global learning happens when students and educators alike engage directly with communities, places, and perspectives different from their own.

"If you put humans at the center of what you do, you'll do differently." - Michael Adewumi, Provost & Executive Vice President for Academic Affairs, IES Abroad 

"Our faculty are as diverse as our students."- Megan Leff, Senior Associate Vice President for Academic Initiatives & Assessment

 

As the Global Institute continues to grow, it remains a space for faculty, university partners, and students to exchange ideas, share best practices, and advance innovative approaches to global learning. Through collaboration, experiential learning, and the Global Pillars initiative, the Institute helps prepare participants to engage thoughtfully with today's most pressing global challenges.

Learn more about our Global Pillars Initiative and stay tuned for details for our next Global Institute Contest.