NEW DELHI, October 22: Educationists, students and teachers are preparing for RISE 2026, a two-day festival that will examine how cultural traditions, scientific thinking and creative activities can contribute to innovation in school education.
The event, titled Re-Imagining School Education, is scheduled for October 23 and 24 at Alliance Française de Delhi. This year’s edition will focus on “Cultures for Innovation”, with global citizenship and sustainable development forming important parts of the programme.
Curated by author and educationist Vaishali Gupta, RISE is a collaborative initiative of Alliance Française de Delhi and One Teacher One Scientist. The festival is aligned with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and aims to connect classroom learning with practical challenges faced by communities.
The programme will feature hands-on workshops, panel discussions, performances, interactive learning activities and opportunities for students to develop ideas addressing urban problems. Organisers are seeking to demonstrate how subjects such as science, language, art, food, textiles and environmental awareness can work together to make learning more engaging and relevant.
The festival is expected to bring a range of educational and cultural institutions into discussions about creativity, inclusion and the future direction of school learning.
Connecting Cultural Knowledge With Scientific Thinking
A central theme of RISE 2026 is the relationship between culture and innovation. Traditional knowledge, everyday practices and artistic expression can provide starting points for students to investigate contemporary challenges, including waste management, food sustainability and responsible use of resources.
Rather than treating culture and science as separate areas of study, the festival will encourage participants to explore how they can complement each other. Food traditions, for example, can lead to discussions about agriculture, nutrition and biodiversity, while textiles can introduce questions about materials, production and environmental impact.
Similarly, music, language and visual arts can provide opportunities to develop communication skills, collaboration and creative problem-solving.
Such activities can help students connect abstract concepts with situations they recognise from daily life. When learners investigate a local problem, develop a possible solution and explain their reasoning, they can practise research, teamwork and critical thinking alongside subject-specific knowledge.
The festival’s focus on global citizenship also places emphasis on understanding different communities and perspectives. Cultural exchange can help students appreciate diversity while examining issues that affect people across geographical boundaries.
The programme builds on previous editions of RISE, which explored subjects including neuroscience, artificial intelligence, arts and design. This year’s approach places cultural understanding at the centre of discussions about innovation.
Student Teams to Develop Sustainable City Solutions
One of the major attractions will be the RISE Innovation Cup, conceived by Gupta and supported by Microsoft. Students will work in teams to identify urban challenges in Delhi-NCR and develop proposals for more sustainable cities.
The activity is designed to take participants beyond identifying problems. Teams will be expected to undertake research and translate their ideas into physical models or prototypes that demonstrate how their proposed solutions could work.
A Microsoft expert jury will assess the student projects, with winning teams receiving mentorship from the company.
The challenge offers students an opportunity to engage with issues affecting their surroundings and consider how design, technology and community participation might improve urban life. Depending on the problems selected, projects could involve resource conservation, waste reduction, environmental awareness or improvements to shared spaces.
Developing a prototype can also teach students to examine whether an idea is practical, identify its limitations and improve it through feedback. These skills are relevant to scientific inquiry, engineering and many other fields of study.
The emphasis on teamwork allows participants to divide responsibilities, compare evidence and communicate their findings. Such experiences can complement conventional classroom instruction by giving students a practical reason to apply what they have learned.
The competition also introduces students to the process of presenting ideas for evaluation. Explaining a design to a jury requires participants to describe the problem, justify their approach and demonstrate how their proposal could address the identified need.
Workshops to Promote Sustainable Living
The festival will include a variety of practical activities designed to connect sustainability with familiar aspects of everyday life.
A session called “Grandma’s Kitchen” will explore Indian millets through French cuisine, bringing food traditions into discussions about ingredients and sustainable consumption. Other activities will focus on herb gardening, upcycling, sustainable fashion and creating useful objects from discarded materials.
These workshops are intended to help participants examine how everyday choices can influence resource use and environmental outcomes.
Upcycling activities, for example, can introduce the idea of extending the useful life of materials instead of immediately discarding them. Sustainable fashion sessions can encourage discussion about how clothing is produced, used and disposed of, while gardening can help learners understand plant growth and the importance of green spaces.
Such practical exercises can make environmental concepts easier to understand because students can observe processes and experiment with materials directly.
The festival’s approach also creates opportunities to connect classroom subjects. A project involving discarded materials may require students to measure quantities, compare material properties, plan a design and explain its environmental value. This can bring elements of mathematics, science, design and communication into one activity.
By combining demonstrations with discussion, organisers hope to encourage learners to see sustainability as a practical consideration rather than merely a topic in textbooks.
Teachers to Receive Training on Classroom Innovation
Teachers will also form an important part of the event. The programme will include training on the Innovation Cycle and ways to integrate the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals into classroom learning and curriculum design.
Teacher preparation is essential to translating such activities into meaningful educational experiences. A workshop or competition may generate enthusiasm, but its longer-term value depends on how educators connect it with learning objectives and assess what students have understood.
An innovation-oriented classroom can encourage students to ask questions, investigate evidence, consider different solutions and revise their work when necessary. Teachers can guide this process by helping learners distinguish between an interesting idea and a solution supported by research.
Integrating the SDGs into lessons can also provide a framework for discussing issues such as responsible consumption, environmental protection, inclusion and sustainable communities.
The aim is not necessarily to replace existing subjects or formal assessments. Instead, interdisciplinary activities can help learners apply concepts across different areas and understand why those concepts matter beyond the classroom.
Teacher training can support educators in designing suitable projects, managing group work and making activities accessible to students with different abilities and learning needs.
Language, Arts and Inclusion on the Programme
RISE 2026 will also feature activities intended to promote language learning, cultural exchange and participation by children from disadvantaged communities.
A French-language Model United Nations programme, guided by Alliance Française teachers, will give students an opportunity to engage with international issues through discussion and debate.
The festival will also host “NGOs Got Talent”, providing children from disadvantaged communities with a platform to showcase their abilities through poster-making and performing arts.
Another initiative, called “Frindi”, will pair students for performances combining French and Hindi songs. The programme is intended to bring languages and cultural expression together through collaborative activity.
An inter-school SDG Treasure Hunt and film screenings will offer further opportunities for learning outside traditional lesson formats.
These activities can encourage students to communicate with peers, interpret information and present their ideas to an audience. Participation in performances and creative projects can also help learners develop confidence and recognise talents that may not always be reflected in written examinations.
The involvement of children from different backgrounds is particularly significant for a festival focused on inclusion. Educational opportunities become more meaningful when students have the chance to participate, contribute and learn from one another.
The programme will involve organisations and institutions including Microsoft, UNICEF, INTACH, the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art, Institut français en Inde and the National Institute of Immunology.
Rethinking the Purpose of School Learning
RISE 2026 comes amid wider discussions about preparing students for a future in which they will need to combine subject knowledge with adaptability, creativity and an understanding of complex social and environmental issues.
Schools remain responsible for building strong foundations in reading, writing, mathematics and other essential subjects. At the same time, practical activities can give learners opportunities to apply those foundations in unfamiliar situations.
A student who investigates a local environmental problem, for instance, may need to gather information, compare possible explanations, calculate quantities and communicate a conclusion. This process can strengthen several skills simultaneously.
Cultural learning can also help students understand that innovation does not always begin with advanced technology. New solutions may emerge from rethinking existing practices, learning from communities or combining traditional knowledge with scientific evidence.
For such approaches to produce lasting benefits, schools need appropriate resources, teacher support and activities suited to students’ ages and abilities. Projects should be connected to clear learning goals so that creativity complements, rather than distracts from, academic development.
The festival’s emphasis on student-led projects and teacher training reflects an effort to connect these elements through practical experience.
With its mix of sustainability challenges, cultural activities and collaborative learning, RISE 2026 will offer a platform for educators and students to examine how schools can encourage curiosity, responsible citizenship and innovation.