Professor Lee Chi-Kin John is President and Chair Professor of Curriculum and Instruction of The Education University of Hong Kong. He has served as the UNESCO Chair in Regional Education Development and Lifelong Learning.

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His research interests focus on curriculum and instruction, geographical and environmental education, life and values education, teacher development and school improvement. He is active in leading education research and development projects and has a solid track record in securing external grants. He was named among the top 1% most-cited scientists in the world in the latest list released by Stanford University (2025).

Professor Leon Tikly is Professor of Education and Director of the Perivoli Africa Research Centre at the University of Bristol. He is a Fellow of the British Academy and the Academy of Social Sciences and holds the UNESCO Chair in Transforming Knowledge and Research for Just and Sustainable Futures.

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His scholarship has focused on globalisation, education policy, and improving the quality of education for disadvantaged learners in Africa; race, ethnicity, and education in the UK and globally; and, more recently, the intersection of decolonial thought and sustainable futures. He directed the UKRI-funded network Transforming Education for Sustainable Futures, with partners in India, Rwanda, Somalia/Somaliland, and South Africa. His research is grounded in critical realism and informed by postcolonial and decolonial perspectives, reflecting a commitment to social, environmental, and epistemic justice.

Prof Tristan McCowan is Vice-Dean International and Professor of International Education at the Institute of Education, University College London. His work focuses on higher education in the international context, including issues of access, curriculum, alternative models and sustainability. His books include Higher Education for and beyond the Sustainable Development Goals (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019), Education as a Human Right (Bloomsbury, 2013) and Rethinking Citizenship Education (Continuum, 2009). From 2015-2021 he was editor of Compare – a Journal of International and Comparative Education. He was the founder of the Climate-U network, bringing together 30 universities and environmental organisations in 15 countries engaging in climate-related participatory action research. His latest book, Universities and Climate Action, was published by UCL Press in 2025.