Nurturing transformational leadership to address global challenges
Creating a culture of sustainability and transformational leadership in schools can nurture the next generation of graduates who are champions of green growth
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Climate change is one of the pressing challenges facing the world today. To address this problem, future business and community leaders need to be equipped with essential leadership skills. At a session held during the 2025 THE Global Sustainable Development Congress, Ilex Lam, professor of practice at City University of Hong Kong (CityUHK), said that leaders around the world must be role models within their organisations to promote sustainable change.
The session explored the role of transformational leadership and sustainable skills in tackling global challenges. CityUHK’s College of Liberal Arts and Social Sciences offers a programme on transformational leadership to empower leaders in education and business to advance sustainable development. It focuses on cultivating knowledge of climate action and skills for impactful community engagement.
One of the college’s initiatives around leadership was designed to support primary and secondary school teachers in promoting sustainability among younger generations, Lam said. Through its partnership with hundreds of schools in Hong Kong, the college engaged with about 600,000 primary and secondary school students. “The schools were keen to build a system change so that transformation and leadership could translate from school to home and to community and society,” he added.
C. A. Tse, head of strategic innovation at the Fullness Social Enterprises Society, said that school leaders can be change makers. It is important to create practical learning experiences for students and solve problems together, Tse said. Providing an educational framework for institutions and offering students opportunities for hands-on learning is key to building important skills for the future, the panellists said.
“We make use of transformational leadership principles to support the development of students, teachers and school leaders,” said Lam. “We also encourage community partnerships.” They enable students to envision their role within society and observe how leaders work for the betterment of society and the environment.
The transformational leadership programme generates a pool of talented graduates who are knowledgeable about societal and environmental issues, especially as they enter the workforce. Lam said that the programme prioritises values instead of focusing on specific tools. “AI, computer science, information technology, these are all methodologies, but we look at the value system,” he said. “We emphasise the values and vision we would like to develop around the world.”
When students graduate, they take these values with them, the panellists added. Tse founded the Social Entrepreneurship School Education programme to drive social transformation through innovative education. Over time, the initiative has supported more than 500 innovation projects, he said. “More than 50 of them are now social enterprises in Hong Kong.”
The panel:
- Ilex Lam, professor of practice, City University of Hong Kong
- C. A. Tse, head of strategic innovation, Fullness Social Enterprises Society
Find out more about City University of Hong Kong.