Date/Time: Thursday, March 3, 7:30-9:00 am PST
Resources: Find slide deck presented during talk and PDFs shared by Wendy as follow-up:
Through this presentation Wendy will share the core vision that has underpinned a thirty year interest in human flourishing and her ongoing work through The Flourish Project, FutureGens, The Save Childhood Movement, National Children’s Day UK, The UK Spirituality in Education Alliance (SIEUK), The Wellbeing Economy Alliance (WEAll) and the SDG Thought Leaders Circle.
In 2021 she wrote the Little Book of Education and developed the SDG Handbooks for Schools.
She is currently working on the creation of a new digital wellbeing platform for schools, is exploring a light-touch way of working with parents and teachers on Understanding Family Patterns and is theming this year’s National Children’s Day UK on ‘Choose Kind’, with a particular interest in the Science and Biology of Unkindness. Through her combined activities, she is actively promoting the development of new narratives that promote cross-disciplinary collaboration and eco-systemic thinking.
Wendy Ellyatt is passionate about unlocking the potential in people.
For the last thirty years she has been exploring the unique qualities of human learning and development, with a particular emphasis on what gives us meaning and purpose. Her studies have taken her from being a specialist in the foundational importance of early learning, to examining natural systems dynamics, our understanding of the word 'wisdom' and the importance of family and community life for the creation of sustainable societies and cultures of lifelong learning.
Over the last ten years she has devoted her time to addressing a growing concern about societal values and wellbeing and the importance of safeguarding future generations. She is the founder and Chief Executive of the Save Childhood Movement, which in 2013 established National Children's Day UK as a significant platform for raising awareness about child rights and wellbeing. Through the movement, she is currently developing The Children's Voice site as a platform for children's participation. In 2016 she was chosen as one of the Brahma Kumaris '100 Women of Spirit'.
In 2018 she created the Flourish Project www.flourishproject.net as a major new global initiative and in 2019 she joined the Global Council for the Wellbeing Economy Alliance (and was co-chair for a year). She is also now leading the development of the UK Spirituality in Education Alliance. In 2021 she founded Future Gens, was invited to become a member of the SDG Thought Leaders Circle. and became UK Country Lead on Collective Stewardship for the G100.
What does fulfill us and produce sustainable states of wellbeing? How do we protect both children and adults from systems that undermine our inherent creativity and potential? How do we ensure that we can all feel valued and connected? Wendy's diverse projects explore the limitations of measuring societal wellbeing solely through GDP, the modern world's erosion of childhood and our shared need for meaningful relationship, community, and contribution.
National Children's Day UK (NCDUK) is all about the importance of a healthy childhood, and how we need to protect the rights and freedoms of children and young people. It's a day of celebration, but it's also a great opportunity for councils, local services, community groups, hospitals, sports clubs, schools, charities, families, carers - anyone involved with children - to raise awareness about projects they are running or things they care about.
The aim of National Children's Day UK is to get as many people as possible to create events and activities that
- highlight the importance of healthy, happy childhoods and
- celebrate all the great work that is going on nationwide to support child and family wellbeing.
This is a day that is all about the importance of children and how their special rights and freedoms will help them grow into happy, healthy adults. Children's Day was established by the UN General Assembly in 1954 as a day of worldwide fraternity and understanding between children. The Assembly suggested to governments that the day be observed on a date and in whatever way each considered appropriate.
Many other countries celebrate the rights of children on 20th November - the United Nations nominated day. However, we felt that it was really important that children in the UK should be able to get outside on Children's Day, into their neighbourhoods and nature, so we chose to hold it at the beginning of the summer.
Source: National Childrens Day UK, Save Childhood Movement and Flourish Project.
