Streaming Session
Recorded SessionOutline: Harnessing Hope
1. Opening & Hook (0–10 min)
I start with a quick story and a simple question: “How many of your students think the world is falling apart?”
Then I introduce the Rosie Quiz, a fun “celebration of knowledge” where the audience competes against each other (and my dog Rosie) to see who knows more about the state of the world. It’s always eye-opening, and even educators are surprised by how much progress we underestimate.
Goal: Break the ice with humor, spark curiosity, and reveal the “hope gap” that exists in our classrooms.
2. The Challenge: Fear-Driven Narratives (10–20 min)
Next, I share a striking classroom stat: one of my Grade 10 classes spent 46,000 hours on social media in a single year. We unpack what that means for how young people see the world.
I walk the audience through research on negativity bias and how today’s algorithms amplify fear and outrage, keeping things interactive, asking for reactions, and poking a little fun at myself and them.
Goal: Help participants see how constant exposure to bad news erodes student motivation, creativity, and hope.
3. The Pivot: Data, Stories, and the Power of Inputs (20–35 min)
Here’s where we shift gears. I introduce the Triple P Framework: Problem, Progress, Possibility, a simple way to move from doomscrolling to data-driven hope.
We explore examples from Our World in Data, Factfulness, and The Progress Network, showing how much the world has improved in areas like health, energy, and equality.
Goal: Move from awareness to empowerment by modeling how educators can reframe the narrative in their own classrooms.
4. Application: Tools & Takeaways (35–50 min)
I share a Harnessing Hope Toolkit of free, ready-to-use classroom resources that teachers can apply right away.
We look at short clips and examples from my Institute for Global Solutions, a public school program that helps students take on real-world challenges through systems thinking and social impact.
Goal: Make sure every participant leaves with practical tools and fresh energy to bring into their next lesson.
5. Closing: What Could Go Right? (50–60 min)
I wrap with one of my favorite stories: how a single class discussion (“What’s the point? We’re screwed.”) sparked the creation of the Institute for Global Solutions and my TEDx talk, How to Save Our Children from Cynicism.
It’s a powerful reminder of what happens when we replace despair with data and fear with fact-based hope.
Goal: End on an uplifting note that leaves educators inspired, grounded, and ready to model hope in action.
Outcomes
After this session, participants will be able to:
Recognize how what we and our students consume shapes perception, motivation, and learning. Better inputs lead to clearer thinking, and clearer thinking drives better action.
Apply the Triple P Framework (Problem, Progress, Possibility) to reframe fear-based or deficit narratives into opportunities for curiosity, creativity, and growth.
Curate balanced, fact-based content that helps students see real progress in the world and their own power to make a difference.
Implement ready-to-use classroom tools, including the Harnessing Hope Toolkit and resources like Our World in Data and Factfulness, to spark student agency and hope the very next day.
By the end, educators will leave with fresh energy, a reframed mindset, and a toolkit of practical strategies for helping students replace fear with fact-based optimism.
Supporting Resources
Hans Rosling, Ola Rosling, and Anna Rosling Rönnlund – Factfulness: Ten Reasons We're Wrong About the World – and Why Things Are Better Than You Think (2018).
A foundational book showing how global data contradicts pessimistic assumptions.
Our World in Data (Max Roser and team) – https://ourworldindata.org
An open-access, data-rich platform for visualizing long-term global progress in health, environment, energy, and society.
Fix the News (Angus Hervey, Future Crunch) – https://fixthenews.com
Curates under-reported stories of progress in climate, health, and social change.
Hannah Ritchie – Not the End of the World: How We Can Be the First Generation to Build a Sustainable Planet (2024).
Evidence-driven optimism about solving climate and sustainability challenges.
Rutger Bregman – Humankind: A Hopeful History (2020).
Argues that human nature is far more cooperative and kind than most narratives suggest.
Steven Pinker – Enlightenment Now: The Case for Reason, Science, Humanism, and Progress (2018).
Uses data to show long-term improvements in quality of life and human flourishing.
The Progress Network (Zachary Karabell, Emma Varvaloucas, et al.) – https://theprogressnetwork.org
A hub for thought leaders reframing global challenges with evidence-based possibility.
Graeme Mitchell – TEDx Talk: How to Save Our Children from Cynicism
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SPcyUd9lbYc
Editor’s Pick TEDx talk, catalyzing global conversations on mindset, agency, and fact-based hope.
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