First Global Happiness Conference leaves delegates smiling

Students from all over the world took part in a conference designed to spread happiness
The Global Happiness Conference, held at The Bewdley School in Worcestershire, UK, was hailed a success by attendees.
The conference, which took place 3-9 November, saw students from eight countries educating each other about their different cultures.
The event ran alongside the Connecting Classrooms programme, an educational initiative supported by the British Council, bringing staff from schools across the world to help young people make a positive contribution to their world.
Students and teachers from Jordan, Egypt, South Korea, India, Morocco, Uganda, Palestine and across the UK, attended the week-long conference and participated in activities with the aim of breaking down borders, spreading the message of happiness and encouraging students to experience cultures from other parts of the world through music, art, sport and dance.
The week was organised by Mrs Newbold, director of Expressive Arts and Conference Organisers with the event consultation services from local creative communications group, DRPG who supported the programme by offering event and design expertise, as well as providing video production services to record the various activations throughout the week and to interview the students.
“This has been a tremendous opportunity for our young people to develop valuable skills, to make new friends and to take part in a unique event that is dedicated to the theme of health and well-being of young people across the globe,” said Mrs Newbold.
“The School would like to thank The British Council for their support of the Connecting Classrooms conference and the wider local community who have been so supportive and generous of the first International, student-led Global Happiness Conference ever to be held in the UK.”
The conference concluded with a concert gala hosted at the DRPG 212 film studios in Hartlebury, where all the participants gathered to showcase traditional, culture-led acts such as poetry, dancing and music, mixing all the cultures together and celebrating diversity in what was an entertaining evening for both the participants and the audience.
Dale Parmenter, CEO of local creative communications group DRPG and former student at The Bewdley School said: “It is great to be involved in such a worthwhile initiative and to see my old school breaking down barriers through this educational programme.”
“As a global company, we understand the importance of developing international citizenship skills in an increasingly global and collaborative business environment. It is great to see this being encouraged from an early age through music, sport and art. We are thrilled to be able to lend our support and expertise to a project that helps support not only our community but communities around the world.”