Yesterday we were delighted to welcome almost 2,000 pupils from across the country to the Caird Hall for our first Social Inequalities Conference.
Well-known social campaigners Darren McGarvey and Chelsea Cameron were among the speakers as Higher and National 5 Modern Studies students came together for an event aimed at inspiring solutions to ingrained social issues from Scotland’s next generation.
The Conference, which was kindly sponsored by a number of organisations, was attended by 47 schools – state and independent – from Dundee, Angus, Fife, Perthshire, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Aberdeen and Falkirk and as far afield as Inverness and North Berwick.
The pupils heard from almost 20 speakers on a range of topics relating to the factors causing health, income and wealth inequalities.
Among those taking to the stage were local councillor Lynne Short, who delivered a presentation on inequality in Dundee, and Martel Maxwell, who spoke in her role as a trustee of Help for Kids.
The event allowed the pupils to discuss solutions to inequality and make connections with experts in these social issues, all of which could support their assignment research as part of their Modern Studies coursework. They also received resources to engage them in taking action to address inequalities beyond the conference.
Karlene Douglas (Teacher of Modern Studies and History) and Gordon Fyall (Head of History) at the High School of Dundee, organised the Conference.
Karlene said, “The event aimed to enrich pupils’ understanding of poverty and health inequality, provide an opportunity for the young people to discuss solutions to inequality, and challenge their assumptions around social inequality.
“The interest in the Conference has been phenomenal, with the number of schools and pupils wanting to attend necessitating a switch of venue to the Caird Hall. We ae hugely grateful to all our sponsors and speakers for making the event possible.
“We were hugely passionate about the conference as we believe the young people of Scotland – as our future generation – are passionate and eager to discuss solutions to these social issues.”
Download a copy of the Conference Programme, featuring a list of speakers and sponsors.
