KISS Deemed to be University hosted the inaugural session of the 11th International Conference on Life Skills Education on the theme “Life Skills Beyond 2030: Learning to Live Together in an Interconnected World”, in collaboration with the Indian Council of Social Science Research (ICSSR), the Indian Association of Life Skills Education (IALSE), and the School of Liberal Studies, KIIT Deemed to be University from 5th to 7th February 2026.
The three-day conference is sponsored by the Indian Council of Social Science Research and supported by collaborators including Child in Need Institute (CINI), Loreto College Kolkata, Shelter Trust Chennai, and Nazir Ajmal Memorial College of Education, Hojai. Knowledge partners include the Indian Ocean Comparative Education Society, the University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, the Family Planning Association of India, the Emotional Intelligence and Life Skills Training Team (GTE), Sri Lanka, and the Life Skills Education Institute Pvt. Ltd., Sri Lanka.
The inaugural proceedings began with the Welcome Address by Dr. Gauri Hardikar, Vice President, IALSE & Director, ICLSE 2026, who emphasised that in an age of AI and rapid disruption, the future will be defined not by how advanced systems become, but by how human societies remain. She highlighted KIIT–KISS as a global model of education and encouraged participants to engage actively over the next three days in exploring both the importance and the integration of life skills in education and practice.
In the Introductory Address, Dr. A. Radhakrishnan Nair, President, IALSE, noted that while NEP 2020 recognises the importance of life skills, implementation remains limited. He emphasised that life skills must be integrated across disciplines through teacher education and curriculum mapping rather than treated as a standalone subject, and described the conference as an important platform to assess and strengthen life skills education in India.
In her address, Dr. Indrani Bhattacharyya, CEO, CINI India, underlined that life skills education must respond to adolescents’ lived realities amid anxiety, social polarisation, and digital pressures, and must be embedded across health, nutrition, and social systems rather than taught in isolation. Ms. Poornima Garg, Country Director, Room to Read India, emphasised that life skills are not merely employability add-ons but life-defining psychosocial competencies, and called for stronger translation of policy intent into school culture through socio-emotional and gender-transformative pedagogy engaging both girls and boys.
The Keynote Address was delivered by Prof. Terrence Madhujith, Vice Chancellor, University of Peradeniya, Sri Lanka, who outlined major global disruptions shaping education, including climate change, conflict, technological transformation, and economic uncertainty. He emphasised life skills such as creativity, lifelong learning, critical thinking, cross-cultural collaboration, and ethical responsibility as essential capacities in an interconnected world.
During the proceedings, Dr. A. Radhakrishnan Nair conferred the IALSE – Life Time Achievement Award upon Dr. Urvi Nagabhushana Rao, IPS (Retd.), recognising his contributions to the growth of life skills education. The IALSE–Urvi Vikram Best PG Thesis Award in Life Skills Education was presented to Ms. Sivakami. S, MA Counselling Psychology, NET, MSSW, Chennai. The session also featured the release of the conference Book of Abstracts.
The Chief Guest Address was delivered by Prof. Anoop Swarup, Secretary General, Association of Universities of Asia Pacific (AUAP), Chairman, Global Knowledge Alliance, Chairman, We Venture, and Chairman, Centre for Global Nonkilling, Hawaii, who spoke on the profound role of knowledge and framed life skills as essential competencies for navigating a rapidly changing and complex world.
In the Presidential Address, Prof. Saranjit Singh, Hon’ble Vice Chancellor, KISS Deemed University & KIIT Deemed University, reflected on the Founder Dr. Achyuta Samanta’s life journey and philosophy of the “Art of Giving” as a living expression of life skills, reiterating that education must ultimately shape good human beings.
The inaugural session concluded with the Vote of Thanks by Dr. Prashanta Kumar Routray, Registrar, KISS Deemed to be University, who highlighted KISS’s institutionalised approach to life skills education and ARSH from the primary level onward, noting that KISS exemplifies the translation of life skills education into action across academic and non-academic domains.
The inaugural session thus marked the beginning of three days of deliberations through multiple formats including Panel Discussions, Seminars, Symposia, Thematic Sessions, NGO Conclave, Think Tank, Round Table, Master Classes, Spotlight Sessions, and the Valedictory Session.
