THRIVE Impact Summer Schools

Empowering the next generation of change-makers

Summary

The THRIVE Impact Summer Schools are yearly one-week intensive programs designed to empower students to actively shape their sustainable future. Through hands-on collaboration with regional partners and sustainability experts, participants develop critical skills, build networks, and create tangible solutions to real regional challenges. In 2026, the THRIVE Summer Schools provide simulataneous offerings for university and high school students.

Theory of Change

Challenge
Young people lack enough opportunities to engage with regional sustainability challenges and help shape its emerging futures
Activities
One-week intensive summer programs
Hands-on exploration of sustainability challenges
Collaborative project work with mentors
Exchange between university and high-school students
→
Outputs & Outcomes
Students develop agency as change-makers
Strengthened institutional collaboration
Tangible prototypes and recommendations for regional societal challenges
→
Impacts
Cross-generational dialogue in regional planning
Increased regional capacity for transformation

Status & Current Focus

This project kicked off on 2021-08-12 and we are currently in a Iterating phase.

We are engaging with potential partners, defining program structure, and developing the curriculum framework for 2026. We are specifically adding an offering for high school students for the first time in 2026.

Emerging Outputs, Outcomes & Impacts

Output
THRIVE Summer School 2023 successfully completed (2023-08-31):
Output
THRIVE Summer School 2024 successfully completed (2024-08-31):
Output
THRIVE Summer School 2025 successfully completed (2025-08-31):

Partners & Collaborators

University of St.Gallen (HSG)
Initiator of the THRIVE Impact Summer Schools with the Competence Center for Social Innovation (CSI-HSG)
Eastern Switzerland University of Applied Sciences (OST)
Co-initiator and co-organizer of the International Summer School on Sustainability
St.Gallen Symposium
Partner THRIVE Impact Summer School
Switzerland Innovation Park Central
Partner of the THRIVE Impact Summer School

Get Involved

Does the THRIVE Impact Summer Schools sound interesting to you? Do you have existing activities or ambitions that could be linked to this project? We are looking for partners and collaborators. Please get in touch!

Additional Information

Please find more information on the THRIVE Impact Summer Schools 2026 on this dedicated website. As a university student, applications are already open.