Welcome to 2025!

Dear Friends of ADEC,

As we step into 2025, we invite you to pause and ask: What does it truly mean to empower young people in education?

It’s a question that challenges us to rethink not just how we teach, but how we listen, collaborate, and create learning spaces where students take the lead. Across Australasia, schools and communities are redefining learning—not as something done to students, but as something created with them. Democratic education urges us to move beyond the conventional, fostering spaces where curiosity thrives, every voice is heard, and learning is as much about agency as it is about knowledge.

In 2025, ADEC continues to explore and champion education that is student-drive, human-scale, and deeply connected to the communities it serves. With the APDEC and ADEC Conferences ahead, we have the chance to come together, challenge ideas, and strengthen the network of educators, parents, and students working toward meaningful change.

This edition includes details about upcoming conferences, opportunities for sponsorship, and a feature on our conference host school.

Read on…

Upcoming Events

APDEC Conference 2025

📍 Jakarta, Indonesia

📅 18th - 24th July 2025

APDEC Conference Information

IDEC @ EUDEC Conference 2025

📍 De Kluis, Sint-Joris-Weert, Belgium

📅 1st – 7th August 2025

IDEC @ EUDEC Information

ADEC Conference 2025

📍 Hosted by The Village School Gold Coast

📅 2nd – 4th October 2025

📌 Gold Coast, Queensland

ADEC Conference 2025 - RSVP

Conference Sponsorships Opportunities

ADEC is committed to making democratic education accessible to all. Our sponsorship program supports passionate educators, students, and advocates by helping them attend ADEC and international democratic education conferences, reducing financial barriers to participation.

If you or someone you know would benefit from sponsorship, visit our website to explore available opportunities, learn about the application process, and scroll to the bottom to APPLY NOW!

View Sponsorship Details

Membership Fees

Invoices for the 2025-2026 ADEC membership fees have been sent out. We kindly ask all members to review their invoices and ensure payment is made to remain a member and listed on our website. Your continued membership is vital to supporting our initiatives and ensuring the growth of our community. If you have any queries regarding your membership fees, please don’t hesitate to get in touch with our Treasurer, Chris, at treasurer@adec.edu.au

Regular Feature - ADEC Member School Profile

Location: The sunny beaches of Coolangatta, perfectly positioned on the southern boarder of Queensland and northern border of New South Wales.

Number of Students in 2025: 90 students (an increase form 76 students in 2024!)

When was your school established? July 2021

Who is the person filling out this survey, and what is their connection to the school? Bianca Nuss, Founding Principal and the school’s biggest and craziest fan!

Tell us about your school in ONE sentence:

We are a school without walls, using our stunning surrounding environment to inspire, drive, and share learning every day.

Describe some of the ways that your school incorporates student agency into the learning environment.

Experience-Based Learning: our Villagers engage in real-world issues, working collaboratively to create meaningful solutions.
Flexible Class Structures: Mixed-age classrooms (Prep, Year 1/2, Year 3/4, and Year 5/6 classes) and flexible groupings inside and outside the classroom allow our Villagers to work at their own pace, explore topics based on their passions, and take on leadership roles—like helping peers master a new concept.
Student Voice in School Decisions: our Villagers, participate in decision-making processes during classroom discussions and weekly Village meetings.
Celebrating Student Initiatives and Innovations (our favourite): We regularly host exhibitions, showcases, and Village meetings where students proudly present their projects, initiatives, or creative ideas. We love end of term events and celebrating our families at Mothers, Fathers and Grandparents Days!

What is your favourite physical place to be in your school? Why is it special?

The many beaches that surround us! Whether it’s in the water, exploring rockpools, or using the sand as a learning tool, the beach is magical. It grounds and unites us, inspires curiosity, and teaches us the importance of nurturing our natural environment.

Share a treasured memory of being a part of your school community.

One of my favourite traditions is how our Villager elders celebrate our school’s birthdays each year. A dress-up theme is chosen, and we gather around my giant, iconic scissors to cut a ribbon for each year the school has been open (in 2025, we’ll cut four ribbons!). After school, we celebrate with a sunset beach walk, pizza, and a talent show. For the adventurous, there’s always a movie and sleepover to cap off the night. It’s a proud, joyful tradition that our community eagerly anticipates every year

Staying Connected

ADEC has two ways to network and share ideas, a website forum and WhatsApp groups.

See below for how to stay in touch via these platforms.

Go to the ADEC Forum

There are ADEC groups on WhatsApp which cover a range of topics:

General Announcements

School Start-ups

Early Childhood

Primary Years

High Schools

Support Staff

School Leaders (hidden group)

Governance

Search for the groups or scan the QR code above.

Got Something to Add?

We’d love to hear from you! If you have ideas, updates, or stories to share for our next newsletter, or if you’d like to contribute in any way, please get in touch.

Email us at president@adec.edu.au.

We look forward to hearing from you!

March 2025 News