The Geneva Challenge

Eager to stimulate reflection and innovation on development from diverse disciplinary and contextual perspectives and with the generous support of Ambassador Jenö Staehelin, the Graduate Institute has launched in 2014 the Advancing Development Goals Contest, an annual international competition for Master students.

Every year, the participants are invited provide contributions that are both theoretically grounded and offer pragmatic solutions to a specific relevant international development problem stemming from an interdisciplinary collaboration between three to five enrolled master students from anywhere in the world.

MORE ON THE CONTEST WATCH THE RETROSPECTIVE VIDEO

The Advancing Development Goals Contest is a worthy and important initiative and will encourage and inspire young students to be key agents for development and peace

KOFI ANNAN
High Patron of the Advancing Development Goals Contest

The Geneva Challenge through Numbers

The essence and strength of the Geneva Challenge lie in its diversity and interdisciplinary nature. Over the past decade, the Geneva Challenge has gathered more than 10,000 graduate students divided into 2,153 teams, reaching in more than 200 universities and representing more than 100 nationalities every year from all regions of the world.

GENEVA CHALLENGE 2026

THE CHALLENGES to the future of work

The world of work is undergoing profound and accelerating transformation. Technological change - particularly in artificial intelligence, automation, robotization, and digitalization - is reshaping occupational structures in labour markets across regions. Demographic shifts are altering global labour supply as ageing high-income economies confront shrinking workforces and lower- and middle-income countries face the challenge of generating productive employment for large and growing youth populations. Climate change is transforming labour demand. It threatens livelihoods in climate-vulnerable sectors and regions, risking labour displacement and inequality, particularly in the developing world. The green transition creates new employment opportunities and has the potential to increase productivity and support sustainable growth.

These forces interact to redefine employment relationships and skill requirements, often magnifying existing inequalities across gender, age, skill level, and geography. They also accelerate the expansion of non-standard forms of employment, including platform-mediated work, temporary contracts, and informality. At the same time, the future of work is not predetermined. Public policy, labour-market institutions, education and training systems, social protection frameworks, and mechanisms of collective representation play a decisive role in shaping how technological and structural change translates into labour-market outcomes. The central challenge is to ensure that transitions are inclusive, workers are supported, and productivity gains are shared broadly across society.

Work is central to human well-being, social cohesion, and economic development. It is a primary source of income and social protection, a key channel for social mobility, and a cornerstone of individual dignity and participation in society. The availability, quality, and distribution of work are therefore fundamental to achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals. This includes poverty reduction (SDG 1), decent work and economic growth (SDG 8), reduced inequalities (SDG 10), gender equality (SDG 5), and sustainable development more broadly.

Registration deadline: 24 April 2026 at 23:59 CET.

Submission deadline: 11 July 2026 at 23:59 CET.

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