Topical Talk

Topical Talk Festival

The world's biggest news festival for young people.

What are Topical Talk Festivals?

The chance for school children to connect with peers across the world, engage with leading professionals and topic experts and gain recognition for their school on a global stage.

Festivals are global discussions that bring students and expert voices together to tackle the biggest issues of our time – from racism and equity to sustainability and the climate crisis. Each one is packed with thought-provoking classroom activities, online events and awards that celebrate young people’s ideas and curiosity.

Topical Talk Festival took place between January 19th and March 13th 2026.

Explore the discussions
Collage of pages from the Topical Talk Festival Hub highlights 2026

Festival Highlights magazine

We've selected some stand-out contributions from the Topical Talk Festival 2026 to give you a taste of the fantastic discussions.

Download a digital copy (PDF)

Festival awards

The Festivals are packed with opportunities for students to be rewarded on a global stage. They can be recognised by stars for contributions to online discussions, have their work judged by Economist journalists and win prizes and awards.

See our winners

We're rethinking the Festival in 2027

Like the world’s most iconic events, the Festival is taking a "fallow year" in 2027. But we aren’t just letting the ground rest - we are renewing the soil.

We’ve listened to your feedback. We know that while the impact is high, the manual commitment for schools is heavy, and the digital experience has reached its limit. We’ll spend 2027 redesigning the Festival from the ground up to be more curriculum-aligned, interactive and globally scalable.

What can you do before then?

  • Weekly Headlines

    Continue the conversation with our fully-planned lessons that develop oracy and critical-thinking skills week-on-week

    Go to Headlines
  • Star icon

    Live lessons

    Visit our Events page to discover upcoming interactive live lessons for your classroom.

    Find out more
  • Yellow laptop icon

    Build it with us

    We need experienced teachers to tell us what you would like from a new festival, to beta-test our new platform and join focus groups. If you’d like to be contacted, please add your details.

    Learn more
Students proudly displaying their Topical Talk Festival certificates

The Topical Talk Festival has made school more exciting because it lets me explore real-world issues in a fun and engaging way. It encourages me to think critically, share my opinions, and hear different perspectives from others. This makes learning feel more relevant and meaningful, and it adds a lot of energy to the school day!

Student from a Topical Talk Festival