Essential Need Masterclasses Advancing UN SDG Target 6.1 Education

Victorian Challenge and Enrichment Series

Map of Australia with Victoria highlighted, alongside students in a Victorian government school, supported by the Victorian Government through the Department of Education

The Victorian Challenge and Enrichment Series (VCES) is a Victorian Government education initiative providing extracurricular extension and enrichment activities for high-ability students from Foundation to Year 12. The program is managed by the Victorian Department of Education and includes masterclasses, workshops and hands-on sessions ranging from 90 minutes to multiple days focused on authentic, real-world learning.

Essential Need has qualified to be involved in the VCES Student Activities 2026 initiative as part of its Education outreach services, and will be offering two 90-minute masterclasses to high-ability students enrolled in Victorian government schools from Years 7 to 12. The theme behind the content of the masterclasses is: Building water literacy, systems thinking, and global citizenship through education.

Overview of how Essential Need is helping students in Victorian schools

The two masterclasses Essential Need is delivering under the VCES program are:

Masterclass 1

World Water Map and Extreme Water Poverty Masterclass

This is a 90-minute session delivered live online via Microsoft Teams. Students may participate as a whole class using a shared classroom screen(s) or individually using their own devices. Through engaging discussions, WHO/UNICEF JMP data and interactive mapping, students explore why safe drinking water is fundamental to life.

They examine the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) Target 6.1 of clean drinking water for all, investigate the scale and lived realities of extreme water poverty, and discover how the World Water Map and Target 6.1 Map help us understand global drinking water patterns, identify communities in need, and support sustainable water solutions.

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World Water Map globe showing global drinking water access

Target 6.1 Map showing water points plotted across communities

Masterclass 2

Water Access, Human Development and Sustainable Solutions Masterclass

This is a 90-minute session delivered live online via Microsoft Teams. Students may participate as a whole class using a shared classroom screen(s) or individually using their own devices. Students analyse UNDP data to investigate the relationship between water access, human development and population dynamics across countries. Through comparative case studies and Essential Need's research, they evaluate the characteristics of sustainable water solutions and the factors that determine their long-term success.

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Water access, human development and sustainable solutions masterclass banner

Live kiosk water usage data from a sustainable water solution

Opportunities for schools and education establishments in states other than Victoria

Essential Need provides schools and education establishments across Australia with the resources to deliver engaging, real-world learning experiences.

Students develop critical thinking, systems thinking, and interdisciplinary problem-solving skills while exploring contemporary global issues aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), clean drinking water, and human development.

To enquire, contact:

schools@essentialneed.org

Real-world learning through data, systems thinking, and interdisciplinary inquiry.

Inclusive pathways for high-ability, disabled, and underrepresented students.

Access to resources covering UN SDGs, clean water, and human development.

Available to schools and education providers across Australia.

Acknowledgement...

Essential Need acknowledges the support of the Victorian Government through the Victorian Challenge and Enrichment Series (VCES) in enabling these activities.

VCES activities support excellence in learning while promoting equitable access and inclusive participation.

Victorian Challenge Enrichment Series label