The 2026 Asia Pacific Career Development Association Hybrid Conference kicked off with a powerful call to action! Dr. William E. Donald delivered an inspiring first keynote, challenging us to look beyond individual career adaptation and focus on systemic change.
In his session, “Shaping a Sustainable and Inclusive Career Ecosystem,” Dr. Donald introduced frameworks that shift how we view career development.
Key Takeaways for Career Development Practitioners:
- The Power of Metaphor: Using "Weather as a Career Metaphor" to facilitate culturally inclusive and intuitive career conversations.
- The Employability Capital Growth Model (EC2M): A holistic view of nine forms of capital—including social, psychological, and health—to better support our clients' unique contexts.
- Systemic Inclusion: A strong emphasis on co-design and involving individuals with lived experience, particularly neurodivergent and marginalised voices, in policy-making.
The “Power of One” Challenge
Dr. Donald concluded with a challenge for all of us to spark immediate change. Can you commit to these four actions?
- Change one practice.
- Start one conversation.
- Challenge one barrier.
- Share one resource.
As career practitioners, we are vital actors in this ecosystem. Let's move beyond traditional skills and experience to embrace a more sustainable, holistic approach to career development.
What is one barrier you are committed to challenging this year?
