What does leadership look like when it emerges far from traditional centres of power? The launch of the Leadership Insights Series, convened by STG Director Johanna Mair, invited participants to reconsider this question by turning attention away from familiar European capitals and toward a village in Kyrgyzstan.
Entrepreneur and philanthropist Tolon Toichubaev, together with filmmaker Yulia Kim, shared how they have a profitable diagnostics company, a nationwide network of schools, and a rural museum of contemporary art and film that together seek to to shape Kyrgyzstan’s future. In conversation with Johanna Mair and Christian Seelos from the Global Innovation Impact Lab at Stanford University, the discussion explored how institutional innovation can emerge from so-called “peripheral” places and how long-term, stepping-stone strategies can contribute to healthier social and political futures.
The origins of this collaboration also reflected the unconventional pathways through which new ideas and partnerships emerge. As Johanna Mair explained, the project began through a Marie Curie fellowship proposal focused on democratisation processes and alternative forms of economic organising through social enterprises. Comparing developments in Georgia and Kyrgyzstan, the research team encountered a number of organisations that warranted deeper exploration. Through this process, the Global Innovation Impact Lab became connected to Tolon Toichubaev and his work in Kyrgyzstan. What followed was an evolving collaboration seeking to better understand how social transformation can emerge from overlooked places and unexpected actors.
A central theme throughout the session was education as a foundation for resilient and critically minded generations. Through the Bilimkana initiative, Tolon Toichubaev has built 18 innovative schools, which combine science, technology, arts, languages, and sports to encourage students not only to succeed academically, but to think independently and engage confidently with the wider world.
As Tolon explained: “My mission is to produce people. But it's a mission of the government to have clean water when everybody will come. From this point of view, as a mission statement of our school, we suggest being competitive globally, be competitive regionally, be competitive in the country with a lot of languages, with a lot of critical thinking.”
Tolon has also explored the role of culture and storytelling in shaping new visions of the future. Alongside educational initiatives, he and Yulia Kim have launched projects such as the Tolon Museum of Modern Art and an annual film camp in the mountains of Kyrgyzstan. For Yulia Kim, these initiatives challenge the invisibility of Central Asian voices in global cultural spaces: “We have so many talents and voices (…) we decided to do a film camp and to invite curators to meet artists and to meet film directors.”
The camp was designed not as a traditional festival, but as a space for encounter, exchange, and collaboration. By creating close dialogue between local artists and international curators, the initiative has already contributed to growing international interest in Central Asian.
The conversation also introduced participants to the philosophy of Aivanism, an approach centred on openness, creativity, community, and conscious engagement with society and the future. Across schools, museums, and artistic initiatives, the discussion highlighted how leadership can emerge through the patient construction of spaces where people are encouraged to imagine, experiment, and connect.
The event concluded with an engaging Q&A session with the audience.
Learn more about the Tolon Museum of Modern Art, Kyrgystan.