A message from our founder
Russell John Cailey is a globally recognized education innovator. A TEDx speaker and co-founder of the Hakuba Forum, his work has been featured by CNN, Voices of the Future, and leading education publications. As the founder and CEO of Elham Studio, Russell guides the studio's vision and partnerships, bringing together strategy, design, and care to help reshape how learning is imagined and experienced around the world.
Elham began with a question I couldn't shake: what would happen if education felt deeply human again?
I had walked through school systems, led classrooms, and sat in boardrooms. I met educators full of good intentions and weary hearts. I saw students eager to make their mark, yet often left wondering why school seemed to silence their spark instead. That tension—between the promise of education and what it actually delivers—became the seed of Elham.
I began gathering people who were asking better questions. Together, we started designing a studio focused on reimagining the architecture of education—building models where students are at the center and learning speaks to the realities of today's world. Our partnerships, and the trust of those we work with, have taken us across countries, systems, and formats. But the heart of our mission has never changed.
My hope is that Elham becomes a home for brave design and honest inquiry. A space where educators and leaders build systems that hold students, not just push them. A place where learning is grounded in care, shaped by connection, and open to possibility.
I'm glad you're here, and grateful to share this commitment to something different.
