seed2rise · The Art of the Durian Deal

Developing students across Southeast Asia who think clearly when there’s no playbook.

By Pascal D. Hasenmaier · Doctoral Researcher

  • Developed through work with 5,700+ students
  • A programme for students, parents, and teachers
  • Built on The Art of the Durian Deal
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Pascal D. Hasenmaier
The Art of the Durian Deal book cover

Curriculum Alignment

Developed for schools across Southeast Asia teaching the IB, Cambridge, or Pearson Edexcel curriculum. The programme is designed to integrate directly into structures your school already has in place.

  • PSHE / Personal Development
  • Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
  • Advisory or pastoral systems
  • IB Learner Profile, where relevant

This makes the programme easier to position internally, and easier to fold into existing student development, pastoral, and safeguarding structures.

See the full programme

The Durian Deal™

7 durians. 5 people.
How do you cut this fairly?

Pick your answer.

Sam standing apart from a table of 7 durians, with 5 people waiting on the other side
7
Sam asking the 5 people what they actually need, as they respond as chef, perfumer, farmer, craftsman, and vendor

Sam gave 7 durians worth of things to 5 people by using the Durian Deal™ Framework.

Sam’s Exile

Framed by a rival, suspended, and sent into exile, Sam lands at his grandmother’s, a quiet island his classmates have never seen. Four mentors teach him to hold the framework when no one’s on his side.

Grandma

Preparation

Grandma

Turns pressure into routine. Pushes Sam to keep going when results aren’t immediate.

“We don’t wait for luck. We prepare.”

Tüftler

Iteration

Tüftler

Takes a problem apart, tests one piece at a time, stops overthinking the whole.

“Not broken. Just paused. Pauses are allowed. Stagnation is not.”

Señora Alvarez

Ambition

Señora Alvarez

Separates borrowed goals from what Sam actually wants, and points him toward who he wants to become.

“Write what you truly want. Not what advertisements point at. Not what other people expect.”

Nathan

Belonging

Nathan

Helps Sam recognise false belonging. Questions group approval before it becomes a decision.

“Belonging can feel warm at first. But if it comes with rules about who you must be, it turns heavy.”

Meet the researcher who built this framework.

Pascal D. Hasenmaier

Pascal D. Hasenmaier

  • Doctoral researcher in risk and decision-making under uncertainty at University Duisburg-Essen
  • Author of The Art of the Durian Deal
  • Creator of the Durian Deal™ framework
  • Brings the framework into schools through the seed2rise programme
  • Trained 5,700+ students for high-stakes exams: German university students in economics and business, and Cambridge A-level students across Asia
  • Founder of Freunde und Helfer, Germany’s leading exam-prep institute for university students in economics and business
Students trained across
🇦🇹 Austria 🇧🇩 Bangladesh 🇰🇭 Cambodia 🇩🇪 Germany 🇭🇰 Hong Kong 🇮🇳 India 🇮🇩 Indonesia 🇲🇾 Malaysia 🇵🇰 Pakistan 🇵🇭 Philippines 🇸🇬 Singapore 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka 🇨🇭 Switzerland 🇹🇭 Thailand 🇺🇸 USA 🇻🇳 Vietnam
Further background and professional profile: LinkedIn Pascal’s Full Story

Bringing it to your school

Four ways to bring the Durian Deal™ framework into your school, built around the IB, Cambridge, and Pearson Edexcel systems used across Southeast Asia. Get in touch and we’ll tailor it to fit.

Fits Your School’s Existing Structures

The programme is designed to integrate directly into structures your school already has in place.

  • PSHE / Personal Development
  • Social and Emotional Learning (SEL)
  • Advisory or pastoral systems
  • IB Learner Profile, where relevant

This makes it easier to position internally, and to fold into existing student development, pastoral, and safeguarding structures.

Flagship

Pascal Visits Your School

  • Several days on-site
  • Includes an on-site parent session; leadership and teacher training can run in the same visit
More information

Train the Teacher

  • For teachers, pastoral staff, counsellors, and advisory leads
  • Builds capability that stays in the school, independent of Pascal’s schedule
More information

Parent Evening

  • For parents who want to understand the framework directly from Pascal
  • Practical ways to reinforce judgment and decision-making at home
More information
Coming Soon

seed2rise Academy

  • Self-paced videos and quizzes, learn from home, opens early 2027
  • Founding Cohort members also get a live Q&A with Pascal, for parent and child
Join the waitlist

Let’s talk

Tell Pascal what you’re looking for, he’ll get back to you personally.

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