Renewing the social contract for education is the central call of the "Reimagining Our Futures Together: A New Social Contract for Education" report from the International Commission on the Futures of Education. The International Commission outlines two foundational principles for such renewal: an expanded vision of the right to education throughout life, and education as a public endeavour and a common good, reflecting humanity's wide diversity of ways of knowing, living, and being. These principles provide a common thread for the think pieces in this issue, which attempt to unpack the idea of a new social contract from a variety of positions. The pieces are discussed around six themes: reorienting educational purpose; governing diverging motivations; recasting leadership and participation; envisioning new possibilities for higher education; enriching the knowledge commons; and unleashing imagination beyond the status quo. This introductory article argues that rebuilding and strengthening trust is the watchword of any effort to renew a social contract for just and equitable futures of education.