North-South Centre - European Centre for Global Interdependence and Solidarity

14-22 November 2009

Strategies for Increasing and Improving Global Education

“FOOD FOR ALL”

1. Introduction
2. The aims of the Global Education Week
3. Global Education Week National Contacts and Activities
4. What you can do – 7 Suggestions for school and classroom activities
5. Resources, Links and Glossary
6. Global Education Week initiatives in the World
7. Global Education newsletter

1. Introduction  

In 1999 the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe has launched the first Global Education Week, promoting school activities in the member States with a specific focus on how to overcome poverty and social exclusion. Since, and on the basis of the positive feed-back from 1999, the North-South Centre invites the 47 member States of the Council of Europe to participate annually in the Global Education Week through the active collaboration of national contacts integrating the Global Education Week network.

The theme choosing process for Global Education Week 2009 resulted from an interactive discussion between the network co-ordinators on the issue of Global Education Week and its relation to the Millennium Development Goals. Various proposals were considered and the final theme agreed by the network was :

“FOOD FOR ALL”

Climate change, population migration, transgenic production and the growing dispute of cultivation surfaces for food crops and bio-fuel are bringing new and dramatic challenges to food security. More then ever a reflexion on sustainable development priorities is necessary.

The choice of this theme is also in line with the mandate of the North-South Centre with regard to raising awareness on North-South and global interdependence issues.

National co-ordinators are invited to add, if necessary, a short sub title or motto to adapt the theme to their particular national situations.

By clicking on the theme title, you will access to numerous practical links and tools dealing with food security related issues.

2. The aims of the Global Education Week 

The Global Education Week encourages pupils and teachers as well as youth groups to explore educational activities for global citizenship. It is a matter of addressing issues of diversity and inequality at the local as well as at the global level with an understanding of the core issues of global citizenship:

    · awareness of the wider world and of our own role as a world citizens;
    · attitudes of respect for diversity and intercultural communication skills;
    · ability to take action to make the world a more equitable and sustainable place;
    · responsibility for our own actions

The Global Education Week encourages young people, head teachers and teachers to implement a global education project in their schools, reflecting on how to address exclusion and inequality and discussing globalisation.

For some approaches in teaching or about globalisation please consult:

Center for Global Education promotes international education to foster cross-cultural awareness, cooperation and understanding. Living and working effectively in a global society requires learning with an international perspective.

Citizenship education: the global dimension
The portal site for teachers and educators keen to explore the global dimension of Citizenship education.

Development Education Project works with teachers to raise awareness of global issues

Discovery Channel Global Education Partnership is a nonprofit, charitable organization dedicated to reaching across the global information divide with the tools and training necessary to extend the power of technology and information to under-resourced communities around the world

Global Citizens for Change website has the objective to better inform, educate and prepare educators, their students and prospective volunteers, through virtual means, about global education issues and volunteering in developing countries. Global Citizens for Change promotes volunteering overseas as the ultimate global learning experience.

GlobalEd - The American Forum for Global Education provides leadership to strengthen the education of our nation's youth by fostering the ability to think creatively, analytically, and systematically about issues in a global context.

Global Education Associates
Gathers,Educates,Acts to achieve ecological integrity, peace, human rights, economic and social well-being, and democratic participation for all the world's peoples, with special care to include the voices and perspectives of poor and marginalized people and of diverse cultural and religious traditions.

Global Education Network
The Global Education Network consists of teachers, students, and members of the Community at large who believe that teaching and learning must integrate the interdependency of the social, economic, environmental, and political aspects of our world.

Online Academy – Olof Palme International Center

Tide, a teacher's network which supports creative work to meet young people's educational entitlement to understanding the global dimensions, development perspectives and human rights principles which will shape their lives.

United Nations Cyberschoolbus was created in 1996 as the online education component of the Global Teaching and Learning Project, whose mission is to promote education about international issues and the United Nations. The Global Teaching and Learning Project produces high quality teaching materials and activities designed for educational use (at primary, intermediate and secondary school levels) and for training teachers.

UNESCO site on learning for a sustainable future

Or explore the list of links to organisations offering teaching methods or resources under tip nº 5 under § 4.

Global Education Reference documents

Global Education Guidelines - 2008

Global Education Charter - 1997

Maastricht Global Education Declaration - 2002
European Strategy Framework For Improving and Increasing Global Education in Europe to the Year 2015

Council resolution on development education and raising European public awareness of development cooperation - 2001

European conference on public awareness and development education for North-South solidarity – 2005

European Consensus on Development: a strategy framework for Development Education & Awareness RaisingEuropean Consensus on Development – 2007

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    3. Global Education Week National Contacts and Activities     

You will find activities sent by our national contacts under the country's name.

To consult GEW activities please click under the country name, or get in touch with your national contact

Should you wish to share your activity and have it posted on-line on the North-South Centre website, please contact your national contact or the North-South Centre GEW network coordinator Miguel Silva

4. What you can do – 7 Suggestions for school and classroom activities 

Under "What you can do" the North-South Centre outlines a series of tips concerning potential projects and activities to put into practice during the Global Education Week. Please feel free to suggest your own. If you provide feed-back to the North-South Centre - miguel.silva@coe.int - concerning your project we will be posting its description and outcomes on the Global Education Week web site.

Tip 1: Start with an activity about the Global Village
Tip 2: Global Education Week National Contacts and Activities
Tip 3: Present (or get in touch with) School Links Experiences
Tip 4: Consult and join forces with World Aware Education Award Laureates
Tip 5: Consult on-line teaching units
Tip 6: Request and disseminate Examples of Good Practice
Tip 7: Monitor the media

Tip 1: Start with an activity about the Global Village

Introduction
We have heard it many times: « we live in a global village »… but how do we perceive this village? « If the world were a village of 1000 people… » is a simple activity that can be printed and photocopied to encourage participants to reflect (alone or in small groups) about their knowledge and perception about the world we live in. The overall datas are available to compare later on our estimates with available statistics. Why did we over -or under- estimate certain figure? What does it say about our ideas about certain areas of the world? What are the sources of our knowledge about the world? Please provide your feed-back about what happened during the activity and any updates about the datas by writing to miguel.silva@coe.int who will edit them in the "your feed-back" section.

Tip 2: Global Education Week National Contacts and Activities

Activities sent by our GEW national contacts are being posted under the country's name that you can find by clicking on the link to the GEW network.

Please note that this list is regularly being updated. If you do not find a contact point for your country, please double-check with the North-South Centre at the following address: miguel.silva@coe.int

Tip 3: Present (or get in touch with) School Links Experiences

Use the Global Education Week to give visibility and promote School Links and Youth Work Camps projects. You are invited to share with us ideas and checklists for making such presentations effective and consult on-line information such as:

Tip 4: Consult and join forces with World Aware Education Award Laureates

In co-operation with Irish Aid, the North-South Centre awards annually the World Aware Education Award prize for global education awareness-raising projects developped in partnership.
The awards are attributed to partnerships of relevant actors (NGO/government/educational institution) who have existing projects that improve, increase or integrate global education in secondary schools. Please click here to read about the World Aware Education Award laureates .
Should you be interested in submitting a project to the World Aware Education Award, please contact the North-South Centre of the Council of Europe.

Tip 5: Consult on-line teaching units and resources

Council of Europe pedagogical resources

COMPASS
COMPASS has been produced within the framework of the Human Rights Education Youth Programme of the Directorate of Youth and Sport of the Council of Europe. The programme aims to put human rights at the centre of youth work and thereby to contribute to the bringing of human rights education into the mainstream.

Domino – A manual to use peer group education as a means to fight racism, xenophobia, anti-semitism and intolerance.
See also Alien 93, Youth organisation combatting racism and xenophobia.

Education pack - Idea, resources, methods and activities for informal intercultural education with young people and adults

Exploring children’s rights - Lesson sequences for primary schools

Human Rights educational fact sheets. The European Convention on Human Rights - starting points for teachers

T-Kits : Training kits
The training kits are thematic publications written by experienced youth trainers and other experts. They are easy-to-use handbooks for use in training and study sessions. T-Kits are produced by the Youth Directorate.

European Charter for Democratic Schools without Violence
Upon the initiative of the Council of Europe, young people from across Europe have prepared the European Charter for Democratic Schools without Violence on the basis of the fundamental values and principles shared by all Europeans, in particular those set forth in the Council of Europe’s Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.


. Special file : Council of Europe intercultural and interreligious dialogue policy

UNESCO resources

    - The bridge project is implemented by a multicultural team of young professionals (less than 32 years old) from the International Bureau of Education (IBE). The BRIDGE team is contributing to IBE's framework programme 'The Adaptation of Educational Content to the Challenges of the XXIst Century'.

    - Le projet bridge est réalisé par une équipe multiculturelle de jeunes professionnels du Bureau international d'éducation. L'équipe BRIDGE contribue au programme-cadre du BIE :Adaptation du contenu de l'éducation aux défis du XXIe siècle.

    - El proyecto bridge está siendo llevado a cabo por un equipo multicultural de jóvenes profesionales (menores de 32 años) de la Oficina Internacional de Educación. Este equipo contribuye al programa-marco de la OIE intitulado Adaptación de los contenidos de la educación a los desafíos del siglo XXI.

    Unesco-International Bureau of Education
    New CD-Rom on good experiences for learning to live together - A CD-ROM including twenty-five good practices in schools for learning to live together is available. The programmes have been selected from RelatED, a database on learning to live together produced by the UNESCO Internatinal Bureau of Education (IBE). …more

    Every year, the Education for All – EFA - Monitoring Report assesses where the world stands on its commitment to provide a basic education to all children, youth and adults by 2015. Developed by an independent team and published by UNESCO, the report is an authoritative reference that aims to inform, influence and sustain genuine commitment towards education for all.

Other resources

    Global Workplace, a two-part education unit for grassroots trade unionists who want to find out more about globalisation




Tip 6: Request and disseminate Examples of Good Practice

The North-South Centre is producing a series of publications focusing on Examples of good practice in Education for Global Citizenship completed by reports dealing with global education implementation policies.

For further queries concerning the publications please contact miguel.silva@coe.int

Do not hesitate to send your examples of Good Practice to miguel.silva@coe.int

Tip 7: Monitor the media

Pay attention to the way the media deal with issues of globalisation, social exclusion, and inequality. Select different perspectives and encourage discussion taking into account different points of view. Consult activities available on this issue developed by the Global Express project

Baobabconnections.org
Baobabconnections is a non-profit internet based media project of Both ENDS, an online monthly magazine dedicated to building critical awareness, raising debate and stimulating meaningful action toward building a future free of the dire effects of profit driven Corporate Globalisation.

Choike is a portal dedicated to improving the visibility of the work done by NGOs and social movements from the South. It serves as a platform where citizen groups can disseminate their work and at the same time enrich it with information from diverse sources, which is presented from the perspective of Southern civil society. Choike is a project of the Instituto del Tercer Mundo, NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations based in Montevideo, Uruguay.
Choike newsletter

Media Networks:

African Journals OnLine - AJOL – is a database of African-published journals, publishing in a range of academic disciplines. The objective of AJOL is to provide a window to the research published within the continent, and give greater visibility to the participating journals, and to the research they convey.

Baobabconnections.org
Baobab connections is a non-profit internet based media project of Both ENDS, an online monthly magazine dedicated to building critical awareness, raising debate and stimulating meaningful action toward building a future free of the dire effects of profit driven Corporate Globalisation.

Choike is a portal dedicated to improving the visibility of the work done by NGOs and social movements from the South. It serves as a platform where citizen groups can disseminate their work and at the same time enrich it with information from diverse sources, which is presented from the perspective of Southern civil society. Choike is a project of the Instituto del Tercer Mundo, NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations based in Montevideo, Uruguay.

International Independent Information Exchange

Inter Press Service News Agency – IPS - the world's leading provider of information on global issues, is backed by a network of journalists in more than 100 countries. IPS focuses its news coverage on the events and global processes affecting the economic, social and political development of peoples and nations.

Panafrican News Agency
AllAfrica Global Media is a multi-media content service provider, systems technology developer and the largest electronic distributor of African news and information worldwide. Registered in Mauritius, with offices in Johannesburg, Dakar, Lagos and Washington, D.C., AllAfrica is one of a family of companies that aggregate, produce and distribute news from across Africa to tens of millions of end users.

PANOS Institute is an International non-governmental organisation (I.N.G.O.) which has the two-fold objectives of:
- strengthening the media in countries in the South and their capacity to produce, in relation with all the components of the civil society, pluralist information, which is the guarantee of a culture of peace and democracy
- supporting the production of information on priority issues, furthering the circulation of this information at a global level, arousing, stimulating and informing public debate in both the South and the North on topical themes.

United-Nations News centre

Worldview International Foundation
Worldview International Foundation (Worldview) with International Headquarters in Sri Lanka, founded in 1979, is a unique development organization with hands-on experience, knowledge and the capacity to cover the entire gamut of communication and media activities for development.


Newsletters:

    Council of Europe Newsletters

    · The Bulletin – The newsletter of the CoE Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe

    · The Europeans – The newsletter of the CoE Parliamentary Assembly

    · Newsletter Education – The newsletter of the Directorate General of Education, Culture and Heritage, Youth and Sport

    · Social cohesion developments – The newsletter of the CoE Social Cohesion division

    North-South Centre of the Council of Europe Newsletters

    Global Education Newsletter




    Other Newsletters:

Baobabconnections.org
Baobabconnections is a non-profit internet based media project of Both ENDS, an online monthly magazine dedicated to building critical awareness, raising debate and stimulating meaningful action toward building a future free of the dire effects of profit driven Corporate Globalisation.

Choike newsletter - Choike is a portal dedicated to improving the visibility of the work done by NGOs and social movements from the South. It serves as a platform where citizen groups can disseminate their work and at the same time enrich it with information from diverse sources, which is presented from the perspective of Southern civil society. Choike is a project of the Instituto del Tercer Mundo, NGO in Special Consultative Status with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations based in Montevideo, Uruguay.

EurActiv.com is now the leading online media on European Union policies. Launched in 2000, the portal has become an essential work instrument for « EU Actors ». EurActiv is a policy portal, going more in-depth than traditional news sites.

European Commission News

OSCE bulletin - Latest news from the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe

Education

Environment

Development

    PovertyNet the electronic newsletter from the World Bank. This newsletter provides an update of new resources about understanding and alleviating poverty available from PovertyNet.

    World Social Forum newsletter

Human rights

    Human Rights Watch News

5. Resources, Links and Glossary  

RESOURCES

Council of Europe pedagogical resources

COMPASS
COMPASS has been produced within the framework of the Human Rights Education Youth Programme of the Directorate of Youth and Sport of the Council of Europe. The programme aims to put human rights at the centre of youth work and thereby to contribute to the bringing of human rights education into the mainstream.

Domino – A manual to use peer group education as a means to fight racism, xenophobia, anti-semitism and intolerance.
See also Alien 93, Youth organisation combatting racism and xenophobia.

Education pack - Idea, resources, methods and activities for informal intercultural education with young people and adults

Exploring children’s rights - Lesson sequences for primary schools

Human Rights educational fact sheets. The European Convention on Human Rights - starting points for teachers

T-Kits : Training kits
The training kits are thematic publications written by experienced youth trainers and other experts. They are easy-to-use handbooks for use in training and study sessions. T-Kits are produced by the Youth Directorate.

European Charter for Democratic Schools without Violence
Upon the initiative of the Council of Europe, young people from across Europe have prepared the European Charter for Democratic Schools without Violence on the basis of the fundamental values and principles shared by all Europeans, in particular those set forth in the Council of Europe’s Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.


. Special file : Council of Europe intercultural and interreligious dialogue policy

North-South Centre resources

This space provides information on all resources produced and gathered by the North-South Centre. It facilitates access to the Interdependent (the North-South Centre's information bulletin), working documents, publications, and reports in thematic and chronological order, as well as a list of relevant websites…. more

North-South Centre Global Education publications

Training

European Youth Worker Training – Partnership programme between the Council of Europe and the European Commission

T-Kits : Training kits - The training kits are thematic publications written by experienced youth trainers and other experts. They are easy-to-use handbooks for use in training and study sessions. T-Kits are produced by the Youth Directorate.




Educational useful data

. Education at a glance

. Education Policy Analysis

. OECD Education Online Database & PISA Database



. OECD Observer articles on Education

Selection of useful links to organisations dealing with global education issues and pedagogical tools … more

LINKS:

Educational networks

Associated Schools Project Network - ASPnet

The main purpose of UNESCO, according to its Constitution, is to contribute to peace and security by promoting the collaboration of nations through education, science and culture, in order to further universal respect for justice, the rule of law, human rights and fundamental freedoms for the peoples of the world, regardless of race, sex, language or religion. One of the basic aims of the Organization has always been the promotion of peace and international co-operation through education. After its foundation in 1946, educators working with UNESCO produced an impressive number of new ideas and suggestions concerning the education of young people for international understanding.
In order to translate these ideas into concrete action, UNESCO launched the Associated Schools Project Network (ASPnet) in 1953. As of the year 2003, it includes over 7,000 educational institutions, ranging from pre-school education to teacher training in 166 countries.
Associated Schools commit to promoting the ideals of UNESCO by conducting pilot projects in favour of better preparing children and young people to meet effectively the challenges of an increasingly complex and interdependent world.

Development Education Association - DEA
Development education aims to raise awareness and understanding of how global issues affect the everyday lives of individuals, communities and societies and how all of us can and do influence the global.
www.dea.org.uk

Development Education Exchange in Europe Project - DEEEP
DEEEP is a 3-year programme that aims to increase the capacity of European NGDOs to deliver grassroots Development Education (DE) via methodological exchange, training, improved networking, elaboration of common policies and common projects.

European federation for Intercultural Learning - EFIL, the European federation for Intercultural Learning coordinates a thematic network of organisations, schools, and trainers who have a key role in promoting global education in Europe.
EFIL Global Education Reader

European Association for Education of Adults

International Association for Intercultural Education

LearningChannel.org, multimedia web portal on global education

Learning Activities for Use With Young People to Explore the Issue of Discrimination

Polygone is a European network for Development Education, created with the aim of debating the role education should play, as a transforming activity, in the diverse societies of the North and the South. It is also a frame to exchange experiences, materials and theoretical models.

The myEUROPE Schools Network is a group of more than 970 schools. They form a unique community of teachers who work for the development and the enhancement of our common European identity

Directory of Development organisations: guide to International Organisations, Governments, Private Sector Institutions, Development Agencies, Universities, Research and Training Institutes, NGOs/PDOs, Grantmakers, Banks, Microfinance Institutions and Development Consulting Firms

Non-governmental Organisations Research Guide



Council of Europe links

Education for Europe…
… Helping to incorporate the principles of human rights, democracy, tolerance and mutual respect, the rule of law and peaceful resolution of conflicts into the daily practice of teaching and learning…

Division for Citizenship and Human Rights Education

Council of Europe NGOs Unit

Do not hesitate to send your suggestions of useful links and resources to miguel.silva@coe.int




GLOSSARY

- Agenda 21 : the Action plan for sustainable development adopted at the 1992 Rio Earth Summit.

- Globalisation: is characterised by "shrinking space, shrinking time and disappearing borders", through the development of market economy, communications technologies, biotechnology, etc, was the main focus of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Human Development Report
For an overview of Global Trends, global teaching and learning projects or resources, please explore the following links

Globalisation Guide

UN Cyber School Bus

UNESCO portal on globalisation and governance

Centre for Research on Globalisation (CRG) is an independent research and media group of progressive writers, scholars and activists committed to curbing the tide of "globalisation" and "disarming" the New World Order. The CRG web page based in Montreal publishes news articles, commentary, background research and analysis on a broad range of issues, focussing on the interrelationship between social, economic, strategic, geopolitical and environmental processes.

Global Development Research Center (GDRC)
The Global Development Research Center is a virtual organization that carries out initiatives in education, research and practices, in the spheres of environment, urban, community and information

International Forum on Globalisation (IFG) is an alliance of sixty leading activists, scholars, economists, researchers and writers formed to stimulate new thinking, joint activity, and public education in response to economic globalisation

World Bank site on globalisation

And other research centres on globalisation

- Poverty: A state of deprivation, of not being able to meet the minimum standards for decent living. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) provides annual reports about poverty and development
The eradication of poverty is the main subject of the 1997 Human Development Report
About poverty eradication, we invite you to get acquainted to Millennium Development Goal nº1

- Solidarity: the ability to empathise and support each other. An agenda for social solidarity was discussed and agreed upon in the 1995 Copenhagen World Social Summit, see report, including an action plan for the eradication of poverty

- Sustainable development: development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. For a State of Environment Report, including many national profiles you can refer to:

UNEP.Net, the United Nations Environment Network;

UNEP / GRID Arendal, providing environmental information, communications, and capacity building services for information management and assessment. Established to strengthen the United Nations through its Environment Programme (UNEP) and giving access to environment news, environmental books and publications, and State of the environment reports from countries and regions of the world;

or the Global Virtual University (GVU), an online network university for sustainable development

- Sustainable future: one in which a healthy environment, economic prosperity and social justice are pursued simultaneously to ensure the well-being and the quality of life of present and future generations. Education being crucial to attain that future, please consult UNESCO site on learning for a sustainable future.

Do not hesitate to send your suggestions of useful links and resources to miguel.silva@coe.int

6. Global Education Week initiatives in the World 

- One World Week UK
Set up in 1978, One World Week exists to provide the space for people from diverse backgrounds to come together to learn about global justice, to spread that learning and to use it to challenge inequality, discrimination and degradation, locally and globally. It is an opportunity to learn about global issues and to take action locally on things that have a global impact. One World Week events now take place all over the world, from Japan to Uganda to India. Find out what happens in OWW here.

- National Youth Council of Ireland (NYCI) One World Week
NYCI One World Week is a week of youth-led awareness raising, education and action that takes place throughout Ireland during the third week in November every year.

- International Education Week in the US

- Week for International Solidarity in France
This national and local event is a joint initiative launched by NGOs in close collaboration with the public authorities. It brings together all the actors involved in international solidarity (associations, NGOs, local communities, schools, trade unions, work councils...).

7. Global Education newsletter 

The Global Education Newsletter, a monthly electronic newsletter for Global Education networks, to share global education news, events and experiences, useful thematic links and educational materials, and serving as an informative vehicle for the global education practitioners.
Wishing you a fruitful reading and looking forward for your comments or suggestions you can address to miguel.silva@coe.int

Global Education Week reporting form

Global Education Week Evaluation criteria