In the education sector, the Council of Europe has a number of roles and responsibilities in supporting its member States in their efforts to achieve the Goal. In particular:

  • 26th Standing Conference of Council of Europe Ministers of Education

The Standing Conference of Council of Europe Ministers of Education (Strasbourg, 28-29 September 2023), entitled “The Transformative Power of Education: Universal Values and Civic Renewal” supported a role for the Council of Europe in supporting national efforts to achieve SDG4 by launching the new Education strategy 2030 "Learners first - Education for today's and tomorrow's democratic societies". The strategy and the five adopted resolutions (here for more information) promote more coherent and comprehensive Democratic Citizenship Education by supporting the creation of a European Space for Citizenship Education, launched the European Year of Digital Citizenship Education in 2025, and the resilience toolbox for education.

  •  CDEDU

In October 2016 the Steering Committee for Education Policy and Practice (CDPPE, renamed Steering Committee for Education, CDEDU, as from January 2022) decided to include SDG4 as a standing agenda item to its bi-annual plenary meetings to exchange best practice and lessons learned in implementing the measures required to achieve SDG4.

  • UNESCO Global SDG4-Education 2030 Steering Committee

The Council of Europe was selected as one of two regional organisations for the European and North America region on the UNESCO Global SDG4-Education 2030 Steering Committee.

The Council of Europe contributes to the work of this Committee by presenting regional initiatives, representing and reporting back to its member states, and identifying and promoting good practice in efforts to achieve SDG4 among its member States.

The Education Department representing the Council of Europe as regional organisation in the High-Level Steering Committee of UNESCO in charge of the follow up of the UN SDG4 agenda, contributed to the work of the Committee and through the design of guidelines for the functional group I in charge of evidence based policymaking and participation in the Transforming Education Summit organised in New York in 2022 and the High level sessions of the Committee taking place in Paris. A specific discussion related to the follow up of the policy orientations of the 2022 Transforming Education Summit was organised during the third plenary session of the CDEDU on 3-5 April 2023.

The Council of Europe’s approach to quality education is outlined in Recommendation CM(2012)13 on ensuring quality education. Programmes supporting EDC/HRE; Competences for Democratic Culture; Ethics, Transparency and Integrity in Education (ETINED); inter-cultural dialogue, and language support for migrants contribute to achieving SDG 4.

In 2022, the Committee of Ministers adopted the Recommendation CM/Rec(2018) to member Stated on countering education fraud. This Recommendation aims to assist member States in addressing education fraud across all levels and forms of education. By promoting ethics, transparency, and integrity within educational systems, it works to ensure the right to quality education for all learners.

In order to equip learners with the means to acquire the skills and competences for democratic culture, and to enable them to tackle the challenges and risks arising from the digital environment and emerging technologies, the Committee of Ministers adopted Recommendation CM/Rec(2019)10 to member States on developing and promoting digital citizenship education.

The European Qualifications Passport for Refugees (EQPR) contributes to the achievement of SDG4 by facilitating the recognition of refugees’ qualifications even in the absence of full documentation. The EQPR is a Council of Europe initiative based on the Lisbon Recognition Convention and was presented as an example of good practice at the UNHCR’s Global Forum for Refugees in December 2019. The EQPR was developed under the Council of Europe Action Plan on Protecting Refugee and Migrant Children in Europe (2017-2019).

The Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC)  provides guidelines for democratic culture and intercultural dialogue across all education levels. In 2023, the department launched a guidance initiative on implementing the RFCDC in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) to equip learners with competences for democratic action, sustainability, and biodiversity preservation.

Additionally, through its co-operation and capacity-building programmes, the Council of Europe’s Education Department offers tailored support to member States, individually or in groups, to identify and promote best practices across a range of education issues, allowing SDG4-related outcomes to be given more visible priority.

These Education Department programmes help increase the capacity of national education systems to provide quality education, develop competences for democratic culture, fight discrimination, support integrity and transparency in education and combat bullying and violence in schools in line with SDG 4, and in particular with SDG 4.5, 4.7 and 4a.

In the Western Balkans, three projects promoting democratic culture and academic integrity are being implemented within the framework of the EU-CoE Horizontal Facility III for the Western Balkans and Türkiye (2023-2026): "Quality Education for All" in Bosnia and Herzegovina, in Montenegro and in Serbia. These actions build upon the results of co-operation under the previous two phases of the programme (2016-2019 and 2019-2022). Funded by Germany, the project “Quality Education for All - North Macedonia” aims to promote democracy and human rights in and through education and equip young people with the competences to live in a multicultural society.

The projects “Education for Democracy in the Republic of Moldova II” and “Democracy Starts in Schools – Engaging School Children in Decision Making Processes in Schools and Communities in Georgia”, funded by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC), and the project “Strengthening democratic citizenship education in Albania” funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida), contribute to strengthening the capacity of education systems to support the development of the democratic competences necessary for young people to become engaged citizens, based on the integration of the Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture (RFCDC) in school curricula, teacher education, teaching practices, school governance, in line with SGD 4.7.

In response to the tragic and unprecedented school shooting that took place on 3 May 2023 in the primary school “Vladislav Ribnikar” in Belgrade, the project “Prevent bullying and peer violence in schools” in Serbia was initiated in January 2024, funded by Germany, and aims to strengthen safe school environment by promoting the wellbeing of learners, through encouraging democratic school culture and human rights in and through formal and non-formal education.

The Council of Europe also supports quality inclusive education through its contribution to the EEA/Norway Grants and involvement as International Partner Organisation in programmes in Bulgaria, Romania and Slovakia which aim to increase the social inclusion and cohesion in these states.

Established in 2020 as an Enlarged Partial Agreement, the Observatory on History Teaching in Europe promotes history education that fosters reconciliation, and a culture of peace and non-violence in line with SGD 4.7. Based on a multi-perspective and fact-based approach, the Observatory’s work seeks to understand how history curricula and teaching methods develop students’ comprehension of democracy and democratic values, critical thinking skills, and help them to contribute to a more just society in the future. This allows for the identification of good practices in the field of history education, and to learn how to escape the pitfalls of using history lessons to further political agendas.
 

The European Social Charter, the human rights treaty on social and economic rights, guarantees the right of children and young persons to social, legal and economic protection in Article 17 of the Charter. This entails the right of children and young persons to a free primary and secondary education as well as to encourage regular attendance at schools.

Under Article 17 of the Charter, equal access to education must be ensured for all children. In this respect particular attention should be paid to vulnerable groups such as children from minorities, children seeking asylum, refugee children, children in hospital, children in care, pregnant teenagers, children deprived of their liberty, etc. Children belonging to these groups must be integrated into mainstream educational facilities and ordinary educational schemes. Measures for Roma children should not involve the establishment of separate schools or classes reserved for this group.

With regard to quality inclusive education for children in vulnerable situations and in particular Roma education, the now-ended Joint Project “Inclusive schools: making a difference for Roma children (INSCHOOL)” worked towards reviewing and adapting education policies and practices in order to transform schools into inclusive places for all the children. Instead of focusing on the child as being the problem, INSCHOOL put at the heart of its action the education system and its capacity to respond to the specific needs of Roma children, to accommodate differences and to support their learning experience.  The project actions included efforts to increasing school attendance and completion rate, improving educational achievement and delivering training sessions for education policy makers and practitioners.  Similarly, the CoE/EU Joint Project “Building Capacity for Inclusion in Education” is working on fostering quality education in Kosovo* by improving access to education for children from disadvantaged groups including Roma, Ashkali and Egyptian children and children with special education needs.

In 2024, the Committee of Experts on Roma and Traveller Issues (ADI-ROM) and the CDADI, adopted the Feasibility study on desegregation and inclusion policies and practices in the field of education for Roma and Traveller children  A draft Committee of Ministers Recommendation is currently being prepared on this topic. The ADI-ROM  has developed a capacity-building programme and tools supporting implementation of Recommendation CM/Rec(2020)2 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the inclusion of the history of Roma and/or Travellers in school curricula and teaching materials. In 2024, the Council of Europe was part of IHRA’s (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) #ProtectTheFacts campaign.

The CDADI’s Working Group on the active political participation of national minority youth builds upon the Study on the active political participation of national minority youth in Council of Europe member States, adopted in 2023 to provide non-binding guidance for member states and other key stakeholders to ensure that young persons belonging to national minorities are able to take part in, influence, and shape public and political life, including by calling upon member states to provide education, information, and relevant training.  2024 saw the adoption of Recommendation CM/Rec(2024)1 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on equality of Roma and Traveller women and girls which covers the topic of early childhood and school education of Roma and Traveller girls.

ADI-ROM developed a Thematic report of the ADI-ROM on Early Childhood Education, based on a visit to Athens and Nafplio, Greece (2023), putting forward practices and initiatives from Greece, Cyprus, France, Hungary, Ireland, North Macedonia, and Türkiye.

In 2025, the Roma and Travellers Division continued to provide technical support for member states in implementing judgments of the European Court of Human Rights on school segregation affecting Roma children in Albania, North Macedonia and Czechia. This assistance included the development of feasibility studies at local level, review of legislation and policies to integrate inclusive education principles and the organisation of expert workshops for national authorities.

The JP ROMACT contributes to strengthen the ability of local authorities to ensure that vulnerable children, including Roma pupils, have equitable access to quality and inclusive learning environments. Through its capacity‑building work, ROMACT helps municipalities identify educational barriers, plan targeted interventions, and access EU and national funding for improving school infrastructure, digital learning tools, and teaching materials. The programme supports concrete measures such as reducing absenteeism and school drop‑outs, expanding extra‑curricular activities, improving school environments, and providing essential educational supplies for disadvantaged children.

Article 15§1 of the Charter makes it an obligation for States Parties to provide education for persons with disabilities, together with vocational guidance and training, in one or other of the pillars of the education system, in other words mainstream or special schools. Education and training are the essential foundation to obtain a position in the open labour market and to be able to lead a self-determined life. Young persons with disabilities with an education below the upper secondary level are per se subject to various disadvantages on the employment market. States Parties must take measures in order to enable integration and guarantee that both mainstream and special schools ensure adequate teaching. Furthermore, States Parties must demonstrate that tangible progress is being made in setting up inclusive and adapted education systems.

As regards vocational education and life-long learning, the Charter guarantees the right to vocational training in Article 10 of the Charter according to which States Parties must:

  • ensure general and vocational secondary education, university and non-university higher education; and other forms of vocational training;
  • build bridges between secondary vocational education and university and non-university higher education;
  • introduce mechanisms for the recognition/validation of knowledge and experience acquired in the context of training/working activity in order to achieve a qualification or to gain access to general, technical and university higher education;
  • take measures to make general secondary education and general higher education qualifications relevant from the perspective of professional integration in the job market;
  • introduce mechanisms for the recognition of qualifications awarded by continuing vocational education and training.

The main indicators of compliance include the existence of the education and training system, its total capacity (in particular, the ratio between training places and candidates), the total spending on education and training as a percentage of the GDP; the completion rate of young people enrolled in vocational training courses and of students enrolled in higher education; the employment rate of people who hold a higher-education qualification and the waiting-time for these people to get a first qualified job.

The European Committee of Social Rights (ECSR)  monitors the implementation of the Charter, not only in law, but also in practice. The ECSR examined the compliance by States Parties with their obligations under Article 17 of the Charter in its Conclusions 2023 , respectively under Article 10 of the Charter in its Conclusions 2020.

The Council of Europe Landscape Convention (ETS No. 176) does reference education, training, and awareness-raising as important components in achieving its goals. Article 6 calls on Parties to promote training for specialists and multidisciplinary education "in landscape appraisal and operations," as well as to promote "school and university courses which, in the relevant subject areas, address the values attached to landscapes and the issues raised by their protection, management and planning."

The Convention also encourages public participation and awareness, which overlaps with the broader educational aims of Goal4

Committee of Ministers’ Recommendations CM/Rec(2017)7 and CM/Rec(2021)9  specifically addresses educational initiatives in landscape awareness, preservation, and participatory management which are encouraged, supporting lifelong learning and knowledge dissemination. Earlier recommendations specifically focused on landscape education - such as CM/Rec(2014)8 on promoting landscape awareness through education and CM/Rec(2015)7 on pedagogical material for landscape education in primary school.

The Guiding principles for an integrated approach to culture, nature and landscape management - “L.I.N.K.E.D.”, elaborated by the Steering Committee for Culture, Heritage and Landscape (CDCPP), discusses knowledge building, research and innovation, lifelong learning, citizen science and awareness raising, supporting education for sustainable development and global citizenship.

The ECSR by its decision of 16 October 2017 on the merits of the complaint Mental Disability Advocacy Center (MDAC) v. Belgium (No. 109/2014) concluded that there is a violation of Article 15§1 of the Charter on the ground that the right to inclusive education of children with intellectual disabilities is not effectively guaranteed in the Flemish Community of Belgium and due to lack of an effective remedy against refusal of enrolment in mainstream schooling for children with intellectual disabilities; and that there is a violation of Article 17§2 of the Charter on the ground that the accessibility criteria to an inclusive education are not fulfilled.

In its Conclusions 2019, the ECSR adopted a Statement of interpretation on Article 17§2 of the Charter on private sector involvement in education. The ECSR recalled that Article 17§2 of the Charter requires States Parties to establish and maintain an educational system that is both accessible and effective. The Charter provides that the obligations under this provision may be met directly or through the involvement of private actors. The ECSR notes further that in many states private education is also available.

The ECSR is also mindful in this respect of the Abidjan Guiding Principles on the human rights obligations of states to provide public education and to regulate private involvement in education. It recalls that the requirement that states respect the freedom of parents to choose an educational institution other than a public institution leaves unchanged the obligation under the Charter to provide free quality public education. Similarly, the offer of educational alternatives by private actors must not be to detrimental to the allocation of resources towards, or otherwise undermine the accessibility and quality of public education. Moreover, states are required to regulate and supervise private sector involvement in education strictly, making sure that the right to education is not undermined. As regards the right to education under Article 17§2 of the Charter, the ECSR asked what measures have been taken to introduce anti bullying policies in schools, i.e. measures relating to awareness raising, prevention and intervention.

Furthermore, the ECSR emphasised that securing the right of the child to be heard within education is crucial to the realisation of the right to education in terms of Article 17§2. This requires States Parties to ensure child participation across a broad range of decision-making and activities related to education, including in the context of children’s specific learning environments. The ECSR asked what measures have been taken by the State to facilitate child participation in this regard.

In its Conclusions 2020, the ECSR adopted a Statement of interpretation on Article 15§1 of the Revised Charter (right to education and vocational training for persons with disabilities).

 

The Council of Europe’s Programme for Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals (HELP)  supports its member States in implementing the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR) and other European standards at the national level. It consists of three key elements:

  • The HELP Network of Judiciary Schools and Bar associations of the 46 countries of the Council of Europe (in addition to partners like the European Judicial Training Network and the Council of Bar Associations and Law Societies of Europe).
  • Human Rights courses for legal professionals (hosted accessible to all for free on the HELP online platform). They cover a range of topical issues such as asylum, anti-discrimination, data protection, right to education, labour rights, ill-treatment, human trafficking, bioethics, counterfeiting of medical products or international cooperation in criminal matters. These and other courses are briefly described in the HELP catalogue.
  • Methodology to develop courses and support the Judiciary Schools and Bar associations

In line with Recommendation (2019)5 of the CoE Committee of Ministers on the system of the European Convention on Human Rights in university education and professional training, the HELP Programme has the potential of reaching out Universities, particularly law faculties) aiming at integrating human rights courses in their curricula. Therefore, university students (with a focus on law students) are a natural target audience for HELP’s online courses. HELP courses can easily and efficiently supplement the educational materials in the law schools’ core curricula. They are increasingly being used by university professors to complement their academic programmes.

 

The Committee of Ministers adopted  Resolution CM/Res(2008)23 on the youth policy of the Council of Europe on 25 November 2008. It adopted Resolution CM/Res(2020)2 on the Council of Europe youth sector strategy 2030 on 22 January 2030. The strategy is available in: English, French, Albanian, Armenian, Azerbaijani, Belarusian, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, Georgian, German, Greek, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Kazakh, Latvian, Lithuanian, Macedonian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish and Ukrainian.

In 2017, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted Recommendation CM/Rec(2017)4 on Youth Work, the first internationally agreed policy document that focuses explicitly on youth work, its value for society and the way ahead for its quality development in Europe. Youth work is a ‘keyword’ for all kinds of activities with, for and by young people of a social, cultural, educational or political nature. It belongs to the domain of 'out-of-school’ education, most commonly referred to as either non-formal or informal learning.

As foreseen by the Recommendation, implementation by member states was reviewed in 2023, five years after adoption. The review concluded that the Recommendation has had an important impact as a framework and guideline both in European policy and in some member states, and has contributed significantly to uniting the youth work sector and strengthening co-operation. The Joint Council on Youth agreed there is a need to continue to support implementation of the text and the development of youth work in Europe. Further reflection was needed on how the Council of Europe can further consolidate its role as initiator and stimulus and contribute to strengthening the causality link between the Recommendation, and developments at both European and member-state levels.

The Partial Agreement on Youth Mobility through the Youth Card looked at how to strengthen the capacity of policy makers and Youth Card organisations to co-operate in the implementation of the Council of Europe’s youth work standards. It is done through regular co-operation projects with the European Youth Card Association (EYCA), in particular a 2025 Workshop of the Partial Agreement on Youth Mobility through the Youth Card on co-operation with other Council of Europe Partial Agreements: 'Youth perspective in action: Council of Europe's Partial Agreements after the Reykjavik Summit', Strasbourg, France, 11-12 March 2025.

The recommendation is available in English, French, Bosnian, Czech, Dutch, Estonian, Finnish, German, Hungarian, Icelandic, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Slovak, Slovenian, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian and Japanese.

The Human Rights Education Youth Programme is an essential contribution of the Youth Department to the achievement of this SDG, supporting the implementation of the Council of Europe Charter on Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education (CM/Rec(2010)7). In this framework, a review of the implementation of the Charter was conducted in 2022 and the results discussed at a Forum on the Present and Future of Citizenship and Human Rights Education (Turin, 2022). This resulted in a Roadmap for Education for Democratic Citizenship and Human Rights Education with young people (2024-28), adopted by the Joint Council on Youth (CMJ). Additionally, between 2022 and 2024 , some 30 national training courses were organised in the member states, in partnership with key stakeholders in the field. The courses often support the dissemination of Compass, the manual on human rights education with young people, ensuring access to quality human rights and citizenship education.

A new global training and capacity-building format for human rights education – Living Compass - has been developed in cooperation with the UN Office of the Human Rights Commissioner and supports a universal approach to human rights education. New editions of the Compass and Compasito, respectively manuals for, respectively, human rights education with young people and wit children, have been published. They are now available in over 30 language versions.

The Youth Sector, in cooperation with the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights and their non-governmental partners, including the European Youth Forum and Amnesty International, organised a forum to critically review the status, achievements and challenges of human rights education for, with and by youth, as conceptualised and practiced by them and their partners. The Unleashing Human Rights Forum took place at the European Youth Centre Budapest from 8 – 11 December, coinciding with International Human Rights Day.

Holding the Forum during Human Rights Day 2025 stressed the leading role that human rights education should have in the promotion of a culture of universal human rights. The Forum provided the opportunity for the community of human rights educators to gather, share, reflect and nurture human rights education practice for the upcoming years, underlining cooperative dialogue between international, national and local partners, whether professionals or volunteers from the formal or non-formal education sectors, whether governmental institutions or non-governmental organisations.

The Forum took a global perspective, which is essential in view of the universality of human rights and, consequently, of the need to universalise the commitments, understandings, and praxis of human rights education, while localising it in specific social, political and educational contexts. 

In connection with this specific SDG, the European Youth Foundation funded projects in 2025 that addressed quality education primarily  by supporting young people’s access to non-formal education and the human rights education programme. Notable contributions were achieved through the NGO Youth for Exchange and Understanding’s project “Ethical Surfers: Empowering Youth Workers in the Digital Currents through Non-Formal Education” and the youth branch of the European Non-Governmental Sports Organisation through their project on “Equipped to Empower: A Blueprint for Human Rights Education through Sport”.

According to the Committee of Ministers Resolution CM/Res(2013)66 Article 1§2, the tasks of the Enlarged Partial Agreement (EPA) on Cultural Routes  include the development of the cultural and educational content and activities of Cultural Routes, together with training and capacity-building for Cultural Routes operators, thereby contributing to SDG 4.

CM/Res(2013)66 defines a Cultural Route as a cultural, educational, heritage and tourism co-operation project (Appendix, Revised Statute, Article 1, (Definitions)) and recognises the numerous cultural events, educational exchanges and tours carried out by routes each year, involving hundreds of thousands of people, hundreds of organisations and local communities (preamble).

Similarly, according to CM/Res(2023)2 revising the rules for the award of the “Cultural Route of the Council of Europe” certification, the certification “Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe” may be granted to networks dealing with a theme that must lend itself to cultural and educational exchanges for young people, in accordance with Section I, Eligibility Criterion 4. This directly contributes to Target 4.7 on education for sustainable development and global citizenship.

Cultural Routes actively engage young people through a wide range of concrete educational and participatory practices, including school modules, workshops, summer schools, youth exchanges, digital mediation tools and international internships, that make heritage accessible and foster learning, cross cultural awareness and civic engagement. Examples include the Women Writers Route’s Ljubka’s Trail  (literary guide training and student-led guided tours), the Iron Age Danube Route’s ArcheoGim archaeology workshops, the European Route of Industrial Heritage’s European Industrial Heritage Summer School and Young Professionals Network , participatory projects such as ATRIUM’s Memowalk, digital projects like ATRIUM’s Minecraft Reconstruction, Aeneas Route’s Ariste platform, internship and vocational development schemes Phoenicians’ Route’s Quest (Promoting Quality internships in Sustainable Tourism & Heritage Management) and European Routes of Emperor Charles V’’s YOUTH4CULTURE , mobility and exchange schemes like youthHansa - THE HANSA of tomorrow!, Liberation Route Europe’s LRE Youth Program and Prehistoric Rock Art Trails’ YOUTH PASSROCK.

These practices often entail a strong peace-building, civic and intercultural understanding component, thereby contributing to Target 4.7.

Additionally, the University Network  for Cultural Routes Studies, network of Universities interested in the study of Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe, aims to encourage the conduct of research on Cultural Routes of the Council of Europe related issues, encourage students to undertake their academic research on Cultural Routes. By providing these concrete educational and research opportunities, the initiative contributes to SDG 4, particularly Target 4.3 on equitable access to quality tertiary education and Target 4.7 on education for sustainable development and global citizenship.

The Council of Europe Strategy for Roma and Traveller inclusion (2026-2030), prepared in 2025, also addresses the need to enhancing desegregation, inclusive and gender-sensitive quality education for Roma and Traveller children. In 2024, the Committee of Experts on Roma and Traveller Issues (ADI-ROM) and the CDADI, adopted the Feasibility study on desegregation and inclusion policies and practices in the field of education for Roma and Traveller children. It was decided to prepare a draft Committee of Ministers Recommendation on this topic. The ADI-ROM has also developed a capacity-building programme and tools supporting implementation of Recommendation CM/Rec(2020)2 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the inclusion of the history of Roma and/or Travellers in school curricula and teaching materials.

In 2024, Recommendation CM/Rec(2024)1 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on equality of Roma and Traveller women and girls and Explanatory Memorandum was adopted that covers the topic of early childhood and school education of Roma and Traveller girls. Since January 2024, the Council of Europe is part of IHRA’s (International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance) #ProtectTheFacts campaign.

The CDADI’s Working Group on the active political participation of national minority youth, building upon the Study on the active political participation of national minority youth in Council of Europe member States, drafted the Recommendation CM/Rec(2023)9 of the Committee of Ministers to member States on the active political participation of national minority youth, adopted in 2023 to provide non-binding guidance for member States and other key stakeholders to ensure that young persons belonging to national minorities are able to take part in, influence, and shape public and political life, including by calling upon member States to provide education, information, and relevant training.

The CDADI/ADI-INT Guidance document on strategies for inclusion in the fields under the responsibility of the Steering Committee on Anti-discrimination, Diversity and Inclusion (CDADI), adopted in 2025, highlights the importance of education social inclusion and integration and raises awareness for the need of ensuring, promoting and supporting non-discriminatory access to all educational, promoting diversity and equality in education, preventing segregation in schools, classrooms and other educational settings, as well as fostering mutual understanding, interaction, mixing and respect in educational contexts.

CDADI developed Guidelines on upholding equality and protecting against discrimination and hate during the COVID-19 and similar crises, which were adopted by the Council of Europe’s Committee of Ministers on 5 May 2021, which also took note of the Explanatory Memorandum to those Guidelines. The CDADI furthermore compiled promising and good practice examples  in this field. All this work is based on the Study COVID-19: An analysis of the anti-discrimination, diversity and inclusion dimensions in Council of Europe member states. All those documents cover the area of access to quality education and other services for persons belonging to vulnerable groups.

On 20 May 2022, Recommendation CM/Rec (2022)16 on Combating Hate Speech, which the CDADI prepared together with the Steering Committee on Media and Information Society (CDMSI), was adopted at the highest possible level at the meeting of the Foreign Ministers of the 46 Member States in Turin. The Recommendation calls upon governments to develop comprehensive strategies to prevent and fight hate speech, including the adoption of an effective legal framework. In particular, the Recommendation calls upon member States to ensure that human rights education, education for democratic citizenship and media and information literacy, all of which should address offline and online hate speech, are part of the general education curriculum. Member States are also called upon to set up and strengthen educational and awareness raising initiatives, programmes and user tools for children and young people, parents and carers, educators, youth workers and volunteers working with children that enable them to understand and to deal with hate speech. Specific measures to support formal and non-formal education activities and cultural programmes for the general public that enhance commitment to human rights as part of a pluralistic democratic society, encourage critical thinking, promote equality and intercultural and interfaith dialogue, and strengthen the competences needed to identify and counter hate speech, are also recommended. Further work on the implementation of this Recommendation is underway in the No Hate Speech and Co-operation Unit, in particular, the identification of promising practices at national level of the implementation of relevant aspects of the Recommendation within the mandate of the CDADI.

In 2025, CDADI adopted a Study on certain aspects of regional or national minority language protection and identification of good practices in member States, which will be available in the publications section of the CDADI website.

Sport means respecting the rules, but also providing everyone with an equal chance of taking part. It incorporates the concepts of fair play, fairness and respectful sporting behaviour. The Enlarged Partial Agreement on Sport (EPAS) encourages the teaching of Physical Education and the practice of school sports as means to promote a healthy lifestyle, but also to teach future generations the importance of ensuring that sport is inclusive, ethical and safe (see Good Practice Handbook on “Inclusive and innovative approaches to physical education and sports training”).

The Pestalozzi programme aimed to promote Council of Europe values in the field of sport and physical education enables an online community of practice of education professionals to function as a self-organised community for the exchange of ideas and practices (see the training resources available).

 

The Council of Europe Development Bank (CEB), in the framework of its unique social mandate, co-finances social investment projects in its member countries. The Bank maintains the particular focus on the education and vocational sector, which is critical to preventing a further deterioration of living conditions and an increase in poverty. The CEB financing for education aims at supporting inclusive, equitable, high-quality education that fosters better learning outcomes and social cohesion through environmentally sustainable and climate-adapted solutions.

The CEB part-finances investments targeting, among others, the expansion, rehabilitation and modernisation of education infrastructure and its efficient use, to enable innovative teaching and learning methods, boost energy efficiency and strengthen resilience to a changing climate. It will also continue to invest in school design that can increase overall community resilience.

The CEB’s activities in the education and vocational training sector will also aim at embedding digital technologies in the ways schools operate and deliver education. By promoting mixed, inclusive learning solutions, CEB-financed education projects foster the integration of refugees and migrants, as well as cultural awareness and positive interactions.

In the last three years, the CEB has approved 10 projects in the area of education and vocational training, for a total value of €1.44 billion. Twenty-two other projects with a multi-sectorial focus, providing assistance to, inter alia, the education sector, have been approved in the same period.

 

The North-South Centre of the Council of Europe also contributes to this goal of the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable development through its Global Education programme advocacy, capacity-building and awareness-raising activities. Recommendation CM/Rec(2011)4 on education for global interdependence and solidarity is of particular relevance in this context.

Since 2009, the Council of Europe, through its North-South Centre, has a joint programme with the European Commission to promote and strengthen Global Development Education in new EU member States and acceding countries. This programme contributes to advocating for and raising awareness on the UN 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development in formal and non-formal education sectors. 

From 2016 to 2019, the iLEGEND project (Intercultural Learning Exchange through Global Education, Networking and Dialogue), through a series of advocacy, awareness raising and capacity building activities, contributed to i) including principles of Global Development Education in the formal education sector, ii) creating spaces of dialogue between practitioners and policy-makers and iii) reinforcing the knowledge and skills of educators and learners to promote Sustainable Development locally, nationally and internationally.

One of the main guiding tools which leads the Global Education programme are the Global Education Guidelines which support educators to comprehend and successfully design, implement and carry out global education initiatives and learning activities. In 2019 a revised version was published in light of contemporary challenges and on recent elements of tension at social, economic, political, cultural and environmental level. Thus, the pedagogical elements of the new GEG valorise intercultural understanding and practice, conflict prevention and democratic culture, in line with the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

Building on the success of this project, iLEGEND II was signed in October 2019 and will take place until 2022. It aims to foster a better understanding of global issues and their economic, social, political, environmental and cultural interconnectedness among policy-makers, educators and youth workers".

 

Within the Parliamentary Assembly, the Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media has a key role in promoting public policies designed to uphold inclusive and quality education.  

In January 2026, the Assembly adopted Resolution 2640 (2026) and Recommendation 2303 (2026) on “Socialising at schools: for an inclusive and participatory education fostering democratic values”, underlining that learning and practicing democracy should be a core political and educational priority in Europe today to help young people engage in democratic citizenship. It endorses the Council of Europe Education Strategy 2024-2030 and supports the Secretary General's proposal for a New Democratic Pact to strengthen democratic resilience. Policies are required to ensure that schools have the necessary flexibility to respond to today’s challenges, not only in terms of adapting curriculum and methodologies but also in modelling democratic, inclusive, and participatory values and practices within schools.

In Resolution 2123 (2016) and Recommendation 2093 (2016) “Culture and Democracy”, the Assembly urged for much stronger recognition of the role that culture can play in upholding democratic principles and values and building inclusive societies, and recommended developing policy guidance on how member States could better integrate cultural activities into the education system.

Moreover, in Resolution 2584 (2025) and Recommendation 2290 (2025) “Multiperspectivity in remembrance and history education for democratic citizenship”, the Assembly recommended introducing education for democratic citizenship as a distinct compulsory subject and incorporating competences for democratic culture in other relevant subjects such as history teaching during all stages of formal education. In terms of methodology, it recommended integrating the Council of Europe Reference Framework of Competences for Democratic Culture in national curricula and building synergies between formal and non-formal education.

In 2026, the PACE Committee on Culture, Science, Education and Media will pursue these proposals with a new report to promote “co-creation” of educational projects through partnerships between schools, cultural institutions and individual artists, which could offer new ways for young people to engage in a democratic society where culture plays a key role and develop required competences by dealing with difficult, sensitive, and controversial issues in an interactive, creative, more sensory appealing and less formal context.

In its Resolution 2550 (2024) and Recommendation 2278 on “Quality education for children with special educational needs: challenges of the pandemic, war and digitalisation” the Assembly recommended developing Council of Europe guiding principles for a learner-centred and human rights-based approach to the education of children with special educational needs. It recommended that the Council of Europe cooperate with relevant international organisations, including the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the European Agency for Special Needs and Inclusive Education, to redesign disability assessments so to avoid discrimination and labelling.

The Assembly’s Committee on Migration, Refugees and Displaced Persons, over the years, prepared reports on fostering student mobility by giving incentives to students to study abroad and possibilities of remaining in host countries after graduation, and on “Integration, empowerment and protection of migrant children through compulsory education” which examined the gap between international undertakings and migrant children’s access to education (see Resolution 2220 (2018) and Resolution 2250 (2018) on Encouraging the movement of international students across Europe. A hearing with the Education Department of Council of Europe on the European Qualifications Passport for Refugees was held in October 2022 as part of the Committee’s preparatory work on the report and Resolution 2502 (2023) “Integration of migrants and refugees: benefits for all parties involved”. The resolution recommends to enhance education and improve recognition of skills obtained abroad.

In Resolution 2449 (2022) on Protection and alternative care for unaccompanied and separated migrant and refugee children, the Assembly also stressed the importance of and called on all member States to “provide for the integration of unaccompanied migrant minors in the field of education, ensure their learning process and facilitate their link with school and with other children of their age.”

The Assembly has also been concerned about the values of academic freedom and institutional autonomy being under multiple threats today. Its Resolution 2352 (2020) and Recommendation 2189 (2020) on “Threats to academic freedom and autonomy of higher education institutions in Europe” underline the need for governments to strengthen their protection when devising post-Covid19 national higher education policies and regulatory frameworks. The Assembly suggests that the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe should assess the feasibility of drafting a binding legal instrument that could set up a proper international framework of assistance, monitoring and assessment of the protection of academic freedom and institutional autonomy in the member States. 

Resolution 2486 (2023) on Building the Open Council of Europe Academic Networks (OCEAN) discusses the work and high potential of the OCEAN project and related academic networks, and the role of universities in upholding Council of Europe values, facilitating the implementation of Council of Europe conventions and building greater unity between all member States. This requires resources, strengths and talents of all sectors of civil society, including scholars, scientists, schools, students, regional and local authorities, social workers as well as non-governmental organisations. The provision of adequate funding, including via voluntary contributions by member States as well as the European Union, is key to the project’s success. National parliamentarians are also invited to raise awareness on this initiative among universities and research institutes, encouraging them to support the creation of national thematic academic networks, under the OCEAN umbrella.

The Assembly’s Committee on Social Affairs, Health and Sustainable Development also prepared a report on “Artificial intelligence and labour markets: friends or foes?” (see Resolution 2345 (2020) and Recommendation 2186 (2020), putting emphasis on “AI literacy” through digital education programmes for young people and lifelong learning/training paths for all. More recently, Resolution 2414 (2022) and Recommendation 2218 (2022) on “The right to be heard: child participation, a foundation for democratic societies” (as a follow-up, the Committee created the mandate of a General Rapporteur on child participation (see terms of reference) and published Child Safeguarding Policy of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe and a Briefing note for parliamentarians on child participation), Resolution 2429 (2022) and Recommendation 2225 (2022)  on “For an assessment of the means and provisions to combat children's exposure to pornographic content”, and  Resolution 2520 (2023) and Recommendation 2262 (2023) on “Preventing addictive behaviours in children” were adopted by the Assembly. A report on  the “Protection of children against online violence” was adopted in 2024 – see Resolution 2547 (2024) and Recommendation 2274 (2024) .

Resolution 2578 (2024) on “Risks and opportunities of the metaverse” discusses immersive technologies which are being used to great positive effect in multiple sectors including education, healthcare, arts, culture, sport, design, engineering, media and communications and increasingly in participatory democracy. However, without corrective measures, unequal access to the metaverse may lead to new forms of discrimination and widen social gaps, especially in education.

The Assembly adopted Resolution 2480 (2023) on “The role and responsibility of men and boys in stopping gender-based violence against women and girls”, on the basis of a report adopted by the Equality and Non-Discrimination Committee, called on member States to invest in education on gender equality from the youngest age, including through the training of teachers, and to ensure that gender equality is discussed at school on a regular basis. In addition, the Assembly called for comprehensive sexuality education, including discussions on gender-based stereotypes, the meaning of consent and respect in intimate relationships.

The approach of the Congress of Local and Regional Authorities is based on three key principles: achieving SDGs is the shared responsibility of all levels of government; local and regional authorities must have the necessary competences and financial autonomy to achieve the goals in their respective areas; citizens must always remain at the heart of the action.

The Congress encourages public authorities to make education accessible to all: free, equitable and of quality. It is particularly committed to promoting the inclusion and active participation of young people in civic life as a means of ensuring social cohesion and anchoring democratic principles in a society based on respect for human rights. This approach was confirmed by the adoption of the European Charter on the Participation of Young People in Municipal and Regional Life in 1992. The active participation of citizens in representative democratic structures and institutions is decisive for the legitimacy, credibility and functioning of democratic systems. The Congress work focuses on social rights, youth work, intercultural education and democratic citizenship.

In recent years, the Congress has adopted the following texts in relation to SDG 4:

  • REC 528 (2025) – The role of local and regional authorities in protecting and promoting social rights and fostering social development
  • REC 511 (2024) - The UN Pact for the Future: The essential role of local and regional authorities in global sustainable development

The following thematic activities of the Congress are particularly related to SDG 4:

Congress has issued the following SDG 4 relevant publications:

Recognising the importance of education as one of the most powerful tools for addressing inequalities and breaking the cycle of intergenerational poverty, the Commissioner for Human Rights has called on member states to end school segregation in all its forms and build genuinely inclusive education systems for all children, without discrimination. Successive Commissioners have drawn particular attention to the persistent discrimination faced by Roma and Traveller children in schools. School closures in the context of COVID-19 have deepened educational disparities, disproportionately affecting children from disadvantaged backgrounds, significantly impacting children’s life chances and their physical and mental health.

See the Commissioner’s thematic webpages on social rights and on the human rights of Roma and Travellers for further details and resources, including reports, recommendations and statements, from the current and previous Commissioners.

Segregation and/or discrimination of Roma children has been examined by the European Court of Human Rights in a number of important cases which are either under the supervision of the Committee of Ministers (see e.g. X and Others v. Albania; D.H. and Others v. the Czech Republic; Horvath and Kiss v. Hungary; Szolcsan v. Hungary; or Elmazova and Others v. North Macedonia) or have already led to significant reforms in European states (see Thematic Factsheet on Roma and Travellers).

In 2017, the Committee of Ministers of the Council of Europe adopted Recommendation CM/Rec(2017)4 on Youth Work, the first internationally agreed policy document that focuses explicitly on youth work, its value for society and the way ahead for its quality development in Europe. Youth work is a ‘keyword’ for all kinds of activities with, for and by young people of a social, cultural, educational or political nature. It belongs to the domain of 'out-of-school’ education, most commonly referred to as either non-formal or informal learning.

The Recommendation proposes that implementation of the text be undertaken five years after its adoption, the European Steering Committee for Youth (CDEJ) is overseeing the review process in 2023.

Congress Resolution 152 (2003) on the Revised European Charter on the Participation of Young People in Local and Regional Life stipulates in particular that participation is about “having the right, the means, the space and the opportunity, and where necessary, the support to participate in and influence decisions and engage in actions and activities so as to contribute to building a better society”.

Similarly, the Committee of Ministers recommendation CM/Rec(2006)14 on citizenship and participation of young people in public life, adopted in October 2006, states clearly the importance of youth participation in democracy and society, and has built concrete standards for the member states of the Council of Europe. The recommendation further recognises education for participation and the provision of opportunities for experiencing participation as prerequisites for the necessary ongoing improvement of democracy and does not allow for any restriction according to gender, ethnicity, religion, choice of lifestyle or social status, and concerns all young people.

Although nearly two decades have passed since both documents were adopted by the Council of Europe and their implementation has already begun, the Joint Council on Youth (CMJ) in 2022 recognised a need to intensify efforts and extend their implementation to all corners of the member states and the Council of Europe itself, in line with the statement in CM/Rec(2006)14 that "supporting young people’s participation is not restricted to asking their opinions but must include empowering them to be actively involved in a creative and productive manner".

Consequently, the CMJ will in 2023 develop clearer guidelines for the implementation of these important texts which would serve as a guiding reference to member states in strengthening youth participation in local, regional, and national contexts; as well as supporting youth organisations in accessing policies of the Council of Europe directly related to them.

 

 

This page reflects recent and ongoing developments in the activities of the Council of Europe towards the Sustainable Development Goals. The Council’s historical activities in this area have been archived.

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*All reference to Kosovo, whether to the territory, institutions or population, in this text shall be understood in full compliance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244 and without prejudice to the status of Kosovo.