On 4 November, we marked the first anniversary of the Dublin Congress and Declaration. We would like to take a moment to celebrate the many achievements in follow-up to the Declaration, made together with everyone who has been involved in this process. Since the adoption of the European Declaration on Global Education to 2050, there has been incredible progress. To get a glimpse of the highlights, please take a look at this one-pager.

After a few virtual roundtables, we met again in-person in Athens for GENE Roundtable 49. On 19 and 20 October we brought together over 50 Policymakers from Ministries and Agencies, of Foreign Affairs and Education, from across Europe to meet and share reports on national situations, identify cross-cutting issues, and learn together through policy networking for more and better Global Education. Read more about GENE's Roundtables here.

Exciting discussions at Ambrela Development Day Deep Talks on Global Education on 8 November! GENE Director Liam Wegimont joined esteemed panelists to address challenges in liberal democracies in Central and Eastern Europe. We explored the role of Global Education in countering fake news and misinformation, fostering critical thinking and media literacy. Looking forward to finalising their new strategy by Spring and gaining government approval by Summer. Read more.

The Peer Review of Global Education on Latvia is underway, and our team visited Riga during the first week of October 2023. Joined by Peer Experts from Irish Aid and the Cyprus Ministry of Education and Research, GENE Secretariat members engaged in a productive week of meetings and discussions with Latvian stakeholders in Global Education. Our goal was to learn from Latvia's experiences and identify opportunities for enhancing and expanding Global Education. Read more.

The 2023 conference of the Academic Network on Global Education Learning (ANGEL) took place on 19-20 June at the UNESCO Headquarters in Paris. It showcased the latest research on Global Education and also encouraged closer dialogue and interaction between policymakers and researchers. GENE co-organised two sessions on advancing policy and practice in the evaluation of Global Education, as well as policy-related research and research-informed policymaking. Read more.

On 22 June, the Czech Forum for Development Cooperation (FoRS) and People in Need, in partnership with GENE, held an online event on the Dublin Declaration Implementation. This international online event brought together representatives of ministries, civil society organisations and platforms, acadeevent reportmia, and international organisations from 17 countries. Together they looked for synergies in working on the declaration implementation on regional, national, and international levels. Read more in the event report.

On 8 June, GENE Director Liam Wegimont spoke at the SOLIDAR Policy Roundtable on the right to Global Education, held in the European Parliament. Mr Wegimont spoke about the European Declaration on Global Education to 2050 – the Dublin Declaration and the tangible signs of hope, in practice, policy, and funding, as we work for the right of all people in Europe – in solidarity with peoples globally – to have access to quality Global Education. Read more.

“How can we make people understand that we are all citizens of the world? That we are all interrelated?” This is how Mr. Jean Van Wetter, CEO of Enabel, the Belgian Development Agency, opened the launch of BeGlobal on 16 May 2023. BeGlobal is Enabel's new laboratory of ideas and practices in global education. GENE Director Liam Wegimont also took part in the launch and provided an overview of the progress made regarding the implementation of the Dublin Declaration. Read more.

On 11 May, Ms. Jo McAuley (GENE Head of Peer Review and Policy Research) had the pleasure of meeting the new Global Schools Team of teacher educators along with coordinator Mathias Demetriades and colleagues from the Swedish International Development Agency (SIDA). We are excited and looking forward to seeing what this group will do in 2023, continuing the brilliant work of the Global Schools programme. Thanks to Sida for hosting and for supporting global learning for a more just and sustainable world.

Liam Wegimont (GENE Director) spoke at a Roundtable event held in the European Parliament to mark the forthcoming European Year of Skills, which started on 9 May 2023. Mr. Wegimont focused on the following points. If the aspiration of the European Year of Skills is to narrow the gap between the skills we have and the skills we need, then those stakeholders leading Global Education across Europe should fully be involved. GENE has seen the power of such inclusion in the process towards the Dublin Declaration. Furthermore, plans for possible Council Recommendations around the European Year of Skills should take account of existing (recent) Council Conclusions, particularly around Education for Sustainable Development, Global Citizenship Education and Youth.

GENE Roundtable 48 took place online on 24 and 25 April and provided opportunities for Ministries and Agencies of Foreign Affairs and Education to share and learn from each other through national updates and working group sessions. The Roundtable kicked off with high-level interventions by Mr. Sean Fleming, TD, Minister of State at the Department of Foreign Affairs with responsibility for International Development and Diaspora, Ireland, Mr. Franz Fayot, Minister for Development Cooperation and Humanitarian Affairs, Luxembourg, and Ms. Erica Gerretsen, Director, Human Development, Migration, Governance and Peace (INTPA.G), European Commission. Another highlight on the agenda was the follow-up to the new European Declaration on Global Education to 2050, taking stock of work going on at national level and connecting at European level to realise the vision of the Declaration. Read more about past GENE Roundtables.

On 10 March 2023, GENE Executive Director, Mr. Liam Wegimont, and GENE Head of Support & Innovation, Ms. Ditta Trindade Dolejsiova met with Director Ambassador Friedrich Stift and colleagues from the Austrian Development Agency (ADA) to follow up on conversations initiated during the Dublin Congress. GENE and ADA discussed opportunities for cooperation in the context of follow-up to the Dublin Declaration, including ADA’s new Global Education strategy and how best to take stock of and build on the rich history and achievements in Global Education in Austria. GENE also met with the representatives of the Ministry of Education who shared news about a forthcoming seminar on Global Education with a particular focus on youth participation. We look forward to continuing the excellent cooperation with Austrian colleagues.

On 29-30 November 2022, GENE participated in an event to discuss the new Slovak Strategy on Global Education to 2030, organised by the Slovak Ministry of Education in partnership with the Slovak Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs and Ambrela, the Slovak Platform for Development Organisations.

Ms. Ingrid Brocková (State Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs) highlighted that the new Slovak strategy is the first in Europe to be developed in line with the Dublin Declaration on Global Education to 2050. She stressed the urgency of developing values and attitudes of solidarity, equality, justice, openness and critical thinking and addressing the root causes of today's challenges. Mr. Slavomír Partila (State Secretary, Ministry of Education) congratulated his team on the new strategy and emphasised its vision of connecting global and local issues and bringing together education for sustainable development and global citizenship education.

On 14-15 September, we took one step further on that road. On 14 September, gathering 99 representatives of youth organisations, civil society organisations, local governments, international organisations and global critical friends from Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas, we wrapped up the first day of a fruitful Prep Com - one of the milestones in the process towards a new Declaration on Global Education in Europe to 2050. On 15 September, the second day of the Prep Com, we brought together policymakers from Ministries and Agencies, of Foreign Affairs and Education, from across Europe to continue to build consensus toward the final Declaration. The process of drafting the declaration will culminate on 3-4 November with the European Congress on Global Education in Europe to 2050. Read more.

The Council of the European Union Conclusions on the transformative role of education for sustainable development and global citizenship were recently adopted under the French Presidency. In GENE we were delighted to hear of this important document, which is focused on an intersectional approach to Education for Sustainable Development and for Global Citizenship. GENE's approach has always been about bringing together these sometimes competing terms. We also very much appreciate the references to the Declaration on Global Education to 2050 and will work to ensure that the statements contained therein are realised. We look forward to building on these important developments in the field of Global Education during the Czech Presidency of the EU. Read the conclusions here.

The next seminar, organised by the Academic Network for Global Education & Learning (ANGEL), titled “Regional perspectives: Global education and learning in Latin America”, took place online on Wednesday, 1 June 2022. This session was part of a seminar series suited for Global Education professionals, as well as anyone with an interest in research in the fields of Development Education, Global Citizenship Education, Human Rights Education, Education for Sustainable Development, Education for Peace, and Intercultural Education. To learn more about other upcoming ANGEL events, read here.

On 28 April 2022, GENE participated in a meeting hosted by the Austrian Global Learning Strategy Group to present the process of developing the new Declaration on Global Education in Europe to 2050 and to engage in substantive discussions with Austrian stakeholders. The Austrian Global Learning Strategy Group is a multi-stakeholder forum established in 2002 and is a partnership between key ministries and agencies, civil society organisations, universities, the national youth council and school leaders. It consists of the Austrian Development Agency, representatives of school practice and the teacher training sector, civil society organisations, academia, youth and the Austrian Commission for UNESCO.

Through extensive consultations since the launch of the new declaration process in June 2021, we have gathered inputs from Ministries and Agencies participating in GENE, Global Education stakeholders from the youth sector, civil society organisations (CSOs) and local and regional authorities (LRGs). The feedback received so far has shaped the first declaration draft. On 15, 16 and 17 June, GENE hosted virtual consultations with over 70 representatives of Ministries and Agencies (of Foreign Affairs and Education) from across Europe, youth organisations, civil society organisations, local governments, and international organisations, along with global critical friends from Africa, Asia-Pacific and the Americas. All meeting participants worked together to discuss the strengths of the current declaration draft, as well as potential ideas for improvements. With all the received feedback, the Drafting Committee will keep shaping the declaration further, ensuring wide and diverse ownership. Read more.

GENE Director, Liam Wegimont, together with other colleagues from international organisations, governments, parliamentarians, local and regional authorities, and civil society organisations from Europe and beyond, spoke at the Pan European Congress on Global Education, held on 31 May and 1 June. This was a great opportunity to recall those who led the original Maastricht Declaration on Global Education in 2002 and to reflect together on the achievements since then. Global Education is now more important than ever in tackling the major challenges that face the world today, so we are looking forward to developing the new Declaration on Global Education to 2050 (GE2050).

GENE continues to collect a list of educational resources that might be useful in enabling the difficult conversations to happen around the war in Ukraine, to assist teachers, educators and young people to be able to discuss, process, analyse and critically engage with what is happening in Europe today and specifically in Ukraine. The list includes resources that help build knowledge about the context in Ukraine and critically reflect on the multiple and global dimensions of war. If you have relevant resources to be included in this list, please get in touch.

On 28-29 April 2022, in partnership with GENE, Malta's Ministry for Education and Sports organised a National Symposium on Education for Sustainable Development and Global Education together with the Centre for Environmental Education and Research (CEER). In parallel to the symposium, GENE representatives had bilateral meetings with Dr. Clifton Grima (Minister for Education and Sport, Malta) and Dr. Ian Borg (Minister for Foreign Affairs, Malta, pictured above, top left corner). Both ministers expressed their continuous support for Global Education and expressed their interest in cooperation with GENE. Read more.

The Institute of Educational Policy of the Greek Ministry of Education together with GENE has been piloting online Global Education training for teachers since the beginning of 2022. The first online module, which focused on the concepts and approaches to Global Education, has been already completed by more than 700 teachers in Greece. The second module started in May 2022 and focused on teachers' practice. GENE has contributed short videos from Cyprus, Finland, Ireland and Slovenia focusing on teachers' training, work at school, the whole-school approach and the use of modern technologies in Global Education. The online training course was initially kicked off on 20 December 2021, with over 1,300 teachers (the seminar report can be read here).

GENE Roundtable 46 took place on 4 April 2022 with an opening by Professor Dr Annette Scheunpflug (GENE Chair), highlighting why Global Education matters now more than ever. The Roundtable brought together over 50 policymakers from Ministries and Agencies, of Foreign Affairs and Education from across Europe. GENE Member States met virtually to hear national reports on the situation of Global Education at national level, to share strategies, to learn from each other and identify issues of common interest. The Roundtable was also an opportunity to give an update on the next steps regarding the process of drafting the new Declaration on Global Education to 2050. Read more.

On 7 April 2022, colleagues at UNESCO carried out regional technical consultation meetings on the revision of the 1974 Recommendation. GENE was honoured to participate in the discussions for Europe and North America and to speak about the priorities emerging from the development of the new Declaration. We hope that the recommendation revision will lead to the further strengthening of this valued and ambitious international instrument. Read more.

On 30 March 2022, GENE continued the process of drafting the new declaration with a meeting gathering 50 policymakers from Ministries and Agencies of GENE Member States from across Europe. Member States representatives worked together to build consensus towards a common vision for global education to 2050 and identified initial elements for the content of the new declaration. Drafting оf the declaration will take place over the coming months, while continuing consultations with European governments policymakers, stakeholders and international organisations.

GENE started consulting stakeholders regarding elements of the new European Declaration on Global Education to 2050. On 11 March 2022, GENE hosted a meeting with stakeholders, including youth organisations, civil society and local and regional government bodies, to collect their insights regarding visions for Global Education in Europe to 2050. The event marked an exciting moment in the Declaration process before making further progress at the Policymakers Forum which took place virtually on 30 March 2022, gathering GENE member countries and roundtable participants. Read more.

GENE is delighted to present the results of the 14 projects funded by the GENE Global Educational Research Award 2021. The online event "Showcasing Global Educational Research" took place on 22 March 2022 and featured presentations and discussions with the project leaders of the various projects. You can view details of the projects here. Also present were GENE Director Liam Wegimont and EERA President Joe O'Hara, as well as the presenters, who were joined by other colleagues to discuss current themes in Global Education and related research and to learn about the results of the projects funded by the Award.

As an organisation that works with ministries and agencies across Europe, for international solidarity, human rights and global social justice through education, we watch the developments in Ukraine with horror and ask ourselves – how can we offer support? So we have started to collect a shortlist of educational resources that might be useful in enabling the difficult conversations to happen, to assist teachers, educators and young people to be able to discuss, process, analyse and critically engage with what is happening in Europe today, and specifically in Ukraine. Read more.

Are you between 15 and 29 years old? Want to share what you believe to be the most important issues facing people and the planet? Want to give voice to your hopes about what education should be, now and in the future? Fill in this quick survey, created by GENE and the European Youth Forum. Your insights will contribute to the new European Declaration on Global Education to 2050. If you participate in the survey, you will also stand a chance to win a publication on Global Education, a Global Education training, an inter-rail ticket or participation in the Global Education Congress in November. Don't miss it!

Prof. Doug Bourn, Director of the Development Education Research Centre (DERC), has published a new book on education for social change and global learning. The book was launched on 8 February 2022 with a discussion, exploring the themes covered in the book, chaired by Liam Wegimont (GENE Director). Participating in the online discussion were: Dr. Namrata Sharma (State University of New York), Susan Kambalu (CAFOD), Prof. Lynette Schultz (University of Alberta) and other special guests. Buy the book here.

UNESCO's IBE works towards a world, where each and everyone is ensured quality education and learning. On 1 February 2022, IBE held its 71st Executive Council and received its Board Members and representatives of Member States who approved its 2022 work plan and budget in line with the Strategy and Programmes of UNESCO’s Education Sector. Prof. Annette Scheunpflug (GENE Chair) participated in the council session, intervening on behalf of Germany. Among the highlights of the event was stressing the importance of putting global learning at the heart of endogenous curriculum development and policy. Read more.