Global citizenship: Why Peace Education is a Necessity written by Rakib Hassan
In the 21st century, globalisation has made the world more connected. People can move around the world faster than ever before and can communicate with each other while staying home. It seems they are living in a global village, where they can access information about all the incidents occurring around the world. A person living in Bangladesh or Wales mourns for the casualties and severe damage caused by the earthquake in Venezuela or by the war in the Middle East. They feel they are not only citizens of the states or territories they reside in but also of the whole globe, which makes them care about other parts of the world. It creates a sense of belonging to a wider community and develops a pathway to ‘global citizenship’.
What is Global Citizenship?
Global citizenship has become a key term in the fields of international development, highly used by global institutions. It is part of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), with a target to be achieved by 2030. It is an umbrella term which emphasises social, political, economic, and environmental actions of individuals and communities across the planet.
It believes every person is a citizen of the whole world, representing diverse societies, communities, and territories rather than just a single one. Decisions or actions in a particular part of the planet can affect societies and the environment in other parts. Global citizenship, hence, emphasises a common humanity, equality, and justice for all. It promotes strategies of mutual understanding, peaceful coexistence, and social cohesion locally and globally, where people have the responsibility to care about the society of the whole planet, not just their own.
But how is it possible?
In a world where societies, states, and nations are divided by borders, races, religions, and diverse senses of belonging, while having issues like communal backlash, extremism, and terrorism, how is it possible to build a world of global citizenship? How to achieve the SDGs, making a peaceful planet with a sustainable environment, when it faces frequent wars, violence, and uprisings? How to achieve global justice and social equality?
To overcome these challenges and implement a global citizenship strategy, peace education is a necessity. Let’s have a look at what peace education is and how it can contribute to global citizenship.
What is Peace Education?
Peace education is a pedagogical initiative that emphasises a culture of peace through proper guidance and education. It helps develop sufficient knowledge, skills, and cognitive abilities to establish harmony and cohesion in societies around the world. It encourages people to participate in constructive dialogue and community-building activities to promote human rights, social justice, and equality while cultivating conflict resolution and critical thinking.
From an academic perspective, peace education teaches how to prevent conflict and violence while practising a culture of peace locally and globally. It teaches people how to treat others properly, not only family members but also neighbours, even people from other societies, states, and cultures.
Peace education (PE) is closely linked to global citizenship education (GCE), which also aims to create a sustainable, secure world by producing active and responsible global citizens.
How Peace Education contributes to global citizenship
Peace education emphasises the establishment of a world full of justice and equality while free from violence and conflict. It works on human rights and social justice, nonviolence and conflict resolution, intercultural communication and understanding, which are indispensable for developing global citizenship and sustainability.
When societies maintain human rights and justice, positive peace will grow among individuals and communities. It will increase intercultural communication and social cohesion while preventing violence, backlash, and conflict. Peace education makes people more tolerant and peace-minded, helping them to avoid extremism and resolve social or personal issues logically and factually. It will develop their mental stability to be a global citizen, alongside being a good family member, neighbour, and social delegate.
It is highly important to implement peace education in all stages of social and personal life, including educational institutions, workplaces, and entertainment hubs. When younger classes go to school, college, or university with peace lessons and familiarise themselves with students from other societies, cultures, races, or religions, it will protect the institutions from unexpected incidents such as harassment, bullying, or physical attacks. It can help to build a peaceful society from its root level.
Countries like the United Kingdom, which is a symbol of cosmopolitanism and multiculturalism, will be the best setting for cultivating peace education. It can help local people accept minority groups more positively and facilitate cultural integration. At the same time, immigrants and non-white people also feel more welcome and cooperate with native communities to build a peaceful and equal society. Ultimately, it will eradicate global issues like discrimination, violence, and terrorism, alongside expanding the scope for global citizenship.
