A Flowering of Culture: A Goal of the UNESCO-led Education for Global Citizenship
TRANSCEND MEMBERS, 10 Aug 2026
René Wadlow – TRANSCEND Media Service
6 Aug 2026 – A flowering of culture is an important response to major world challenges such as armed conflicts, persistent poverty, increased migration, and the consequences of climate change. The UNESCO-led program of Education for Global Citizenship stresses the aim of developing a sense of belonging to a common humanity, sharing common values and responsibilities with empathy and solidarity. Thus, there is a need to act effectively at the local, national and global levels for a peaceful and harmonious world society.
Education for Global Citizenship aims to be transformative, building the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes needed to contribute to a more inclusive, just, and peaceful world society. Education for Global Citizenship applies a lifelong learning perspective, beginning from childhood and continuing through all levels of education, with both formal and extracurricular approaches.
Culture plays a vital role in understanding shared values, and at the same time developing an appreciation of, and respect for, differences and diversity with respect to language, literature, music, and religion. Given the strong position of Western culture on the world scene, there is a need for a greater understanding of the Asian philosophies of Confucianism, Taoism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam.
Increasingly, we see the growth of the awareness of harmony and the unity of humanity. Nevertheless, there are still strong currents of fear, mistrust, and rejection of “the other” which we must overcome. We are summoned to embrace an active, world-embracing morality and the ideal of freedom which is the political expression of that morality. The future will be the result of our choices at every level of activity. Let us make creative and profound choices!
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René Wadlow is a member of the TRANSCEND Network for Peace Development Environment. He is President of the Association of World Citizens, an international peace organization with consultative status with ECOSOC, the United Nations organ facilitating international cooperation and problem-solving in economic and social issues, and editor of Transnational Perspectives.
Tags: Culture, Education, Education for Peace, UNESCO Program of Education for Global Citizenship
This article originally appeared on Transcend Media Service (TMS) on 10 Aug 2026.
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