Transforming Education Pre-Summit
Amanda Bennett, ECI Youth Coordinator, participated in the Transforming Education Pre-Summit hosted by UNESCO in Paris, France from 28-30 June, 2022. The Pre‐Summit, which included the Youth Forum, was a space for inter-generational dialogue and harnessing the evolving discussions on transforming education, ahead of the Transforming Education Summit to be held in September.
Cameron Camillo, Earth Charter Young Leader from France, was also present at the event as a UNESCO Consultant in Youth Engagement Lead in Education & SDGs, and co-coordinator of the SDG4Youth Network.
Amanda represented the EC youth movement and the #SDG4Youth network in as a speaker in the panel: Transforming-ED Talks: Youth innovations to transform education.
She mentions “I have truly enjoyed learning from young leaders from around the world who are working towards making quality education for all a reality. I’m hopeful that world leaders participating in this pre-summit and the Summit in September will hear our experiences and those of students and teachers who are participating virtually so that we can multiply our actions with their support.”
Learn more and follow the discussions:
🔗 Website https://www.un.org/en/transforming-education-summit
🐦 Twitter @TransformingEdu
📽️ YouTube https://bit.ly/3x4CFCW
💡 Knowledge Hub https://bit.ly/3Q1kneg@
ECOSOC High-Level Political Forum (HLPF)
In July, Amanda also participated in the ECOSOC High-Level Political Forum (HLPF) side-event, “Transforming Learning for a Better Future: Education for Sustainable Development.” The purpose of this space was to enable a constructive dialogue among a diverse range of policy makers and practitioners engaged in the field of both education and SDGs in general.
This virtual event was co-organized by the Group of Friends for Education and Lifelong Learning (Co-Chaired by Japan, Argentina, Czech Republic, Kenya, Norway) and UNESCO.
PROGRAM
Welcome Remarks
- H.E. Ambassador Kimihiro Ishikane, Permanent Representative of Japan to the United Nations, Co-Chair of the Group of Friends for Education and Lifelong Learning
- Ms. Stefania Giannini, Assistant Director-General for Education, UNESCO
- Ms. Amina J. Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General, UN
Panel Discussion
- H.R.H. Princess Abze Djigma, Burkina Faso, International Jury for UNESCO-Japan ESD Prize
- Mr. Gerbert Kunst, Director for International Policy of the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, Netherland
- Mr. Charles North, Acting CEO and Ms. Sarah Beardmore, Team Lead, Strategic capabilities, Global Partnership for Education (GPE)
- Ms. Naoko Okamura, Assistant Minister/Director-General for International Affairs, Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), Japan
- Mr. Andrew Ofosu-Dankyi, Technical Programme Manager-Education, World Vision Ghana
- Ms. Amanda Bennett (Youth Representative), Earth Charter International
Moderator: Professor Yuto Kitamura, Graduate School of Education, University of Tokyo
Closing Remarks
- Ms. Njambi Kinyungu, Deputy Permanent Representative of Kenya to the United Nations, Co-Chair of the Group of Friends for Education and Lifelong Learning
Youth Declaration consultation process
Around the world, youth are preparing for the Transforming Education Summit by participating in a youth declaration consultation process.
Developed by the Office of the Secretary-General’s Envoy on Youth together with the Summit Secretariat hosted by UNESCO and a number of partners, the Youth Declaration will:
- gather young people’s collective views on what transforming education should look like
- outline young people’s collective recommendations to decision and policymakers, including governments, civil society, international organizations, the United Nations, and others on transforming education
- highlight young people’s collective commitments and actions towards transforming education
It will be presented to the Secretary-General as young people’s inputs to the Chair’s Summary of the Transforming Education Summit.