Special attention

Despite good progress in some countries, too many are failing to ensure children and young people have the knowledge and skills they need for good health and well-being, according to findings from a new UN report on comprehensive sexuality education (CSE). Too often, teachers are not prepared, students are not learning the range of topics they need to learn and misinformation undermines the development of CSE. Today, millions of children and young people still receive little information on how to manage the transition to adulthood. The findings from the report, released by UNESCO, UNAIDS, UNFPA, UNICEF, UN Women and the WHO, are being released in the lead up to the Generation Equality Forum, at which UNESCO will announce a set of concrete commitments on girls’ education. Assistant Director-General for Education at UNESCO, Stefania Giannini, said the findings released from The journey towards comprehensive sexuality education: Global Status Report, reveal the progress…

Spending on science worldwide increased (+19%) between 2014 and 2018, as did the number of scientists (+13.7%). This trend has been further boosted by the COVID crisis, according to UNESCO’s new Science Report, The Race against Time for Smarter Development. But, these figures hide significant disparities: just two countries, the United States and China, account for nearly two-thirds of this increase (63%) while four out of five countries lag far behind, investing less than 1% of their GDP in scientific research. The scientific landscape thus remains largely a landscape of power. Published every five years, the new report provides an overview of science and science policy. Artificial intelligence and robotics are particularly dynamic fields, according to the report which notes that almost 150,000 articles were published on these subjects in 2019 alone. Research in artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics has surged in lower middle-income countries, which contributed 25.3% of publications in…

On May 29th to 30th, the International Conference on Sustainable Development and Genuine Progress was successfully hosted by Beijing Normal University. The important conference strategically focused on the challenges and progress in Sustainable Development Goals and 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. The conference also discussed challenges and achievements in China’s country-level SDG localization and implementation. Approximately 100 international and Chinese guests and experts spoke at the conference.  Robert Parua, Education Programme Specialist from the UNESCO Beijing Cluster Office, gave the opening remark at the conference and delivered a presentation in the Parallel Session on Education for Sustainable Development held on May 30. He introduced the ESD for 2030 Roadmap and highlighted the key features of the 2021 Berlin Declaration on Education for Sustainable Development adopted at the UNESCO International Conference on Education for Sustainable Development 17-19 May 2021. 

Education is not giving students sufficient knowledge to adapt, act and respond to climate change and environmental crises, according to a new report published by UNESCO on the eve of the World Conference on Education for Sustainable Development, which will take place on line from Berlin (Germany), from 17 to 19 May. The study, Learn for Our Planet, analyzed educational plans and curricula frameworks in close to 50 countries across all regions. More than half make no reference to climate change while only 19% speak about biodiversity. The study notes a lack of attention to socio-emotional skills and action-oriented competences that are central to environmental and climate action. In an on-line survey of some 1,600 teachers and education leaders conducted for the study, one third of respondents indicated that environment-related issues were not part of teacher training. Education must prepare learners to understand the current crisis and shape the future. To…

Organizers：UNESCO The project time：4 months Application deadline：2021.5.30 Suitable for：10-24 years adolescent Organizers Introduction UNESCO’s mission is to mobilize the optimism of youth to respond to an acute world problem to serve others now.    Last year, motivated participants from over 65 countries submitted over 600 projects in this highly rewarding contest. Project Introduction USFUCA, UNESCO Center for Peace and World Genesis Foundation invite youth around the world to take part in this year’s Multimedia Competition.  Unparalleled connectivity put youth in one of the greatest positions to bring much needed change to the world. Project Highlights Prizes:The three finalists in each age group will receive an official plaque engraved with their name and a certificate. They will have an invitation to UNESCO’s Builders of the Universe Camp held at Hood College in Frederick, Maryland, USA. The invitation will include a scholarship for the fee for the camp, food, accommodations, and transport to…

As part of UNESCO’s global strategy to enhance strategic partnership with UNEVOC Centres in China, Mr. Robert Parua, Education Programme Specialist of UNESCO Beijing Office, paid an official visit to one of the UNEVOC Centres in China at Zhejiang Technical Institute of Economics (ZTIE), located in the beautiful city of Hangzhou on 22 April 2021.   Mr. Parua met with Dr. Chandler, Vice President of the institute to discuss potential areas of cooperation. During the meeting, both sides agreed to boost and strengthen their collaboration on a broad range of TVET-related Topics. Both parties reviewed their on-going collaboration and discussed potential areas of collaboration.  The discussion also focused on strengthening TVET Sector response to the COVID-19 pandemic as a critical component in building the resilience of the TVET Sector.   The main objective of the discussion of the two parties was to further advance the strategic partnership and TVET reform agenda in…

One of the key recommendations of the 2019 UNESCO-led International Conference on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Education was to develop AI in Education Policy Guidelines and to promote policy dialogue on AI in education with education policy-makers. This new publication is issued in response to the urgent need to equip and to guide the policy-makers and relevant education stakeholders so as to develop comprehensive AI in education policies in Member States. In the era of Industry 4.0, Artificial Intelligence (AI) has the potential to address some of the biggest challenges in education today, innovate teaching and learning practices, and ultimately accelerate the progress towards SDG 4 and quality lifelong learning. However, these rapid technological developments inevitably bring multiple risks and challenges, which have so far outpaced policy debates and regulatory frameworks. UNESCO is committed to supporting Member States to harness the potential of AI technologies for achieving the Education 2030…

UNESCO has published a report providing a provisional assessment of the situation of 104,000 museums in the face of COVID-19, based on data provided by 87 Member States in an online survey conducted last March. The report confirms museums’ vulnerability one year into the pandemic. In 2020, museums were closed for an average of 155 days, and since the beginning of 2021, many of them have again had to shut their doors, resulting, on average, in a 70% drop in attendance and a 40-60% decline in revenue compared to 2019. The report describes measures taken by museums, including awareness-raising campaigns and reinforced security protocols. It notes a significant reduction in public funding, in some cases as high as 40%, affecting almost half of the museums in the States that responded to the survey. This is alarming as extended closures and the sharp drop in attendance and revenue they entail impact…

UNESCO maps national plans to vaccinate teachers One year into the COVID-19 pandemic, 85 education ministers highlighted measures to keep schools open, address learning losses and adapt their education systems at an event convened by UNESCO on 29 March 2021. Close to half the world’s students are still affected by partial or full school closures and over 100 million additional children will fall below the minimum proficiency level in reading as a result of the pandemic.  In the face of a prolonged crisis, we must redouble our mobilization and target the right priorities, those that will allow us to truly make education a common good, a fundamental right. The first of our principles is that schools are irreplaceable, as the pandemic has shown. The second is that more than ever we need resilient and innovative school systems to face present and future shocks. The third is that no screen can…

How valuable is water to people, the economy, the environment, and societies? Water is a finite and non-substitutable resource. As the foundation of life, societies and economies, it carries multiple values and benefits. But unlike most other natural resources, it has proven extremely difficult to determine its true ‘value’. The 2021 edition of the United Nations World Water Development Report, Valuing Water, assesses the current status of and challenges to the valuation of water across different sectors and perspectives, and identifies ways in which valuation can be promoted as a tool to help improve its management and achieve global sustainable development. The current status of water resources highlights the need for improved water resources management. Recognizing, measuring and expressing water’s worth, and incorporating it into decision-making, are fundamental to achieving sustainable and equitable water resources management and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations’ 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.  The…