Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development

The Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP) situated in New Delhi, India was established with the support of the Government of India. It is the first Research Institute of UNESCO in the Asia Pacific.^[1] It focuses on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals of education for peace, and global citizenship^[2] to foster peaceful and sustainable societies. The Institute is guided by its vision of ‘transforming education for humanity’.^[3]

Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development

Abbreviation	MGIEP
Formation	2009
Director	Anantha Kumar Duraiappah
Parent organization	UNESCO in the Asia Pacific
Website	Official website

In 2009, the UNESCO General Conference decided to set up an institute focused on education for peace and sustainable development in the vast and rapidly growing Asia-Pacific region. In 2012, the former Director-General of UNESCO, Irina Bokova, and the former President of India, Pranab Mukherjee, launched this Institute. Initially, a two-member team operated out of the UNESCO office in New Delhi. Over time, the team has expanded to over 35 members and works out of its independent office in Central New Delhi.^[3] The Director of the Institute is Dr Anantha Kumar Duraiappah.^[4][5]

Approach

UNESCO MGIEP's initiatives are designed to mainstream social and emotional learning in education systems (K-12), innovate digital pedagogies, and put youth (18 – 34 years of age) as global citizens at the centre of the 2030 agenda for sustainable development in order to achieve SDG 4.7.^[6]

According to the UNESCO website:

UNESCO MGIEP focuses on achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goal 4.7 towards education for building peaceful and sustainable societies across the world. This can be achieved by developing programmes that promote social and emotional learning, innovating digital pedagogies, and empowering the youth.^[7]

Focus Areas

K-12 students

Cognitive neuroscience research has shown that a significant part of our learning occurs due to a neurobiological process called ‘neuroplasticity’, which is the capacity of the brain to rewire in response to the environment. Neuroplasticity happens the fastest from birth to the age of 24.^[8] The Institute works on the premise that education needs to include the learning of social and emotional skills through which individuals recognize and regulate emotions; identify a positive purpose; demonstrate empathy for others, and take constructive action to promote human flourishing. With this, the Institute has developed a range of K-12 courses available on its indigenously designed learning platform, the FramerSpace.

Courses for K-12 students include Climate Change and Global Citizenship

Youth (18-34 years old)

The Institute recognizes the youth as capable agents of change, social transformation, peace, and sustainable development. To harness this potential, the Institute’s work with the youth aims to extend social and emotional learning beyond the four walls of the classroom and strives to empower the youth in social and emotional learning based on the latest research in the neuroscience of learning. The goal is to enable young people to transform non-formal, informal, and formal education systems through innovative digital pedagogies, inter-generational dialogues, and youth-led policy briefs and publications.^[9]

Courses for youth: Self-directed Emotional Learning for Empathy and Kindness (SEEK)

Other Initiatives: #KindnessMatters for Sustainable Development Goals, Prevention of Violent Extremism through Education, Talking Across Generations on Education

Teachers

Through a series of capacity-building workshops for youth and community education stakeholders (including policymakers) and teachers, UNESCO MGIEP trains and empowers teachers, educators, and young community leaders with the skills and tools to implement community-wide activities. This will mobilize their respective schools and communities toward long-lasting peace and sustainability.^[10]

Courses: The Digital Teacher

Policy Interventions

The Institute proposes key recommendations for policymakers, guided by its research and work with stakeholders.

Products

FramerSpace

FramerSpace^[11] is UNESCO MGIEP's indigenously designed co-creation platform for teachers,^[12][13] students and creators that provides building blocks to support the creation of online courses and connects learners to peers and creators through Artificial Intelligence. The platform is GDPR compliant.

Flagship Events

World Youth Conference on Kindness

Inspired by Mahatma Gandhi, in commemoration of his 150th birth anniversary celebration, the first World Youth Conference on Kindness was introduced in 2019 to provide young people with a global platform where they could actively engage with decision-makers towards finding innovative ways of propagating non-violent ways to resolve conflicts. The first World Youth Conference was held in New Delhi, India, and inaugurated by the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind.^[14][15] On October 24 and 25, 2020, UNESCO MGIEP and global partners hosted the 2nd World Youth Conference on Kindness centered with the theme "Kindness for Peaceful and Sustainable Co-existence", to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the UN and to re-affirm the central role of empathy, compassion, and kindness in achieving the SDGs.^[16]

TECH

The Transforming Education Conference for Humanity, the Institute's flagship conference, focused on digital pedagogies for building peaceful and sustainable societies. The Conference was launched in 2017,^[17][18] and was held in Visakhapatnam City, State of Andhra Pradesh, India for 3 years, after which it was held virtually in 2020.

TAGe

Driven by the inherent belief that any strategy aimed at the youth cannot be successful without empowering them, TAGe gives birth to encourage them to speak up. The TAGe is a youth-driven intergenerational dialogue on education that provides a non-hierarchical platform to the youth to interact, discuss, and debate critical issues that concern the future, with policymakers. Freire (1970) stated that human nature is dialogic, and that communication has a leading role in our life, especially in transforming oppressive, hegemonic structures. TAGe is Freirean with a premise on the centrality of the transformative nature of dialogue. This platform brings together selected and highly qualified youth representatives in a face-to-face flat dialogue on education with senior decision-makers on issues of common concern.

Distinguished Lecture Series

Distinguished Lecture Series invites speakers of global eminence from among the world’s leading intellectuals and policymakers to spark transformative ideas for our shared future. In a world of unprecedented complexity, interdependence and opportunity to talk across boundaries, the discourse for the future will have to be led by the world’s brightest minds in dialogue with youth. These lectures are expected to inspire a larger international dialogue on a more peaceful and sustainable world, built through better education, inclusive spaces, and global citizenship. In the past, Distinguished Lecture Series have been held in India and France. Lecturers included Prof. Richard Davidson, William James and Vilas Research Professor of Psychology and Psychiatry and Founder and director of the Center for Healthy Minds, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Sadhguru.^[19] The lecturers made a collaborative discussion with Gregoire Borst, Professor of Developmental Psychology and Cognitive Neuroscience of Education; LaPsyDE, a three-time Nobel Peace Prize Nominee, and founder of the Oxford Research Group, Peace Direct, Rising Women Rising World ; Dr Scilla Elworthy, the recipient of Niwanao Peace Prize Award; Sir Partha Dasgupta, an economist and social scientist of international fame as well as founder of the innovative ‘Hole in the Wall’ and ‘School in the Cloud’ projects, and Dr. Sugata Mitra, one of the most influential names in modern education,

Flagship Publications

The Blue DOT

THE BLUE DOT features articles showcasing UNESCO MGIEP’s activities and areas of interest. The magazine’s overarching theme is the relationship between education, peace, sustainable development , and global citizenship. THE BLUE DOT’s role is to engage with readers on these issues in a fun and interactive manner. The magazine is designed to address audiences across generations and walks of life, thereby taking the discourse on education for peace, sustainable development, and global citizenship beyond academia, civil society organisations, and governments to the actual stakeholders.^[20]

Flagship Campaigns and Initiatives

#KindnessMatters

The #KindnessMatters for the Sustainable Development Goals Campaign was launched on October 2, 2018 (United Nations' International Day of Peace). The campaign aims to mobilize the world’s youth and to achieve the 17 Sustainable Development Goals by transforming acts of kindness and creating its positive culture, in which every young person's selfless act matters.^[21]

The International Science and Evidence based Education (ISEE) Assessment

The International Science and Evidence based Education (ISEE) Assessment contributes to re-envisioning the future of education and feeds into UNESCO's Futures of Education report. The ISEE Assessment pools expertise on education openly and inclusively and produce a scientifically robust and evidence-based assessment that can inform education policymaking at all levels and scales.^[22]

External links

• FramerSpace
• The Blue DOT
• Climate Change Course
• The Digital Teacher Course
• Self-directed Emotional Learning for Empathy and Kindness (SEEK)
• The International Science and Evidence based Education (ISEE) Assessment

References

1. "Vision". UNESCO MGIEP. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
2. "4.7 by 2030 ensure all learners acquire knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including among others through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship, and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture's contribution to sustainable development – Indicators and a Monitoring Framework". indicators.report. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
3. "Mahatma Gandhi Institute of Education for Peace and Sustainable Development (MGIEP)". UN India. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
4. "Dr Anantha Duraiappah - UNESCO MGIEP". Open Access Government. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
5. "Education News, Schools, Colleges, Higher Education, Technical Education". The Hindu. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
6. Kajari Goswami (December 18, 2018). "How UNESCO MGIEP is helping us achieve the UN Education goals using socio-emotional learning tools". India Today. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
7. "Vision". UNESCO MGIEP. Retrieved 2023-03-28.
8. Rethinking Learning - A Review of Social and Emotional Learning for Education Systems. New Delhi, India: UNESCO MGIEP. 2020. ISBN 978-81-89218-73-7.
9. Roshni Chakrabarty (February 18, 2020). "How to prevent violent extremism through education: This UNESCO research institute might have an answer". India Today. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
10. "The role of a teacher will have to change: Anantha Duraiappah". The Financial Express. 2020-01-20. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
11. "Involving AI to boost wholesome education". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2021-03-12.
12. "Teachers in Kyrgyzstan implement education for sustainable development online". UNESCO. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
13. "Union HRD Minister Shri Ramesh Pokhriyal 'Nishank' launches UNESCO MGIEP Digital Learning draft Guidelines at the General Conference in Paris". pib.gov.in. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
14. Aggarwal, Aarushi (2019-08-24). "First-ever World Youth Conference for Kindness held". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
15. Bureau, BW Online. "President Inaugurates First Ever World Youth Conference For Kindness By UNESCO MGIEP". BW Businessworld. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
16. "Celebrating UN at 75: Global Youth call on governments to declare an International Day of Kindness for Humanity – India Education,Education News India,Education News | India Education Diary". indiaeducationdiary.in. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
17. "Tech and how: TECH 2018 will show us the strength and the need for digital learning". The New Indian Express. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
18. ANI (2018-10-23). "UNESCO MGIEP, Government of AP to organize TECH 2018". Business Standard India. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
19. "Sadhguru Talk at UNESCO Third Ahimsa Lecture on Oct 2, 2018". Isha Sadhguru. 2018-09-30. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
20. MGIEP, UNESCO (2021). The Blue DOT: Reimagining Education Beyond the Rhetoric. New Delhi, India: UNESCO MGIEP.
21. "#KindnessMatters: Inspiring change one story at a time". IVolunteer International. 2020-10-16. Retrieved 2021-03-11.
22. Duraiappah, Anantha; van Atteveldt, Nienke; Asah, Stanley; Borst, Gregoire; Bugden, Stephanie; Buil, J. Marieke; Ergas, Oren; Fraser, Stephen; Mercier, Julien; Restrepo Mesa, Juan Felipe; Mizala, Alejandra (2021-03-01). "The International Science and Evidence-based Education Assessment". npj Science of Learning. 6 (1): 7. Bibcode:2021npjSL...6....7D. doi:10.1038/s41539-021-00085-9. ISSN 2056-7936. PMC 7921552. PMID 33649341.