Arigatou International Geneva participated in the Annual Conference of the International Association for Intercultural Education (IAIE) under the theme: Education Theory and Practice in Challenging Times: Cultivating an Ethos of Social Justice, Respect, and Diversity.
The conference, held from 12 to 16 June 2017, took place in Angers, France and was organized by Université Catholique de l’Ouest in collaboration with IAIE and the support of the Korean Association for Multicultural Education.
The focus of this conference was to discuss the dynamic interplay between various societal actors at a time when social and political developments across the globe challenge the very fabric of today’s multicultural societies. The conference provided an active and open floor for all actors in intercultural education and related fields, including theorists, practitioners, and students.
Mrs. Eleonora Mura represented Arigatou International Geneva at the conference, and participated in the panel on Religious Diversity and Extremism talking about “The Ethics Education Framework: A Transformative Pedagogy to Build Peaceful and Inclusive Societies”. In her presentation, Mrs. Mura explored the root causes of the spread of ideologies that promote exclusion, hatred, and violence worldwide while identifying the contribution of education in addressing and preventing them. She introduced the Learning to Live Together Programme and its Ethics Education Approach as a way to empower youth, and creating opportunities that enhance participation of children and youth making them feel part of a community, strengthening their sense of belonging, their identities, broadening their views of the world as a way to contribute to build inclusive societies and foster interfaith and intercultural learning. The session was attended by over 20 participants from the academia and civil society.
We thank the organizers for inviting Arigatou International Geneva to participate in the conference, and to the participants who attended the session, for their boundless energy and enthusiasm.
