Follow Along With The UNESCO 2022 Fellows Blog

Bright Horizons

January 9, 2023 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Hello again! In my last post, I spoke about life at UNESCO and in Paris – events, meeting new people, and food. As fun as Paris is, UNESCO keeps life incredibly busy!

I have very much appreciated my experience because I have had the opportunity to be more involved with content creation that helps push forward and communicate UNESCO’s work within the Global Citizenship and Peace (GCP) Section to advance their efforts for transforming education that is based on peace and human rights.

For example, I have drafted concept notes and agendas for events on Global Citizenship education and addressing violent pasts. I have written talking points and created presentations for my Chief of Section on topics including Global Citizenship Education (GCED), Global Citizenship regarding Media and Information Literacy. I have drafted remarks for Senior Program Specialists on topics such as hate speech, GCED, and the Revision process of the 1974 Recommendation concerning education for international understanding, co-operation, and peace, and drafted welcoming remarks for the Assistant Director General for Education for a side-event at the Second Global Conference Against Racism and Discrimination.

One detailed example of my work is that I was tasked with creating the communication plan for a side-event the GCP section hosted at the Second Global Forum against Racism and Discrimination on their upcoming publication titled Unmasking Racism: guidelines for educational materials.

Below are tweets we posted for the event and the banner invitation I created to share with the public. There are news items that I will work on developing pertaining specifically to the publication once it is ready to be published.

*One of the tweets that I contributed to that was posted for the side-event Unmasking Racism in and through education at the Second Global Forum on Racism and Discrimination*

*This is another one of the tweets that I contributed to that was posted for the side-event Unmasking Racism in and through education at the Second Global Forum on Racism and Discrimination*

*This is a banner invitation I created for the email invitations sent out for the side-event Unmasking Racism in and through education at the Second Global Forum on Racism and Discrimination*

I also am also currently working on news items regarding the 1974 Recommendation concerning education for international understanding, co-operation, and peace which is UNESCO’s legal instrument for education that was the first time peace, international understanding, human rights and fundamental freedoms were brought together in an education context at UNESCO.

The 1974 Recommendation is undergoing a very intensive revision process to reflect today’s most current issues. I am supporting this project mainly with helping manage the process with a team and the communication content. It is very exciting to be a part of this work that will help define UNESCO’s education stance and goals for the next 50 years.

Although there is a lot of work, I have found time to explore the city and see some sites!

*Here I am in the dome of the Basilica of Sacré-Coeur in Monmarte. It was 300 steps up a very narrow spiral staircase to get to the top! It has the panoramic view of Paris that I have seen thus far.*

*I live right near the Pantheon and I walk by this almost every weekend*

*Here is one day on a walk along the Seine River, it was a beautiful day with the leaves mid-changing color.*

*And of course, Versailles! I have been twice already.*

Finally, one of my favorite parts of Paris is that the Eiffel tower glitters every hour in the evening for five minutes. Here is a photo of the Eiffel tower when it was glittering at sunset from the top of Galleries Lafayette!

I have been incredibly pleased with my experience at UNESCO in Paris. Headquarters is a hub teeming with ideas and high-energy. Everyone believes strongly in UNESCO’s mission to advance peace and my time here with the work I have done and people I have met has made me hopeful for my professional future. I only see bright horizons ahead.

Bonjour de Paris!

December 24, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Hello from Paris! My name is Maha Malik and I am one of the 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows. I am currently completing my fellowship in Paris, France at UNESCO Headquarters.

I work in the Global Citizenship and Peace Education (GCP) section where there is an incredible amount of interesting work going on. Some of the topics the section works in are education for the prevention of violent extremism, education for addressing violent pasts and for the prevention of genocide, hate speech, digital citizenship, culture and arts, conspiracy theories, and of course, global citizenship education and peace education. I had free rein to work on the projects I am interested in, so I am lucky to contribute a little bit to everyone’s work.

Two big things that go on at headquarters are publications and attending/hosting events. For example, I arrived right near the beginning of the Executive Board meeting. This meeting is when representatives from UNESCO member states convene at headquarters to update and discuss their accomplishments, their needs, what UNESCO should focus their work on, and to update legislative/legal documents. It provides a birds-eye view to what each country’s priorities and needs are.

*During the Executive Board Meeting, they hoist all of the country flags outside of the building*

*I attended one of the Executive Board meeting sessions that was being moderated by Princess Haifa bint Abdulaziz Al-Mogrin of Saudi Arabia*

About two weeks after I arrived, UNESCO hosted the 30^th anniversary celebration of the UNESCO/UNITWIN Chairs conference. This was a two-day event that convened about 600-700 UNESCO Chairs from all around the world, including IEP Faculty, Dr. Engel!

For this conference, the GCP section hosted two side-events, one for UNESCO Chairs related to Global Citizenship Education (GCED) and the other for UNESCO Chairs related to the prevention of genocide.

I was most heavily involved with the UNESCO Chairs on GCED event by drafting the Chief of Section’s talking points and presentation, and helping with the room set-up and technical components. Afterwards, I created the reports for both the UNESCO Chairs on GCED meeting and the UNESCO Chairs on the prevention of Genocide meeting.

*Dr. Engel and I during the UNESCO/UNITWIN conference. This picture was taken in UNESCO’s vegetable garden that has a beautiful view of the Eiffel tower*!

One of my favorite parts of the internship has been meeting and interacting with interns from all different countries.

The room where I sit is representative of many countries – Italy, Belgium, China, Austria, Singapore, Portugal, Germany, and myself from the United States!

The ability to meet, work with, and learn from people from all over the world is one of my favorite parts about being at headquarters.

*UNESCO’s canteen, where we eat lunch everyday, also has a stunning view of the Eiffel tower!*

*Some of the other interns I have met while at UNESCO thus far. Five countries represented in one picture*!

This being the first time I am in Paris; I am enjoying trying traditional French food. I have long heard about the amazing croissants and baguettes France has to offer (in fact, UNESCO recently declared the baguette as intangible cultural heritage), and I am pleased to say that I eat croissants and baguettes almost everyday.

Some other traditional French foods I have tried:

One last thing I would like to mention before I end this post is that the workdays here are long and staying late is normal. In the beginning I found myself at the office until 730pm/8 quite a bit because of the amount of work. I will speak more on some of the specific projects in my next post.

For now, here is a picture I took of UNESCO after one of the late nights at the office. Walking out to this view never gets old:

Au revoir for now!

Expanded Dimensions

September 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Welcome! We are back for the continuation of the GW UNESCO Fellows blog!

My name is Hayley Pottle and I was a 2022 UNESCO Fellow with the Education Unit at UNESCO Jakarta Office in Indonesia. Although I concluded my in-person portion of my fellowship, I am still reveling and reflecting on the impactful experience. This program enabled me to connect with incredible individuals, develop myself personally and professionally, and experience extraordinary places. I am immensely grateful for my time in Indonesia.

*Participating in a UNESCO Intangible Heritage social media challenge at the Jakarta office with a colleague.*

Throughout my fellowship in Jakarta I supported the Education Unit, while I also was able to engage with other units of the UNESCO office relating to communications and social media, as well as other aspects. It was exciting to utilize my communications background to support social media captions, stories and showcase the impact of the office and the phenomenal youth leaders across the Southeast Asia region such as Hazeeq and Ruby (see below!).

Social media stories I developed for UNESCO Jakarta Office for UN International Youth Day.

During my fellowship I supported three of the Education Unit’s main programs through research and development of learning and marketing materials These included the following:

I researched and developed materials focused on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), Global Citizenship Education (GCED, Preventing Violent Extremism (PVE) and Culture in Education. To support this initiative, I helped showcase UNESCO’s support to build education capacity and to enhance access to quality education across the region.
I researched and helped develop leaflets and brochures for UNESCO Jakarta’s Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) Literacy program that helps provide teachers and life-skills training so that youth can obtain work and address employment challenges in the labor market.
Lastly, I developed materials for the Unit’s Education Sector-wide Policy and Planning program that identifies policy and capacity gaps in existing systems and nation states for implementing Sustainable Development Goal 4 (focused on Education 2030 objective) and to design actions to fill those gaps across Jakarta’s office cluster countries.

In addition to this work that I was privileged to support, the city of Jakarta offered so much to deepen my learning and overall international experience. For example, I was struck by the duality of this view where the impressive and large skyscrapers hover over the much smaller and simpler, yet also beautiful buildings. Jakarta exists at the juxtaposition of what has been and what is to come- a leader in the region that honors the past and welcomes the future and holds tension and space for multiple realities and experiences in a globalized world. May we all embrace such a way of life.

*View of the city of Jakarta at sunset.*

I also had the pleasure to experience culture and festivals in Jakarta throughout my fellowship including Indonesia Independence Day and festivals across the city of Jakarta. Having the opportunity to engage with the communities and cultures in Indonesia enabled me to have an even deeper appreciation for the beauty of the people and places of Jakarta where there is significant diversity in backgrounds, religions, perspectives and worldviews. These activities and events also supported me being able to understand and appreciate cultural diversity in a newfound way. There is much that we can all learn on how to engage the beauty of diversity as a strength and value in society and nationhood.

As I conclude my experience as a George Washington University UNESCO Fellow with the Jakarta office in Indonesia, I am immensely grateful for this opportunity. I remember almost exactly one year ago that one of the deciding factors of me determining my graduate school of choice was professional development opportunities such as the GW UNESCO Fellows program. I have been interested in experiencing the work of the UN first hand since my undergraduate studies at Virginia Commonwealth University and I am honored to have been able to learn from this fellowship.

My experience in Jakarta has been phenomenal as it enabled me to learn from and support UNESCO’s mission and objectives, explore my own career interests and discover what opportunities are possible in pursuing a global future. As I navigated my time in Indonesia, I was often humbled by my own ignorance or assumptions on how I expected life to be in Jakarta, honored to connect with such amazing people (Indonesians and international friends), and gained a newfound sense of assurance that there is a part of me that comes alive when I am abroad. A confidence and sense of self that is awakened and fulfilled when making impact in a new place that often challenges me personally and engages me intellectually. Thank you for joining me on my experience as a GW UNESCO Fellow!

“A mind that is stretched by a new experience can never go back to its old dimensions.” Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr.

*My favorite view on my walk commute to the UNESCO Jakarta Office full of light and greenery.*

Hayley is a Master of Arts Candidate in International Education and is passionate about empowering youth and women to be global citizens and utilize their skills for a better, more collaborative and cooperative world.

New Beginnings

September 11, 2022September 11, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Welcome back to the GW UNESCO Fellows blog!

My name is Stacy Peralta and I was a 2022 UNESCO Fellow with the Education Monitoring and Evaluation Unit at UNESCO’s Regional Bureau of Education for Latin America and the Caribbean (OREAL). Since the last time I posted, I have officially concluded my program and have returned from Chile. Although the time I spent with OREAL was very short, being a GW UNESCO Fellow was an amazing experience both professionally and socially. Through the program, I was able to meet with a lot of incredible people who helped make this program an unforgettable experience. I will treasure the time I spent in Chile.

The last month of my fellowship consisted of wrapping up my qualitative research project. As a reminder, the qualitative research project consisted of conducting a preliminary review of post-COVID educational recovery plans specific to Latin America and the Caribbean. The goal of the project was to help find commonalities and trends across Latin American nation-states about their planned actionable goals. Creating a rubric based on the recommendations of the international educational recovery frameworks, proposed by the UN, World Bank and other NGO’s, the rubric helped present an overview of the current state of Latin American educational systems, which would help the office understand how to tailor resources and programing.

*The final destination of our hike in Cajon del Maipo.*

In the end, the project managed to included data of 16 different Latin American nation-states. With the preliminary data completed, the next step was to present this data to the interested parties within the department. Much to my surprise, plenty people from different departments at OREAL attended the presentation. Through this meeting, I was able to see how the different departments collaborated. I was able to see the skill, talent, and passion the OREAL office brought to the topic at hand. It was interesting to see the diversity of thought, largely in part due to their different educational backgrounds which brought different perspectives. The meeting was also insightful in helping me see the role of monitoring and evaluation has within the field of intergovernmental organizations. The wealth of experience from the office was amazing to see and be a part of.

*STGO, short for Santiago de Chile located in the center of downtown Santago.*

For the second half of my project, I was tasked at reviewing the Voluntary National Review (VNR). The VNR’s is a process in which nation-states can present progress made in implementing the 2030 Agenda. The VNR’s also include remarks on their progress for achieving the 17 Sustainable Development Goals and the pledge to leave no one behind. More information regarding these reports can be found on the OHCHR website. The reports were very telling in how each nation-state wanted to present themselves. The exercise helped me understand the value of having consistent resources to help with monitoring and evaluation, as well as the current state of a nation. These reports are very good resources for anyone who is needs data or information from a specific nation state.

*Introductory powerpoint slide of the presentation I worked on with my supervisor.*

Overall, my time in Chile was a great as it allowed me to evaluate my career goals and discover new professions within UNESCO. I was however, surprised at the amount of culture shock I felt during my stay in Santiago. Being Mexican-American, I was confident in my ability to understand Spanish but Chilean Spanish had many phrases that I had to learn. I was also glad that my fellowship was in Latin America because it helped me gain confidence in my ability to read and write in Spanish. Thank you for reading about my experience as a GW UNESCO fellow!

Every new beginning comes from some other beginning’s end.
Lucius Annaeus Seneca

*A rare sight of the city without traffic. Within this picture, we can see the European influences within the building architecture.*

Stacy is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on improving access to higher education for disadvantaged students and creating more opportunities for students of color to study abroad.

“Selamat!” from Jakarta!

September 4, 2022September 4, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Greetings from Jakarta! My name is Hayley Pottle, and I am a GW UNESCO Fellow for the Summer 2022 cohort. I am thrilled to be completing a three-month hybrid fellowship with the Education Unit of the UNESCO Jakarta office in Indonesia. The Education Unit of the Jakarta office is also the Regional Science Bureau for Asia and the Pacific covering five Cluster Countries of Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Timor-Leste. The first portion of my fellowship was remote and virtual which then transitioned to in person and focused on developing awareness and knowledge of the UNESCO agency, the role that the Jakarta office serves across Communication, Culture, Education, Information and Science and the second portion of my internship focused on completing specific tasks to support the Education Unit’s programs. This is a fascinating office to support as the South-East Asia region is dynamic and diverse across many areas including economy, religion, politics, and cultures.

From my first day at the UNESCO Jakarta office!

Despite what could be considered a small team at the office, the scale and impact of the work is massive. As the Asia-Pacific region engages more than two-thirds of the world’s population, it faces massive variation in societal terms including cultural, economic, political, and religious aspects. The office works closely with necessary stakeholders in the region including local and national governments, national commissions, and other governmental as well as non-governmental stakeholders to implement their programs across all five cluster countries. The scope of work of the UNESCO office is extremely diverse and encompasses programs funded directly by the UN (such as member states or headquarters in New York) as well as external donors.

It has been extremely rewarding to learn of the tangible and on the ground impactful efforts being made, particularly for marginalized groups at the Jakarta office. All three of the Jakarta office owned programs focus on underrepresented groups such as women, children, lower socio-economic status communities/individuals and professionals (such as teachers). By providing safe spaces (such as newly built schools and educational buildings), teacher training with culturally appropriate and updated curricula, and science education that provides awareness and solutions to critical global issues such as climate change, the UNESCO office in Jakarta is transforming the lives they serve.

Outside the building of the Jakarta office which has been the country’s office for more than 20 years in the hub of South Jakarta.

Following the remote and virtual portion of my fellowship, I arrived in Jakarta and was able to dig into the more focused portion of my fellowship experience in person. I was assigned the task to create brochures, leaflets and learning materials on the three education programs in the Education Unit that focus on education for sustainable development, technical and vocational training as well as education sector-wide policies and plans. The objective is to create materials that provide awareness, knowledge, and garner support (public, governmental, and financial) for the transformative work being done to the public and vital stakeholders. Sustainability of these projects is key to being able to ensure long-term positive impact and improvement of the communities the office serves.

An aerial view of the continuously fast-paced city of Jakarta. Despite the heavy pollution and ongoing effects of climate change, there is an undeniable beauty and intrigue to this global city.

A tour of the city of Jakarta is a must as the city holds a vast array of history, culture, and insights to the country of Indonesia and the region at large. Although Jakarta is currently the capital of Indonesia, it will not remain so. The government announced that the capital will be moved to East Kalimantan (most likely by 2024) due to the immense crowding of the city and traffic issues (I learned the hard way to not order a taxi between 4-7pm/16:00-19:00!). Although Jakarta does have some of the most challenging traffic in the world, there is so much to offer where there are many museums (technically over 70!), food available (any kind anywhere – truly 24/7!). Whether it be a street cart, or at one of the many malls, mealtimes blend throughout the day and allow people to connect with one another.

I had the pleasure of getting to visit the National Monument in Central Jakarta in the center of Merdeka Square. This monument was built to honor the struggle for Indonesian independence. Inside and at the connected museum, there are emblems and representations of Indonesian heritage and culture. Below you can see the national emblem of Indonesia called the Garuda Pancasila. The five emblems of the shield represent the five principles of Indonesian ideology. The star representing “Belief in One Supreme Gold” and is symbol among the faiths of Islam, Christianity, Hinduism, Catholicism, Buddhism, and other ideologies as well, demonstrating Indonesia’s commitment to diversity. The gold chain and red background demonstrates the “Just and Civilized Humanity” with the chain showing the succession of human generations. The Banyan Tree represents unity with its expanding branches. The bull represents democracy and the rise and cotton sustenance and livelihood.

I am very grateful for the UNESCO Jakarta Office for their ongoing support in my fellowship experience, my current employer the Institute of International Education as well as my university George Washington University for the incredible opportunity to learn and support my academic journey here.

Thank you – Terima Kasih!

Hayley is a Master of Arts Candidate in International Education and is passionate about empowering youth and women to be global citizens and utilize their STEM skills for a better, more collaborative and cooperative world.

Hola desde Santiago!

July 23, 2022July 23, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

My name is Stacy Peralta-Ortiz and I am one of the 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows. I am doing a three-month hybrid internship with the Education Monitoring and Evaluation Unit at UNESCO’s Regional Bureau of Education for Latin America and the Caribbean (OREAL) which is located in Santiago, Chile. The first month of my internship, consisted of understanding UNESCO’s unique role in international development and the role the education Monitoring and Evaluation Unit at OREAL within the organization.

When a 2 hour drive down the mountain, takes 5 hours, you get out and take photos on the side of the road

Initially, the internship consisted of understanding UNESCO’s role in educational governance and the work being done by the Regional Bureau to help implement and monitor the 2030 Agenda, specifically the Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4). The SDG 4 main goal is to “Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all”.

In the age of ‘post-COVID’, the role of monitoring and evaluation is especially important, as it plays a key role in making sure that the work of over ten years is not lost due to online learning and social isolation. Since COVID-19 resulted in many nations foregoing in-person instruction for online learning, the Monitoring and Evaluation unit is creating data driven recommendations that will allow nation states to improve the retention and recovery of students.

Post rainfall and smog free view of the Gran Torre Santiago and the Maipo River. The Gran Torre Santiago is the second tallest building of all Latin America.

After working remotely for a month, I finally made it to Santiago, Once I arrived in the city of Santiago, I was tasked with conducting a qualitative research project on Latin America’s post-COVID educational recovery. The goal was to create a set list of key indicators, that would help create an analytical framework to look for commonalities, trends and see how these plans align with recommendations set forth by the World Bank, UNESCO, and other key stakeholders. After identifying the most prevalent intervention frameworks, the final goal of the project is to understand how Latin American nations have tried to mitigate education loss due to school closures and online learning as cause of COVID-19.

A rainy trip to Valparaíso can’t stop us from seeing the sights. This is one of few Moai statues located outside of Easter island. Rapa Nui or Easter island is still currently closed to the public.

With such a unique and culturally rich history, Santiago is a hidden gem within Latin America. Much of the city still feels authentically Chilean and has yet to be saturated by tourism. Due to the geographic positioning of the city, you are able to access all sorts of different activities within a short period of time. For example, to visit Valparaíso, a UNESCO world heritage costal city it would only take a two-hour drive from the city center. Since Chile is in the southern hemisphere, which is a place to escape the D.C summer, access to the snow-capped Andes mountains is relatively easy. Snowboarding and skiing are popular activities in the Andes, and while I was dreadful at both, they were still incredibly fun activities to try nonetheless!

I have been incredibly grateful for the flexibility provided by my current employer, the University of California Education Abroad Programs, as well as George Washington University and the UNESCO Regional Bureau of Education for Latin America and the Caribbean, to visit Chile in 2022. Although my time in Chile is short, I aim to make the most of my experiences here.

Until next time, chao!

A Day in GW UNESCO Fellow’s Life

June 27, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Greetings! My name is Jiyi Choi, and I am one of the 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows. I was given the opportunity to learn from the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL), located in Hamburg, Germany. Due to the policy instated for COVID-19, I am working remotely in Washington, D.C. I would like to share what it is like to work remotely for UIL as a GW UNESCO Fellow for UIL this Summer.

8 am – Every day, I start my ‘work day’ at 8 am. After consulting with my direct supervisor, we have decided that it would be great for me to start at 8 am to be able to join meetings with my European colleagues. I usually finish my ‘work day’ around 4 pm, just like 9-5. Every Wednesday, however, I have a team meeting at 6 am Eastern time that I try to make every week. It is definitely not easy to wake up before 6 to be ready for a team meeting by 6. However, joining the meeting virtually early morning strengthens the connections with the colleagues in Hamburg.

Every morning – I work on the tasks that I was assigned. For example, I have been working on editing a research publication about lifelong learning this past couple of weeks. I have a bi-weekly meeting with my direct supervisor to check in on how far along I am. The culture of UIL is quite different from the culture I am used to. I am not given a task with a deadline every day. Perhaps, I have to proactively find new things to do and more things to learn. Lesson learned: I should always proactively seek more opportunities to seize.

Handbook published in 2022 that I use everyday to refer to when editing any documents. Available: https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000381857

Afternoon – I typically spend my afternoons continuing to work on tasks, such as editing publications. Special occasions such as CONFINTEA VII requires more attention-to-details tasks. CONFINTEA VII is a Seventh International Conference on Adult Education held in Marrakech, Morocco. The last CONFINTEA was held in 2009. From the beginning of my time at UIL, most of my tasks were focused on preparing for CONFINTEA VII as well as assisting team members during the conference. To assist my team members, I attended a couple of workshop sessions discussing how to promote lifelong learning in African cities.

After Work Day – Sometimes conferences can go over the work day as I am working in a completely different time zone. Sometimes, I work with my colleagues in Hamburg to finish a task after working hours. However, the most fun part of this fellowship is meeting many different people.

The interns of UIL connect with each other to join the conference, find work buddies in their cities (hence the remote working!), and make professional connections in the International Education field. There are previous interns of UIL as well as current interns in this group. I would love to see another GW UNESCO Fellows join this group chat next year.

Next blog post, I hope to bring what I have worked on during my time at the UNESCO Institute of Lifelong Learning. I also wish to explain a little bit more about my involvement at UIL. Until next time! Tschüss!

Climate Change, Water, and Komodo Dragons

August 21, 2019June 21, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Welcome back to Jakarta! I appreciate you coming back to the GW UNESCO Fellowship blog and keeping up with me and my colleagues on our experience and adventures. As you may not know, I have decided to extend my stay in UNESCO Jakarta for another month. There is more work to be done and more opportunities for future workshops and meetings to attend in UNESCO Jakarta and many places to explore in Indonesia.

It has been over 2 months working in the UNESCO Jakarta office. My work has been a lot of support on planning upcoming workshops and meetings under Japan Funds-in-Trust (JFIT) and Malaysia Funds-in-Trust (MFIT) programs. Two big events that will be happening in September will be the annual Science to Enable and Empower Asia Pacific for Sustainable Development Goals II (SEE-AP for SDGs II) (funded by JFIT) and the Malaysia-UNESCO Cooperation Programme (MUCP) Post-Synthesis Meeting (funded by MFIT). Both events focus on the implementation of science education across the Asia-Pacific region and promote Science for Peace and Sustainable Development through South-South Cooperation on achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

My responsibilities on preparing for the two upcoming events were developing the program booklets and creating and emailing out formal invitation letters to the participants from academia, non-governmental organizations, and government. For SEE-AP for SDGs II and MUCP, the program booklets showcase all the programs from the Natural Science unit as well as the contribution of the national government from Japan, Malaysia, Republic of Korea, and other countries across the Asia-Pacific region. As it highlights all the departments within the Natural Science unit, there are six thematic UNESCO Science programs: Man and the Biosphere (MAB), Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR), Science, Engineering, Technology and Innovation (SETI), International Hydrological Programme (IHP), International Geoscience and Geoparks Programme (IGGP), and Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission (IOC). I volunteered to work with MAB and IGGP programs and developed a one-page summary to highlight its recent and on-going projects. These two programs focused on the changes in the biosphere resulting from human and natural activities and the effects of these changes on humans and the environment, in particular in the context of climate change. The programs also promote the exchange and transfer of knowledge on environmental problems and solutions and foster environmental education for sustainable development using green technology and innovation.

I have also assisted with the Water and Environmental Science department on their workshop, Drafting of Water Management Curriculum for Africa, this past month. My role during this the workshop was taking notes for each participants’ presentation and summarizing their presentations into a brief report for the Natural Science unit to have in their records. Five water-related Category 2 Centers and Chairs in Africa and Asia: Regional Center for Integrated River Basin Management (Nigeria), African Regional Center on Ecohydrology (Ethiopia), UNESCO Chair on Ecohydrology and Transboundary Water Management (Tanzania), Humid Tropics Center Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia), and the Asia Pacific Center for Ecohydrology (Indonesia), and two Indonesian universities, participated in the workshop to jointly draft a Water Management Curricula for Africa. The topics that were discussed in this workshop had an alignment with my interest in identifying the scientific approach that can increase carrying capacity of water resources, biodiversity, ecosystem services, and resilience and ensure sustainable water resource management in Africa. The presenters also mentioned the use of ecohydrology to improve water security, enhance biodiversity and further opportunities for sustainable development by lessening ecological threats and maximizing greater harmony within catchment processes. This was a great learning experience for me to gain a deeper understanding of ways to process clean water accessibility and establish water facilities for vulnerable communities in Africa and Asia-Pacific. There will be a following regional workshop on Water Education in Asia and the Pacific in early September, which I am particularly looking forward to attending.

Workshop for the Drafting of Water Management Curriculum for Africa

Outside of UNESCO Jakarta, I had the chance to travel to 3 islands within the Lesser Sunda Islands: Komodo, Padar, and Rinca. My trip to the islands was my most memorable traveling experience. For 4 days and 3 nights, I stayed with a group of tourists on a moderate size boat sailing to the Komodo, Padar, and Rinca island as well as other islands along the way. The most exciting part of my trip was visiting the Komodo National Park and witnessing Komodo dragons roaming around the islands. When I first saw the Komodo dragons in the Komodo National Park, one of 1,121 UNESCO World Heritage Sites, it was interesting to see how they behave in the wild and how dangerous they can be when provoked. Some people may not see them as fascinating as I do but being present in front of the world’s largest lizards is something you do not see every day.

I believe working in the UNESCO Jakarta office has given me more insights on social and environmental development in Indonesia and the Asia-Pacific region. With projects that I am working on involving climate action and water sanitation, this trip has broadened my viewpoint on how it is important to focus on the Sustainable Development Goals and what strategies to implement the goals throughout the Asia-Pacific region. I hope to get into more projects involving the indigenous islands in Indonesia, particularly the Lesser Sunda Islands. In terms of having a memorable experience taking a trip to Komodo Padar, and Rinca, I highly recommend my friends and colleagues to take the opportunity to visit the islands and explore the unique faunas and floras that inhabit the islands. There are many islands to visit in Indonesia, but I hope to visit Komodo again in the near future.

As some of my colleagues in the UNESCO Fellowship program are finishing their time abroad, I will be staying another month to attend and perhaps participate in the upcoming workshops and meetings. I am excited to get more involved with UNESCO Jakarta and build my professional network with scholars and government officials who specializes in science education, specifically in climate change and sustainable development, from cluster countries.

I highly encourage you all to attend the UNESCO Fellowship Reception on September 13, where the UNESCO Fellows will share their personal and professional experience in UNESCO and their time abroad during the summer. Unfortunately, I will not be participating in the reception, but I am open to meet with students to share my experience working in UNESCO and living in Jakarta. If you would like to meet up for coffee or beer, you can contact me via email at jonyoo@gwu.edu. Thanks again for visiting the UNESCO Fellowship 2019 blog!

Jonathan is a Master’s candidate in International
Education with a focus on Environmental and
Sustainability Education and Climate Change Education.

Diary of a GW UNESCO Fellow disguised as a Hamburger

August 20, 2019June 21, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Hello, and thank you for checking back in with me via the GW UNESCO Fellows blog. As of July 31, I concluded my fellowship at the UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) in Hamburg, Germany. This summer, I was one of eight graduate students from The George Washington University who were placed at UNESCO offices across seven countries. Our work was quite varied at our respective placements, so I encourage you find the time to also read through the posts of my colleagues who have made incredible contributions to UNESCO’s mission of building peace, eradicating poverty, and bolstering sustainable development and intercultural dialogue.

In signing off one last time as a 2019 representative of the GW UNESCO Chair in International Education for Development, it is my goal to provide information on my assignments at UIL, recommendations to future GW Fellows who may be placed in Hamburg, as well as an attempt to summarize my reflections into a closing paragraph.

UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning, located in the Rotherbaum District

Assignments

In my first entry, “Furthering educational equity for disadvantaged groups”, I highlighted my major tasks of assessing biennial progress reports of member cities of the Global Network of Learning Cities (GNLC) and supporting the preparation of the fourth International Conference on Learning Cities (ICLC’19) taking place in Medellín. These assignments were ongoing and presented my team with numerous undertakings throughout my time at UIL.

For example, my counterpart Maria Clara and I frequently revisited the progress reports of ~170 GNLC member cities to determine strengths, weaknesses, and common themes. Our analyses helped the GNLC Coordination Team determine its newest short- and long-term strategies which will be disseminated later this year. Moreover, our reports allowed the Coordination Team to establish prevalent topics to be presented on at ICLC’19.

Once topics and themes were established for the plenary agenda of ICLC’19, I was tasked with undergoing an expansive and thorough literature review to identify researchers in the fields of lifelong learning, adult education, and non-formal education who focused on youth at risk (NEETs), migrants and refugees, digitally excluded populations, and people living in slums and deprived neighborhoods. Invitations to present at ICLC’19 were later sent to recommended researchers.

In my final weeks, I was able to branch out from the GNLC Coordination Team to support the Monitoring, Assessment and Learning Team in their evaluation of the UIL Fellowship Programme for Adult Learning and Education. The International Conferences on Adult Education (CONFINTEA) Fellows participate in an intense one-month training program that will ultimately help them design a national strategy on adult learning education to be presented to their responsible government minister upon their return. I was very pleased to wrap up my fellowship the same way I started it with the evaluation of international development programs.

Recommendations

Sightseeing
- Hamburg is an easy city to navigate with its public transportation and there is plenty to see. From the Rathaus to the Reeperbahn, the city has something to offer for everyone. If the weather permits (which it rarely does in Hamburg), you can find an afternoon to relax alongside the Inner and Outer Alster Lakes. There are boat tours of the Port of Hamburg that allow you to get on and off as you please to find a beach to relax on. I also recommend checking out at least a couple of museums, such as Miniatur Wunderland and the International Maritime Museum.
Food
- Germany is known for their sausage, but I am here to tell you 99% of these “würste” are glorified hot dogs. Instead, do as I did and eat falafel dürüms every single day because they are always delicious, always healthy, and always cheap (~4€). Or you can heed the advice I ignored from basically everyone who said you can’t survive on solely falafel dürüms and check out Hamburg’s abundance of sandwich shops as well as the variety of international options.
- Specifically around UIL, there is a street market every Thursday which has an incredible selection to choose from for lunch. The University of Hamburg is only a couple blocks away and its cafeteria has three main courses to choose from each day. The best falafel dürüm in town is just one block away at Bona We.
Exercise
- Hochschulsport Hamburg is a network of gyms and athletic facilities throughout the city. Membership is 50€/month at a training room just down the street from UIL that has weight and cardio machines, as well as power lifting courses.
- CrossFit is very popular in Hamburg and there are ‘boxes’ in many neighborhoods. I joined the Hammerbrook Box which offers some intense workouts and a great community.

Reflections

“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,
Summer 2019 marks one of the greatest achievements in my career working for a United Nations agency. It also marks the passing of my father.

it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness,
I will forever be grateful for the knowledge I have acquired, but will always have remorse for the occasional apathy I subsided to.

it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity,
I found God in Ireland. I grappled with grief in Spain.

it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness,
I found myself immersed in love and support by so many, but still stumbled over insecurities that are long overdue to be cast out.

it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
I realized life will always be beautiful, but it will never be easy.

Kyle is a Master’s candidate at The George Washington University’s International Education Program. His research concentrates on the (re)integration of migrants, refugees, and other disenfranchised populations into educational settings as well as the methodological foundations for assessing and evaluating international development programs.

Citizenship, democracy, and education

August 15, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Hello again from Santiago, where it is almost springtime and my time in Chile is sadly coming to a close! I’d like to echo my colleagues in thanking you for keeping up with us these past few months; I know I have enjoyed getting to read about everyone’s work and adventures.

My work since I last wrote has been a lot of support planning future meetings, namely the capacity-building workshop on global citizenship education (GCED) and rule of law I wrote about in my last blog, and a series of workshops on GCED we’ll be holding in the fall in a few Caribbean countries. There’s a lot going on for GCED through the end of the year with many different meetings and convenings to help build a regionally-contextualized vision of GCED, and target 4.7 as a whole, going into 2020.

The pasantes from UNESCO Santiago in Valparaíso, Chile

One of my favorite things I’ve gotten to do since I’ve been in Chile was attend, with a delegation of UNESCO staff, a book release event at the Universidad de Chile on a joint initiative between the Universidad de Chile’s center for the study of teaching, Saberes Docentes, and the Ministry of Education of El Salvador on citizenship education in Chile and El Salvador. The project was twofold, involving a teacher exchange for professional development where Salvadoran teachers spent time in Chilean classrooms, as well as a study of the exchange of experiences and pedagogical methodologies for citizenship education between the two countries.

Ambassador of El Salvador to Chile Víctor Manuel Valle speaks at the book launch

Chile and El Salvador see many similarities between their countries — they’re both relatively new democracies, emerging from military regimes, and expressed that they’re still learning what it means exactly to be citizens in their new democratic contexts. Educators in both countries are still working through what should be the role of memory in education, particularly when it comes to recent and divisive history. It was a fascinating conversation to be able to witness. A favorite quote of the evening, that I think is relevant beyond Chile and El Salvador’s cases, came from Dr. Carlos Ruiz, the Dean of the Department of Philosophy and Humanities at the Universidad de Chile; he said, “la democracia no es herencia, cada generación la tiene que construir de nuevo” — democracy isn’t inherited, each generation has to build it anew.

The big news at OREALC/UNESCO Santiago this past week has been the convening of two major meetings: the Regional Steering Committee and the Regional Education Forum. The Regional Steering Committee is a group of representatives from Ministries of Education in Latin America and the Caribbean and other high-level organizations, such as CARICOM (the Caribbean Community), who help keep the region on track to complete the goals of UNESCO’s Education 2030 Agenda. The Regional Education Forum gathers experts in the region, and this year’s meeting had a focus of “Education Beyond Borders,” the right to education for young people in situations of mobility. It’s been all hands on deck with both efforts so, though I’m not directly involved, it was a busy past few days translating presentations and providing other meeting support.

Over a recent holiday weekend, I was able to take advantage of some connections I have in the north of Chile to visit the Atacama desert and the Coquimbo region. Chile has stunning natural sights and absolutely every type of landscape we have on Earth (and beyond — being at 2600m altitude above the clouds at the Paranal Observatory was like being on Mars!), so I was glad to make it out of Santiago for a bit to get to know more of the country.

With GW UNESCO Fellow Renny in Viña del Mar, Chile

In closing, I have to agree with Dave that this experience has exceeded the wildly high expectations I had of it. Getting to spend three months working for UNESCO has changed my outlook on so many things, including future work I would be interested in pursuing, and I am so grateful for the experience. This has been an unforgettable few months and I’ll be heading home with some incredibly interesting professional experiences, new friends and mentors, and some classic Chilean experiences under my belt (namely, Chilean slang and a temblor or two).

Thank you again for following along, and a huge thank you to everyone who works to make the GW UNESCO Fellows program possible.

Maggie is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on global citizenship education, citizenship education, and international student exchange.

Back in Bangkok

August 12, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Welcome back to Bangkok! Thanks for checking back in with me and my fellow Fellows, I hope you have enjoyed reading about their work and adventures abroad as much as I have.

Things have started to get quite busy for me here in Bangkok over the past month as our conference is quickly approaching. I am still primarily assisting in preparations for the The 6th International Conference on Language and Education and the 13th Language and Development Conference which is occurring 24-26 September. Over the last few weeks, I have been focused on working out some logistics, particularly preparing the first draft of the conference programme which I finally completed and is now live on our website! I have learned just how much goes into scheduling and organizing a conference of this magnitude (hint: it’s a lot of work). I will also be responsible for making necessary adjustments and finalizing the schedule within the next few weeks as well as preparing all the abstracts for uploading to the website, confirming registration with participants, and general logistics related to the conference.

The real MVPs of the office … the other interns are ok, too

source: http://uis.unesco.org/sites/default/files/documents/quick-guide-education-indicators-sdg4-2018-en.pdf

I have also been helping with the High-level Policy Forum on Multilingual Education that is scheduled to occur on the second day of the conference. We have invited high level officials and ministers from the Ministries of Education in Asia Pacific in order to share best practices and existing challenges, discuss efforts to integrate mother tongue-based multilingual education (MTB MLE) in national SDG 4 plans and monitor SDG indicator 4.5.2, and create regional recommendations for MTB MLE.

In addition to the conference, I have been contributing to a paper on MLE and equity in assessments for The Network on Education Quality Monitoring in the Asia-Pacific (NEQMAP), working on an OpEd celebrating International Literacy Day (this year’s theme is Literacy and Multilingualism!), and assisting with work related to financing mechanisms for Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE).

In between all that work, I have also been able to get a little traveling in and a lot of eating. I spent a holiday weekend in July island hopping in Krabi. I am not much of a beach person but that trip might just have made me a convert. If you are ever in Thailand, go to Krabi. And eat massaman. And a mango smoothie. Delicious. I also just happened to get back to Bangkok a few hours ago from Kanchanaburi, which is known for the Death Railway of World War II (perhaps better known as the Bridge over the River Kwai) and beautiful national parks and waterfalls.

Krabi

I’ve got a few days of work to get through this week then I am heading to Ho Chi Minh and Phu Quoc, Vietnam, for a few days of fun and exploring. Outside of traveling, I have also been trying out new places to eat around Bangkok, enjoying the pool, and attending a few outdoor exercise classes (although existing in this humidity feels like enough of a workout). After two months, I finally feel like I am settling in and adjusting to my new surroundings. It took a little longer than I anticipated but I have three months left to enjoy and bask in the comfort of my new routine.

I am looking forward to getting to do a bit more traveling, having some friends from back home visit, and, last but certainly not least, seeing what exciting adventures await me at UNESCO Bangkok.

*Brynn is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on multilingual education and linguistically marginalized populations.*

TVET, AE, and EiE, oh my!

August 5, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Another week another update. Thank you for your continued support and patronage of the GW UNESCO Fellows Blog. I hope our journeys have helped give you a glimpse into UNESCO’s diverse work around the world. It still amazes me to read about the range and scope of projects for which our respective offices are responsible.

Over the last month, I have been fortunate to receive encouragement from my Head of Office to dig into the various areas of interest for UNESCO in Myanmar. Participating in meetings and events with the CapED team has given me opportunities to learn about Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET), Alternative Education (AE), Education in Emergencies (EiE) and much more.

I attended the World Youth Skills Day competition, held by the Yangon Government Technical Institute. There young people from across the country showcased their skills acquired at TVET institutions through projects aimed to address critical issues facing Myanmar. The Government of Myanmar is working to equipping youth with 21st-Century skills that will be essential in building a more sustainable future for the country, reforming the TVET sector is a key component in this endeavour. Read more about the capacity development work UNESCO is doing in this sector here.

Within the AE sub-sector UNESCO Myanmar doesn’t specifically play a role, however UNESCO Bangkok, as the Mekong Cluster Office representative, does get involved and the CapED team is asked to attend Ministry meetings from time to time. I was able to sit in on the 9th Alternative Education Sub-Sector Working Group along with ministry officials and education development partners. Alternative Education is particularly important in countries where children lack access to tradition, formal education due to obstacles such as poverty or armed conflict.

I also furiously took meeting minutes at the Education Development Partners Coordination Group (EDPCG) meeting at the end of the month. Discussions revolved around the Inclusive Access and Quality Education project, the state of EiE in the country, and the next meeting of the Education & TVET Sector Coordinating Group (ETVSCG), among other topics. Observing these various functions has helped me appreciate better the roles of different stakeholders at the intersection of education and development in Myanmar.

On Fridays, I started heading to the Center of Excellence for Business Skills Development, managed by UNESCO in collaboration with the Yangon University of Economics. There I assist another UNESCO fellow in teaching English classes with a business focus. Last week we worked on making appointments using both formal and informal language. This week we will go over email correspondence.

Outside of UNESCO, I had the chance to travel to one of Myanmar’s famous holy sites, Kyiakthiyo Pagoda or Golden Rock Pagoda. I joined a group of my colleagues and Yangon University students in hiking 12 miles to a small pagoda that sits atop a gold-painted bolder sitting precariously over a cliff. The two-day trek was a great way to escape the hustle and bustle of the city and recharge my batteries.

While many of the UNESCO Fellows are wrapping up their time abroad and preparing for a final year of graduate school, I am excited to have four months left in this position still. Over the remaining months, I can continue posting snippets of my experience for those who are interested.

—

Stephanie is a Master’s candidate in Global Communication with a focus on Public Diplomacy and China at the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs.

Salam!

July 30, 2019July 31, 2019 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Thank you for coming back to check the progress of all the GW UNESCO Fellows. It has been an amazing summer for all of us! As for myself, the past month has seen a lot of updates. After some leadership transitions, I have settled in to life at the office. I also visited the Dead Sea and took a short trip to Portugal for a friend’s wedding.

In my previous post, I mentioned that I would be supporting the country plan for UNESCO Strategic Framework for Education in Emergencies in the Arab Region (2018-2021). For this, I analyzed old and current project documents to see how they aligned to the strategic framework. This was time consuming due to the seemingly endless number of active projects and project proposals. It was a challenge to verify projects actually implemented and to locate the final reports or evaluations (if conducted) for each one. After a good bit of leg work, I think I’m finally ready to start the second part of this project, writing the country plan. Unfortunately, I do not know if I will be in the office when it is actually printed, but the previous country plan can be found here as an example of what it will look like.

Ministry and UNESCO officials at the signing of the annual work plan for the systems strengthening project

For a second project, I contributed to the mid-term report that is looking at the successes, gaps in programming, and future projects that align with the UNESCO Arab Region Educational Support Strategy. Much like the other project I am working on, this has required a lot of sifting through project documents, both past and current, to see how they align with the strategic aims of the support strategy. Luckily, UNESCO has a thorough reporting system. Most reports in this system outline how they support regional and global frameworks and, in some cases, the specific strategic goal it aligns with. I have since been able to complete a table outlining how UNESCO Amman’s projects contribute to the strategy and sent it off to the Regional office in Beirut for incorporation in the mid-term report.

While those are my two main tasks, they are by no means the only things I have been doing. In early July, I attended one day of a five day workshop conducted by IIEP in Irbid, Jordan. The workshop was for the field directorates and focused on the role of OpenEMIS, Jordan’s Education Management Information System, for strategic planning. This was a very hopeful workshop as the participants were very engaged and asking a lot of thoughtful questions related to the particular needs of their districts. I also helped interview a few of the experts UNESCO plans to place in the MoE in support of the System Strengthening Partnership with Jordan’s Ministry of Education that was launched on July 15^th. In mid-August, I will attend a two-day workshop that will outline how to use the WebGIS tool for school maintenance planning and monitoring. This workshop is in support of another UNESCO project, Technical Assistance for the EMIS System and WebGIS tool for the School Maintenance System, Standards and Procedures.

Participants at the IIEP strengthening strategic education sector planning and management capacities workshop in Irbid, Jordan

While I have not found much time to get out of Amman, I did finally make it to the Dead Sea! I can attest to the saltiness of the water and rejuvenating effects on your skin from covering yourself in the mud. The dried salt also makes quite a nice foot scrub! In early June I went to Fuheis, a town just outside of Amman, to do some climbing!

I am looking forward to my last month in Amman. I have learned a great deal already and am hoping for a very productive, informative, and exciting 23 more days of work!

Justin is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on education in emergencies (EiE) and monitoring and evaluation (M&E).

Some Closing Thoughts from The City of Light

July 27, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows1 Comment

Is it even a blog involving Paris without an Eiffel Tower picture?

While I knew that a summer spent working at the International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) in Paris would present me with a host of unique opportunities, I think my time here has actually exceeded my lofty expectations. From the people I have had a chance to meet and work with to the exciting projects I have collaborated on and contributed to, this position could not have offered a better opportunity for personal and professional growth. Plus, I would just be deceitful if I didn’t mention that Paris is a pretty interesting place to spend a summer exploring a wide array of unique experiences. Unfortunately, my three months here are rapidly approaching their conclusion. While I’m certainly sad to go, it does present a good opportunity to reflect on all the things I’ve done this summer.

As mentioned in my previous entry, I ended up working on two separate projects during my time at IIEP. I summarized the first project involving teacher careers in my first blog, so check back if you’ve forgotten what that entailed. I’ve continued working on this project throughout the summer (and will continue for a while longer in the fall with a short-term consultancy!), but with an expanded role than what I previously discussed. Initially, I mainly contributed smaller documents on the periphery of the project (briefs, author bios and short summarized snippets). As the summer progressed though, I became more and more integrated into the team by writing, editing, and collaborating on the final, multi-chapter synthesis. Collaboration sessions for this work proved one of my favorite parts of the internship, as three of us would sit and discuss the drafts of chapters and look at what they lacked and where we wanted them to go. It gave me incredible insight into the writing and editing process and a better understanding of the long road to publishing such a complex document. I cannot wait to see the finished product by the end of the year!

For my other project focus, it actually changed from the teachers of refugees study that I had intended to contribute to initially. Already with a full team working on that, it seemed better that I contribute to the development of an annual report highlighting all the projects IIEP is doing in conjunction with the EU’s Service for Foreign Policy Instruments. This allowed me to gain a broad overview of the work the Institute is doing towards conflict and disaster risk reduction to include regional workshops, in-country trainings, distance courses, and more. I talked to half a dozen people who have worked in three countries (Burkina Faso, Jordan, and Kenya) for the program about their roles and contributions. While contributing to an important document, I also had a chance to broaden my network at IIEP and get a better understanding of bigger picture planning strategies.

Luckily, IIEP also offers numerous other opportunities for connection and collaboration. Once a month, the Research and Development team hosts “Research Monday”, where an intern or junior member of the team gets the chance to present a short presentation on some topic that interests them or that they have researched previously. For July, I presented a paper on the privatization of the education system in Haiti, which I had written a group paper for previously and has special personal interest. While the presentation itself went well, the follow-on conversation was even better as several people in the Institute have worked with Haitian education either presently or in the past. Their insight to something I have thought about so much was a truly unique and special opportunity for me.

Photo from IIEP’s Advanced Training Program closing ceremony. Education officials from around the world participate in a Master’s level program of study that IIEP hosts annually.

Once again though, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention a few of the outside activities that living in Paris for a summer can offer. In case you’ve completely blocked out the sporting world for the last couple of months, the U.S. Women’s National Team successfully defended their World Cup title this summer. I got to go to two games, including the epic quarterfinal match against France in Paris. That turned out to be a pretty good night to be an American living in France! Other highlights include Bastille Day celebrations, picnics near the Eiffel Tower, river cruises with visiting friends from GW, and side adventures to Copenhagen and the Normandy coast. With the Tour de France coming to town tomorrow and a short jaunt to the French Alps planned before I go, I do not think I could have asked for a better summer.

In closing, I would just like to say how grateful I am for the opportunity to have participated in this program. While I will not miss the 104 stairs I walk every day to come or go from my apartment (yes, I counted them), nor will I complain to once again live somewhere with air conditioning or a clothes dryer, I will always look back fondly on my three months in Paris. I and all of the Fellows appreciate your continued interest in our work and experiences, and I hope you’ll continue reading this blog over the next several weeks as everyone reflects on their own growth and adventures from the summer. Au revoir… à la prochaine!

Fireworks capping the Bastille Day celebrations.

Dave is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on education in development and a special interest in education in emergencies. If you would like to know more about his summer please follow him on Instagram.

El Derecho a la Educación

July 25, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Bienvenidos! ¿Qué tal? I have been in Chile for almost three months, which means my pasantía (internship) is coming to an end. Much has happened since my last post, so first I want to take the time to thank you all for reading our placement experiences of the 2019 cohort!

Since my last post, most of my work has consisted of preparing for the Regional Forum “Education beyond borders: Regional solidarity for the guarantee of the right to education for people on the move.” The event will be held during my last week at the office, which is very soon. The forum is directed to ministerial authorities, academics, international organizations, and representatives of civil society of the highest technical level in the Latin American and Caribbean (LAC) region. The regional forum is an event to reflect and discuss on the important gaps/challenges that the regional processes of human mobility have implied to their host countries, such as presented in the 2019 GEM Report and the UNHCR – IOM Regional Road Map.

The forum will also present the UNESCO Regional Strategy for People on the Move, developed by the OREALC/UNESCO Santiago office, which identifies three priority areas in LAC: (1) planning and access to education systems; (2) inclusive educational and social environments; and (3) recognition of prior education and knowledge. Based on these priority areas, components and initiatives have been prioritized for their implementation. (UNESCO, 2019).

For the past three months, I supported the activities for the launch of the UNESCO Regional Strategy for People on the Move. When I first started here, I was assigned in translating some parts of the background paper, learning along the way as I translated more about the current regional state of refugees, migrants, asylees, and returnees in Latin America and the Caribbean.

My tasks have now transitioned to event planning. It is inspiring to be part of a team that is dedicated and has put a lot of hard work to make this event be an effective step towards SDG 4.

Currently, I am assisting the Education 2030 Agenda team with logistics such as overseeing the invitation list, creating invitations in both English and Spanish, coordinating with staff, drafting/translating the event concept note, and creating the panelist/moderator guides. I will also be attending this three day high-level forum, supporting both staff and participants.

La información del mapa proviene de ministerios de Educación, gobiernos locales y regionales, escuelas, movimientos y organizaciones sociales quienes participaron en el envío de información para este registro abierto.
— OREALC/UNESCO Santiago, Oficina Reg. de #Educación (@UNESCOSantiago) July 7, 2019

Source: UNESCO Santiago Official Twitter; “The map
gathers experiences related to the strengthening
and development of #SocioemotionalLearning”

Besides assisting the regional forum, I am also working and providing technical assistance to the Regional Map of Social-emotional Education in Latin America and the Caribbean.

Melquin Ramos, a 2018 GW UNESCO Fellow, worked on this project last year — you can read more about his experience here! It is amazing seeing the GW UNESCO fellowship program come to a full circle and see past fellows’ work in action.

The purpose of the regional map is to encourage exchanges of information throughout the LAC region and map best practices in social-emotional learning (SEL). It also serves as a tool to inspire SEL practices in spaces that do not exist or need support.

The first working draft version of the map was presented at the 2019 UNESCO Forum on Education and Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship Education in Hanoi, Vietnam. I created the English version of this mapping tool as well as updated the database with any new information of the social-emotional experiences in the region. In order to control data and information gaps, I was responsible with following up with schools, local government agencies, NGOs, and Ministries of Education who participated in the open call registry of social-emotional practices. Through this process of collecting new information on SEL practices used in LAC, I have been able to practice my Portuguese when contacting our Brazilian representatives — Você já foi pro Brasil?

To conclude my final blog post, I want to reflect on my overall UNESCO fellowship experience. I have three weeks left in my placement at the OREALC/UNESCO Santiago office and it truly was a memorable experience. Learning more about the work UNESCO does and interning for this office strengthened my personal path to pursue a professional career in international development — more importantly, for me to continue to advocate for el derecho a la educación, the right to an education. I am grateful and honored for this opportunity to immerse myself in the beautiful city of Santiago and learn from my colleagues in the OREALC/UNESCO Santiago office this summer.

With intern Ale from the University of Pennsylvania

Thank you so much for following along my journey! Please feel free to connect with me if you want to learn more about my experience at OREALC/UNESCO Santiago. ¡Adiós!

—

Renny is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on conflict, security, and peacebuilding at the George Washington University’s Graduate School of Education and Human Development.

Selamat Datang to Jakarta!

July 14, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Halo semuanya! Thank you for visiting the GW UNESCO Fellows Blog! It has been 1 month and 15 days since I have arrived in Jakarta and I have to say, it is HOT! I should not be complaining about the hot weather since being raised in the Sunshine State of Florida. The timing of my arrival was at the end of Ramadan, where Muslims follow a religious tradition to fast and abstain from eating, drinking, and smoking during the holy month, which occurs in the month of May. As a country having the world’s largest Muslim community, many Indonesian residents traveled back to their families during the month of Ramadan, so the city was not too busy.

Since this was my first time in Southeast Asia, I spent most of my days exploring around Jakarta. During those days, I was able to reconnect with my good friend, Matthew Brady, who was the 2018 GW UNESCO Fellow in the UNESCO Jakarta office. With his recommendations, I ventured out in Jakarta and learned about the history and culture of this wonderful and diverse country, while sweating from the hot weather and enduring the heavy traffic congestion (Matt was not kidding!). I also enjoy the food here, which is very delicious and unique. There are various street food vendors around Jakarta. Their popular dishes consist of Nasi Goreng (traditional Indonesian fried rice), Es Podeng (traditional Indonesian dessert), and many more. As a food lover with no limits, I have tried eating duck liver to cow brains and most notably roasted crickets, yum! As an open-minded individual, who likes to visit new places and try to eat exotic food, I was able to adapt easily to a new culture and felt more confident to adjust a new lifestyle in Indonesia.

Well that is it for my post. I hope you enjoyed reading about my experience in Indonesia!

Just kidding! Why would I not highlight my experience in the UNESCO Jakarta office!

My first month working in the UNESCO Regional Science Bureau for Asia and the Pacific in Jakarta has been exciting and inspirational. UNESCO Jakarta office is recognized as a cluster office covering all UNESCO mandates of Education, Sciences, Culture, Communication and Information for the implementation of related programs in Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Timor Leste. Their commitments toward improving water and sanitation management and education for climate mitigation and adaptation has made the office well known as the Regional Bureau for Science, hence why I chose Jakarta as my top preference.

During my fellowship, I support the Director Office through assisting the Japan Funds-in-Trust (JFIT) and Malaysia Fund-in-Trust (MFIT) program. My first assignment was to work on the Science, Technology, Engineering, and Innovation (SETI) for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Scorecard for the Asia-Pacific Facility for Accelerating Science and Technology (AP-FAST) Regional Workshop. During the productive three days, representatives from the local and national government of the cluster countries came together to discuss their past, current, and on-going projects by using the SETI for SDGs Scorecard to align with specific SDGs, Targets, and SETI-related Indicators. Representatives who attended the AP-FAST Regional Workshop traveled from Indonesia, Malaysia, Papua New Guinea, the Philippines, and Timor Leste. During the workshop, I led my first session on presenting the guidelines on using the SETI for SDGs Scorecard. I also assisted in training the participants on placing their projects into the scorecard. I enjoyed attending the workshop, especially being surrounded by people who want to understand the SDGs and include them as part of their own agenda. I believe this experience has enhanced my professional development and build great connections with the participants through learning about their projects on how it will benefit their communities and get into the right path towards achieving the SDGs.

Although I have not been getting into projects involving my interest in Environmental and Sustainability Education, my time in the UNESCO Jakarta office has been a productive and excellent learning experience with the UNESCO staff and interns.

As of today, my tasks are supporting the Coordinators in the JFIT and MFIT program for the upcoming Malaysia-UNESCO Cooperation Program (MUCP) Post-Expert Synthesis Meeting in early August and the Science to Enable and Empower Asia Pacific for Sustainable Development Goals II (SEE-AP for SDGs II) in mid-September. My current responsibilities involve developing MUCP and SEE-AP for SDGs II program booklets, writing a script for an official MUCP video, and assisting the JFIT and MFIT Coordinators on revising the program agendas. There are more to share about the JFIT and MFIT programs, but I will save it for my next post. Thanks again for checking out the GW UNESCO Fellowship blog! I highly encourage you all to visit the blog periodically as I and my colleagues will have more to share on our exciting experience in the UNESCO offices throughout the summer. Sampai jumpa lagi!

Jonathan is a Master's candidate in International 
Education with a focus on Environmental and
Sustainability Education and Climate Change Education.

Sawadee Ka from Bangkok!

July 8, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Greetings from Bangkok! Thank you for visiting the GW UNESCO Fellows blog and following our journeys.

I am just finishing up my first month here in Bangkok, trying to settle into my new normal and adjust to work at the UNESCO Bangkok office. Bangkok is both a Cluster office, which helps to implement programs in the Mekong countries, and the Regional Bureau for Education, with work extending far outside just Thailand. What all this means for me is that I am learning a lot about how UNESCO works in both Thailand and the entire Asia Pacific region.

I am working within the Inclusive Quality Education (IQE) sector (one of two education sectors within UNESCO Bangkok), and my primary role is to support the multilingual education (MLE) team, which advocates for mother tongue-based multilingual education programs and policies. With large populations migrating, whether it be forced or driven by economic or education factors, promoting linguistic diversity is more critical than ever, especially in a region that represents half of the world’s languages. UNESCO believes the key to unlocking SDG 4 is through mother tongue-based education because quality education is only possible when it reflects the diverse multi-linguistic nature of our world. The Bangkok office has published some really amazing work on the power of mother tongue-based learning that is worth a read! I ran across a number of these publications during my own research on multilingual education back home and it has been fun to get my hands on the physical copies.

Some light reading for Day 1 at the office

As a cheerleader of the IQE team, I not only sing their praises to anyone who will listen but I also am assisting in the organization of both the 6th International Conference on Language and Education and the High-level policy forum on MLE, both happening in September. These events are the reason I am staying a bit longer than some of the other fellows; instead of the traditional three months, I will be in my fellowship for five so that I can attend the conference. What I love most about helping out with this event is getting to know all the partner organizations, such as the British Council, SIL International, UNICEF, and Save the Children. Not only am I learning from and working with the great people at UNESCO but I also get the chance to interact with all these other amazing organizations as we all work towards the achieving the same goal.

One of my more exciting assignments has been helping to develop the abstract for UNESCO’s presentation during the conference. We will be exploring how the different sectors incorporate language into their programs. This means I have had the chance to meet with and talk to other departments about their current projects. While my sector will cover the education aspect, we will also be bringing in Culture, Communication and Information, and Social and Human Sciences to share their input on how language influences their work. It has been really interesting to hear what other departments are working on as it can be a little too easy to get wrapped up in my own work in education and forget just how far UNESCO’s reach extends.

I usually eat my food too fast to get a blog worthy photo

Outside of work, I fill my time by being overwhelmed by this city. There is so much to do and see and EAT. To be honest, I do not have a lot of experience with Thai food and I struggle with anything too spicy, but there are so many types of dishes to try that I feel like I will never run out of new and exciting options. Eating in Thailand feels like a full time job, it requires a lot of my attention.

I have also been trying to see as much of the city and surrounding area as I can, which can be a little difficult thanks to Bangkok’s notoriously horrible traffic. Last weekend, I avoided the roads and hopped on a train to Ayutthaya, one of the ancient capitals of the Kingdom of Siam-it was the perfect day trip!

Elephant pants are a must for any tourist (as is Wat Phra Si Sanphet, Ayutthaya)

I also spend a lot of time trying to avoid the humidity and rain, which is no easy feat. My time here perfectly coincides with monsoon season, which means I can expect high humidity and a lot of rain. One good way to escape Bangkok’s tropical weather is to shop. This city forces you to like shopping not only because there are endless high-end shopping malls with some pretty amazing food courts and free air conditioning but also because Bangkok is home to the world’s largest weekend market, Chatuchak. I could go to this market every weekend and still not see everything it has to offer.

I did not realize how eventful my first month in Bangkok was until I sat down to write this post. I can only hope the next four months bring more adventure, learning opportunities, and food. Until next time- Sawadee Ka!

Brynn is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on multilingual education and linguistically marginalized populations.

“Furthering educational equity for disadvantaged groups”

July 8, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows1 Comment

Hallo aus Deutschland.

Firstly, I would like to thank you for taking the time to check out the GW UNESCO Fellows blog. My colleagues and I appreciate your support as well as your curiosity on what occurs behind the scenes at the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. UNESCO’s mission is to contribute to the building of peace, the eradication of poverty, sustainable development and intercultural dialogue. To say I am grateful for the opportunity of supporting such a mission would be an understatement and as such, I must also thank the GW UNESCO Chair in International Education for Development in their decision to refer me to the UNESCO Institute of Lifelong Learning (UIL) in Hamburg, Germany.

Secondly, before I jump into the details of my assignments at UIL, I thought it appropriate to be forthcoming about my father’s passing on June 6, 2019 after his battle with cancer. I am fortunate to have made it home to be by his side when he took his last breath. The compassion I received from UIL faculty and staff, the GW UNESCO Chair, my colleagues and peers, friends and family has made the experience of losing Dad manageable. I am at peace knowing the man who raised me was – and continues to be – proud of the life I lead. My father passed down his passion of the world to me while instilling kindness and tact into my identity. I owe him everything for my capacity to contribute in a multilateral international cultural cooperation at the scale of UNESCO.

Okay, into the nitty gritty we go…

My fellowship began on May 1, 2019. I was assigned to the Coordination Team of the Global Network of Learning Cities (GNLC), which is an international policy-oriented network providing inspiration, know-how and best practice in supporting the achievement of all seventeen Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) – in particular SDG 4 and SDG 11.

My first task was to assess the biennial progress reports submitted by GNLC member cities – approximately 166 of them. I was responsible for evaluating the cities’ advancement to achieving a learning city based on the GNLC’s guiding documents and regulations. Having just wrapped up my first Monitoring & Evaluation course a week prior at The George Washington University, I was elated to have this assignment land on my desk because I was already able to access practical implementation of assessment. Three to four weeks later, the elation of the assignment had slightly waned as it was exhaustively time-consuming; nevertheless, I recognized the importance of completing each cities’ evaluation with integrity. Below, I list the criteria I was responsible for measuring:

· The city has progressed in achieving the learning city vision

· The city has a coordinated structure in place involving different stakeholders with clearly defined roles

· The city has managed to utilize the monetary and/or non-monetary resources in an effective way to provide lifelong learning for all

· The city has paid special attention to ensuring the learning needs of marginalized and underprivileged groups are met

· The city has held regular celebration activities to arouse the public interest

· The goals and results of learning city initiatives are measured properly

Another role I have within the GNLC Coordination Team is supporting the preparation of the fourth International Conference on Learning Cities taking place in Medellín, Colombia in October 2019. Many administrative tasks are required of me in this capacity, such as drafting invitation letters to UNESCO National Commissions and GNLC member cities, as well as ensuring the conference website was up and running in time for pre-registration. While these tasks are not the most invigorating, they are necessary – as is the required attention to detail to ensure we stay on schedule. However, I appreciate the opportunity of contributing ideas and feedback to UIL leadership pertaining to the conference’s plenary agenda, most of which I gathered from prevalent themes in the biannual progress reports. It has been reassuring that my knowledge and skills continue to be recognized and valued by established international policymakers.

Looking ahead, I only have three more weeks left at UIL and there is still a lot that needs to be done. This experience as a GW UNESCO Fellow has taught me so much, professionally and personally. I look forward to reflecting on my time in Hamburg with you all in my concluding blog post later this month. Until then, Auf Wiedersehen!

Saludos from Santiago!

July 2, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows1 Comment

View of Santiago from the teleférico to Cerro San Cristóbal

Saludos! I’ve now been in Chile for a month and have gotten settled into UNESCO and life in Santiago. The OREALC/UNESCO Santiago office, beyond being the country office for Chile, is the regional bureau for education for all of Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC), which means there are always a lot of exciting things going on.

In this Fellowship, I am primarily supporting Programme Specialist (and fellow IEP alum!) Romina Kasman in projects in global citizenship education (GCED) in the region. GCED falls under UN Sustainable Development Goal 4, specifically target 4.7, and promotes the teaching of knowledge and competencies to create responsible and participatory citizens in their local and global communities who respect values such as human rights, social justice, diversity, gender equality, and environmental sustainability.

One of my favorite things about working with GCED is that it interacts with so many other themes that are worked on across UNESCO’s global offices. As Renny mentioned in her post, we have been working with UNESCO Mexico on a project on teaching GCED with a human rights focus to students in mobility situations (immigrants, asylum seekers, and refugees) and to their host communities. Projects I’m on in the office have involved our teams in the Santiago office who work on topics of rule of law, education for sustainable development, education about the Holocaust and genocides, teacher training, and education for health and well being; teams at UNESCO offices in Mexico, Paris, and Kingston; and other UN agencies like the UNODC.

Views from Cerro Santa Lucía

Much of my research back in DC in the International Education Program was centered around citizenship education in LAC, specifically in Cuba, Chile, and Argentina. Across many projects, I found that civics curricula often had a human rights focus, and were specifically grounded in the UN’s Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and in some cases, the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Having gone to school in the United States, where we generally teach civics in a national framework (through the US Bill of Rights, for example), I found the idea of teaching citizen rights with an inherently universal approach very interesting, and it’s even more interesting to now be on the policy side of GCED and education for human rights here at UNESCO.

Another project I’m helping with is a workshop about capacity building for teaching rule of law through global citizenship education in Central America. This project aims to empower teachers in Central America to teach students about democratic processes: institutions and processes in their countries, legitimacy of and respect for the law, and what recourse citizens have for unjust laws, processes, and leaders. This is right up my citizenship education interest alley and something I’m very excited about. Sadly, given the time frame of my stay here, I won’t be able to see it come to fruition, but it is nonetheless rewarding to have input into the preparation.

Other than these projects, I do spend a good amount of time translating documents, checking translations and copy editing, doing background research on topics, and other administrative tasks.

Perk of being in Chile today: seeing the eclipse!

On a more personal note, I’m absolutely thrilled to get to spend three months in Santiago. Santiago is such an interesting city–in many ways very European, but also distinctly South American, and with young people from all over the world living here. I’ve loved getting to explore the city, visit museums, and learn Chilenismos (Chilean slang; for example, ¿cachay? means “Got it?” or bakán is “cool”). I also got to spend last weekend traveling in Buenos Aires, Argentina, taking advantage of the quick flight over to meet my dad and sister there.

Quinta Normal Park; sunset views from my apartment; Museo de la Memoria y los Derechos Humanos, a moving museum about the turbulent last 50 years of Chile’s history

Though it’s winter here in the Southern Hemisphere and getting chilly, it’s been lovely to watch the cordillera de los Andes keep getting snowier and more beautiful around us. Until next time, chao!

Maggie is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on global citizenship education, citizenship education, and international student exchange.

Mingalabar from Yangon!

June 24, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

I’m already one month into my six-month fellowship with the UNESCO project office in Myanmar. A short disclaimer about myself before I begin this post. Unlike the other fellows my position in the program is slightly different for two reasons: 1) My academic background is not in International Education but in Global Communication. I am the only fellow this year from GW’s Elliott School of International Affairs, and; 2.) I will be extending my time in Myanmar beyond the traditional three months for a full six. That being said, I am incredibly humbled by my acceptance into this program, alongside such outstanding colleagues, and excited to contribute to the work of UNESCO in Myanmar.

The last month has been something of a blur. I walked the stage at graduation on the 17th of May, packed my things and flew home to Texas on the 20th, and moved to Myanmar on the 23rd. After my first week in Yangon, I had the chance to join a two-week Burmese language course hosted by the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS). Unfortunately, it was also at the three-week mark that adjustment to life in Yangon hit hard and I got sick enough to miss my last week of class. Even so, I am looking for a tutor and hope to be able to have basic conversations by the time I leave in December.

The Yangon office has several projects which fall under the pillars of Education, Culture and Communication & Information. I will be splitting time between the Capacity Development for Education (CapED) and Strengthening Pre-Service Teacher Education in Myanmar (STEM) teams. Over the last month, I have worked mostly with CapED researching their various projects and supporting the facilitation of a recent Policy Seminar.

As a program, Capacity Development for Education looks to, “provide targeted assistance and reinforcement of national capacities to undertake evidence-based national education reforms with a focus on Least Developed Countries and those farthest away from achieving SDG4 targets.” (SDG4, as mentioned in previous posts in the Sustainable Development Goal centered around education.) In Myanmar, the CapED group coordinates meetings between Development Partners and the Ministry of Education working on education sector reforms, hosts policy dialogues and seminars on integrating SDG4 into education policy, as well as collaborates with the Ministry on the National Education Sector Plan and National Strategies for the Development of Education Statistics, among other things.

As a part of the Policy Seminar series I was able to travel to the capital, Nay Pyi Taw, to support an event on Education for Peace and Sustainable Development. The day-long discussion hosted the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Regional Director and the Minister of Education along with other Ministry of Education officials, Teacher Educators, and Development Partners. Together the group debated how best to integrate SDG4.7 into the Myanmar education system.

The Union Government of Myanmar, specifically in the Ministry of Education is in the process of sector wide policy reforms. Opportunities for dialouge between key stakeholders on topics of access, quality, equity and inclusion (themes of previous seminars) are critical in helping policymakers think through the steps of integrating the SDG’s into the national agenda.

In the coming months I will start truly dividing my time between the different projects and learning more about the STEM program. Currently, I am researching the monitoring and evaluation efforts of different countries around Teacher Education. I am interested in working on projects like this because of the oppurtunity to apply lesson from my classes to the real world.

Next week I will be moving into my new apartment, much closer to the office. I am excited to discover what the neighborhood has to offer. The UNESCO office is just north of Kandawgyi lake and one of the most famous landmarks in the country, the Shwedagon Pagoda. The pagoda is plated in gold and its crown is studded with over 5,000 diamonds and 2,000 rubies. I can’t wait to explore these areas and the rest of Yangon over the next six months, even during the middle of rainy season!

—

Stephanie is a Master’s candidate in Global Communication with a focus on Public Diplomacy and China at the George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs.

Greetings from Amman!

June 18, 2019June 19, 2019 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

Marhaba! Thank you for visiting the GW UNESCO Fellows blog! It’s been three weeks since I got to Amman and it’s already been a whirlwind. During my first two weeks, it was Ramadan, the Islamic holy month, and then Eid, the holiday celebrating the end of Ramadan. During this month, Muslims are required to fast and abstain from any other vices such as smoking and drinking. These things are considered haraam (forbidden). Ramadan also means shortened work days, or in the case of Talal, the friend of my new roommate, no work at all it seemed.

*Artwork on the Al Khalal Stairs leading to downtown Amman*

*A typical set of stairs that criss cross the city taking pedestrians up the mountains the city was build on*

When I arrived at my apartment, I was able to relax after two days of travel for roughly an hour before Talal showed up. Within 30 minutes of meeting him, he was offering me a place to stay for free provided I help chip in for groceries. I had heard about Jordanian hospitality, but was not expecting to be the recipient of it so soon. A couple days later Talal invited me to his sister’s house to break iftar with him. Iftar is the term Muslims use when they break their fast after sunset. It was an experience to say the least. I initially thought the meal would include him and his sister’s family, but when we got there, they had already eaten so it was just us and my roommate Hamza. I must admit, I felt a little imposing since his sister had to get everything back out and heated up for us. It was a very delicious dinner though!

I started work on Monday, May 25th. I got in to the UNESCO Amman office at 9:00 AM and was immediately handed the project documents for a system strengthening project and the School and Directorate Development Program – two projects I would be helping to support. These projects aim to improve the capacity of the Ministry of Education to better use the OpenEMIS system for policy decisions at the school, field directorate, and state level and helping to create maintenance workflows for schools that are falling into disrepair, a common problem in the government run schools in Jordan.

After reviewing these documents, we headed off to the Ministry of Education for a meeting with three high ranking ministry officials to discuss how UNESCO could facilitate the deployment of five professionals into the MoE to help build its capacity. This was a rather surreal moment for me. I had spent a year and a half researching Jordan and its response to the refugee crisis and here I was on day one walking into the MoE to listen in on how those conversations are playing out in real life. It was all quite fascinating.

*Gate leading to the Ministry of Education*

One thing that the office has allowed me to do has been to pursue my interest in education in emergencies. Because I am the only one in the office who has this interest it has allowed me to take the helm of assisting the UNESCO regional office in Beirut, Lebanon with updating Jordan’s progress towards the UNESCO Strategic Framework for Education in Emergencies in the Arab Region (2018-2021). So far, it has mostly been familiarizing myself with that framework and digging through project documents and identifying projects and successes that contribute to the EiE Strategic Framework. I am most excited for this bit of work since it aligns with my interests and especially since I will be solely responsible for moving it forward.

So far, my time in Jordan has been quite the experience. I have gotten to know how the office operates, been a part of high level meetings, learned more about the various projects UNESCO is undertaking, and broken iftar in a rather odd way. I am very much looking forward to what the next two months brings.

Getting falafel after a meeting at the MoE with my colleague, Sa’eda

In my next post, I’ll provide more updates on how my work has progressed and how this experience has helped me develop as a practitioner in the field! Be sure to follow along as my colleagues in UNESCO offices all over the world share their experiences as well!

The very old Amman Citadel with the very new city development in the background

—

Justin is a Master’s candidate in International Education with a focus on education in emergencies (EiE) and monitoring and evaluation (M&E).

Building bridges, not walls

June 13, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

*At Plaza de Armas, in Santiago’s Historic Center*

Hola everyone! Thank you for following the 2019 GW UNESCO Fellows blog! As of this week, I am celebrating one month being in Chile, and will be completing my three month fellowship in August. This summer I am very fortunate interning at the UNESCO Regional Bureau for Education in Latin America and the Caribbean (OREALC/UNESCO Santiago).

The regional office that I am interning this summer focuses on the Education 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development — it is a universal agenda that aims to eradicate poverty by 2030. For the past month, I have supported the Education 2030 Agenda coordination team, assisting on various projects targeting Sustainable Development Goal 4.

First day at the office, representing both of my home countries!

The title of this post references the UNESCO 2019 Global Education Monitoring (GEM) Report, called “Building Bridges, Not Walls.” This report was one of the first publications I read at the office. The 2019 GEM Report presents evidence of the implications and challenges that are posed by migration in education systems. These issues are addressed in the projects I am assisting at the UNESCO Santiago office.

In an age of global migration, the situation in the Latin America and the Caribbean region is in dire need for spaces of protection, such as a safe place to live and the right to an education. According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the number of people fleeing violence, political instability, and persecution doubled in Central America. It was reported that in 2019, 593,507 asylum-seekers and migrants have arrived at the southern U.S. border from Mexico. Over the past decade alone, an increase in Haitian and Dominican migration to countries in Latin America is notable, and is very much present in Santiago. As of June 2019, the UN reported that an estimated 4 million Venezuelans have fled the country — this is about 10 percent of the country’s population.

As a response to this ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region, the UNESCO Regional Strategy for People on the Move was created. It is a regional response and framework which is meant to support countries’ efforts to guarantee the right to education of people in a context of mobility.

Asegurar el derecho a la educación de las personas en situación de movilidad: La UNESCO da apoyo técnico a la estrategia nacional ecuatoriana
Conoce más sobre el comienzo del trabajo de la Estrategia Regional de Migranteshttps://t.co/4B6G0gJ0gg pic.twitter.com/dyfDgzLYE9
— OREALC/UNESCO Santiago, Oficina Reg. de #Educación (@UNESCOSantiago) June 2, 2019

Source: UNESCO Santiago Official Twitter; “UNESCO
gives technical support to the Ecuadorian national strategy”

During my time here, I am particularly assisting the various activities of the Regional Strategy for People on the Move. I was able to attend one of the meetings of the Regional Inter-agency Coordination Platform for Refugees and Migrants from Venezuela, which was established by the UNHCR and the International Organization for Migration (IOM). In attendance were various UN agencies, government representatives, and NGOs. I was able to observe how inter-agency collaboration works and the implementation process of an emergency operational response at both the national and regional level.

I recently started to translate media which highlight UNESCO´s efforts to support education response strategies in Latin America and the Caribbean to meet the needs of people on the move. For instance, I translated an interview on UNESCO Santiago’s role in supporting the Ministry of Education of Ecuador in their development of a national strategy for migrants.

I am also currently working with another intern, GW UNESCO Fellow, Maggie! (shout out to Maggie for being amazing, keep on the lookout for her updates on this project soon!) We have started to work together to support a Global Citizenship Education (GCE) regional policy brief proposal. The proposal aims to analyze and evaluate how GCE, with an emphasis on human rights, can aid the integration and social inclusion inside and outside the classroom of migrant children.

Being part of this regional work has a great significance to me. As a daughter of immigrants, whose parents came to the US from Mexico in the late 1980s, advocacy for displaced communities is something deeply rooted in me — for those of you who know me personally, it is embedded as part of my identity as a scholar-practitioner and a community advocate. I look forward in using the knowledge I have learned at UNESCO Sanitago after this internship is completed and continue to push for immigration advocacy back in the US.

With UNESCO Santiago interns Ale from the University of Pennsylvania (left) and *Maggie from GW* (center) at la Chascona

Besides intern life in the office, I have explored this wonderful city I have called home for the past month. Santiago has many cultural institutions commemorating Chilean heritage. So far I have visited the Chilean National Museum of Fine Arts, La Chascona / Pablo Neruda Foundation, the Chilean Museum of Pre-Columbian Arts, and many other historic sites. Recently, I visited the Museum of Memory and Human Rights to attend a series of community-led talks called “El Derecho Humano a Ser Migrantes” (The Human Right to be Migrants).

This is my first time in South America and overall I have been thoroughly enjoying the diverse food, culture, music, art, and picturesque views of the area. Walking around the city, I am still amazed that I am actually here. I am grateful for this experience and look forward to the rest of this summer here in Chile. Thank you for reading and I will be posting later on this summer! Hasta luego!

—

Checking-in from Paris

June 8, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO Fellows1 Comment

Greetings from Paris, and welcome to the 2019 version of the George Washington UNESCO Fellows blog! I know I can speak for everyone in saying that the eight of us are extremely excited to share our varied experiences from around the world over the course of this summer. Through this page, we’ll do our best to convey the professional experiences that these fellowships afford us while also offering insight into some of the unique opportunities a summer abroad can provide.

Sights from the daily commute. IIEP is a 20 minute walk from my apartment.

Sign posted on the front gate of the institute.

I have the honor of working at UNESCO’s International Institute for Educational Planning (IIEP) office, located in Paris just a short distance across the Seine from UNESCO headquarters. IIEP focuses on developing educational capacities by training education professionals, providing technical cooperation to ministries of education and national institutions, and conducting research to anticipate future needs to education systems. For my time at IIEP, I will work with the research department and spend the bulk of my time assisting with two separate projects.

The first examines teacher career structures and reforms across a diverse selection of 10 countries, seeking to provide policy options for improved system design. I have spent most of my time at IIEP thus far working on this, helping to finalize the publication process for all the materials and working on the final synthesis report and descriptive briefs. Having a background in education myself and with numerous friends and family members still working as teachers, this project has great personal significance to me. I’ve been reading with extreme interest about findings from around the world that match experiences and frustrations I’ve both had and heard about from others in my own little corner of Southwest Virginia.

I hate selfies, but I had to prove I worked in an office with an Eiffel Tower view!

The second project I will assist with examines teachers of refugees and has focused specifically on the context of Ethiopia with an in-depth case study. While my exact role will depend on how far the team progresses prior to my working with them later in the summer, I plan to help in any way I can with regards to the further development and implementation of the project. Having a personal interest in education in emergency situations, I am particularly excited to gain experience working with this team!

IIEP also offers an array of exciting activities at the institute, and I’ve already gotten the chance to attend a couple of these. Two weeks ago, officials from 17 countries came together in Paris for a three-day seminar that sought to build knowledge and share best practices for educational planning and management. In assisting with the building of the final report for the seminar, I attended all three days to take notes while also getting the opportunity to meet delegates from China, Nigeria, Afghanistan, and India, amongst many others. Not limited to seminars, IIEP also hosts an ongoing series of strategic debates that attempt to explore pushing questions in education. In my first week, I was able to attend an interesting discussion about reforming the French secondary education system and look forward to hearing future debates on other topics!

A photo from the introductory session of the educational planning and management seminar. Photo credit: IIEP, http://www.iiep.unesco.org/en/iiep-seminar-brings-national-and-regional-training-institutions-together-stronger-educational-4967

While I’ve certainly found my work life fulfilling and interesting over the last month, I would be remiss in failing to mention some of the other perks about living in Paris for the summer. Since France has an ample number of national holidays in May and June, I have had the chance to take a couple of quick side trips to Belgium and the UK on long weekends. I now feel highly confident in suggesting that everyone with the opportunity should take a hike through Lake District National Park in England, a stroll through the Grand Place in Brussels, or a nighttime walk and photo session alongside the canals in Bruges.

Of course, then there is Paris itself. Having completed obligatory tourist trips to the Louvre and Versailles, I’ve also gotten to enjoy unique events such as a light show celebrating the 130-year anniversary of the Eiffel Tower and Paris’ annual Museum Night. Each year in May, nearly all the museums in the city open their doors for free on a Saturday night from 5 or 6 in the evening until midnight…which makes for an awesome evening of exploring! With the Women’s World Cup starting last night, I’m looking forward to attending a couple games in Paris and hopefully rooting the U.S. to a title defense of 2015 (and then politely telling my French colleagues all about it). Then July will bring the Tour de France almost to my doorstep (I live near the Arc de Triomphe) and Bastille Day celebrations across the city. Needless to say, I do not foresee myself getting bored anytime soon.

With that, I will wrap up this first blog entry and eagerly pass the torch to my colleagues so that they can continue the discussion on the remarkable things I know they are experiencing and achieving. We hope to have at least one post per week throughout the summer, so make sure to check back frequently! Thanks for reading, and I look forward to posting again later in the summer with more updates from Paris!

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On Mission!

June 7, 2019June 22, 2022 GW UNESCO FellowsLeave a comment

The GW UNESCO Fellows have just arrived at their sites. Check back for upcoming blog posts.