By Bernhard Schell RIYADH, Saudi Arabia |16 December 2024 (IDN) — As the world navigates rapid digital transformation, the 19th United Nations Internet Governance Forum (IGF) has convened in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, under the theme “Building Our Multistakeholder Digital Future.“ The programme will feature over 300 sessions, with four sub-themes: (1) Harnessing innovation and balancing […]
As Micro-credentials Gather Steam Universities Are at A Crossroad
By Kalinga Seneviratne BANGKOK | 26 November 2024 (IDN) — At a conference held here from 20-22 November of mainly Southeast Asian academics and higher education officials, a word uppermost in the minds of speakers and participants was “micro-credentials” a word that is of worry to many who have risen to professor levels over a […]
Informal Summit of The Future: International Youth Conference
By Bisma Qamar* NEW YORK | 19 October 2024 (IDN) — The summit of the future was held during the General Assembly session last month with the theme of multilateral solutions for a better future. One of the prominent chapters which was highlighted was youth and future generations. Following the summit, the 10th edition of […]
Child Survival Award to Honour the Legendary Jim Grant
By Kul Chandra Gautam The writer is a former UN assistant secretary general and deputy executive director of UNICEF. KATHMANDU | 26 September 2024 (IDN) — Ever since UNICEF’s legendary Executive Director Jim Grant passed away in January 1995, I have had a dream that UNICEF, ideally, or some other organization, would establish a prestigious […]
OECD Criticises Lack of Equality in Educational Opportunities and Employment
By Jaya Ramachandran PARIS | 10 September 2024 (IDN) — Women out-perform men in education, but this does not translate into corresponding job opportunities. The lack of equality of opportunity is reflected in students from less advantaged socio-economic backgrounds performing worse in standardised assessments. Early childhood education is key for reducing the impact of family […]
Kazakhstan Proposes a Digital Solutions Centre for Sustainable Development
By Aar Jay BERLIN | ASTANA | 6 September 2024 (IDN) — The Central Asian republic of Kazakhstan has proposed the establishment of a Digital Solutions Centre for Sustainable Development at a high-level conference organized by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and the Government of Kazakhstan. The […]
Youth-led Protests: The Start of an African Spring?
By Henrik Maihack, IPS-Journal.EU* BERLIN | 20 August 2024 (IDN) — People are taking to the streets in Africa. Following a wave of protests and an election, a millennial president has come to power in Senegal, who just a few weeks earlier was a political prisoner. In Kenya, street protests led by Gen Z students […]
Indigenous Peoples: An Antidote in A World of Crisis
Equator Prize winners announced By Jamison Ervin and Anna Giulia Medri* NEW YORK | 9 August 2024 (IDN) — This year’s Equator Prize winners are the antidote we need in a world of crisis. Earlier this year, the World Economic Forum released its annual Risk Report. The key findings highlighted the inescapable trend over the […]
Chinese University Leads with Innovative SDG Summer School
By Viliame Tawanakoro* WUHAN, China | 27 July 2024. (IDN | Wansolwara) — An innovative summer school program by China’s Wuhan University focusing on reporting Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) concluded on 26 July with its coordinator Professor Ji Li declaring “this will be the first of many more to come”. The Luojlia Global Summer School […]
Attacks on Students and Teachers on the Rise
By Rodney Reynolds NEW YORK | 28 June 2024 (IDN) — The world’s educational institutions, along with students, teachers and academics, have come under attack largely during military conflicts and civil wars. About 6,000 attacks on education took place in 2022 and 2023, a nearly 20 percent increase compared with the previous two years, according […]