Global Learning for Learning for Peace
Even if we do not have hope ourselves, we must not deprive our students of it", were the words of the keynote speaker Dr. Mari Anne Okkolin in her opening speech at the 9th National Conference on Global Learning, organised by Humanitas in Ljubljana.
On the 27th of November 2024, Humanitas organised a conference entitled "Global Learning for Learning for Peace", which was attended by more than 60 teachers, representatives of NGOs and other interested public.
"Students face many uncertainties today, and it is the task of teachers to provide them with security, create safe spaces, facilitate inclusion and ensure their well-being", emphasised the conference's keynote speaker, Dr. Mari Annne Okkolin, a sociologist and educator who works for the Finnish NGO Rauhankasvatusinstituutti (RKI). She is also the head of the department for training and cooperation with schools and other formal educational institutions at the Peace Education Institute. In her introductory lecture entitled "Why we need peace education", she discussed, among other things, the fundamental concepts within peace education and concluded by stressing that peace also in school settings starts within every individual.
Her lecture was followed by a series of parallel workshops conducted by local and international guests - keynote speaker Mari-Ann Okkolin, Simona Podobnik from Amnesty International Slovenia, and Iva Zenzerović and Lana Jurman from the Croatian Centre for Peace Studies - where participants learned about some practical examples of how to discuss difficult topics such as war, structural violence, unequal power relations, conflict, and solidarity. This year's conference also included active participation of teachers from three Slovenian schools in the "Teachers for Teachers" programme: Slađana Đukanović from the Kranj Student Home, Jerneja Seibert from BIC Ljubljana and Ana Stranščak from OS Vič.
Photo: Katja Cankar
