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As Head of Global Learning at the Welsh Centre for International Affairs, I have worked for a long time in the world of Global Citizenship. The projects I have been part of have been vast, enabling me to explore everything from heritage and time travel to the power of belief in making things better. One thing that comes up a lot for me though, is the question “What actually is global citizenship?” I was really pleased to take the opportunity to explain more about my work in a new episode of Wales, Africa and the World, the podcast by Hub Cymru Africa.
In the interview, we give Global Citizenship its own (brief) biography, starting with its roots in the early 20th Century and tracing its growth through the present as a major learning framework in Wales and internationally, before finally tracing where we see it going in the future.
“Global citizenship is complicated because the world is always changing and people are always changing. So to really understand the world that we’re living in, we have to be constantly looking and we have to be listening and thinking about how it relates to us.”
We also try and explain why it is that one topic covering everything between our personal stories and biases, why we start and finish wars, how helping communities allows us to help ourselves, and the impact of good examples.
“Global issues are very complex. It can feel quite daunting and oppressive. And I suppose it’s sort of two sides of the same coin. You’ve got this enormous sense of a dark cloud hanging over the world. But what that actually means and where global citizenship shows up in that environment is on the flip side, there is a deep hunger for hope, isn’t there?”
On our podcast, we explore how that hunger for hope has grown steadily in a world that has been constantly changing throughout the 20th and 21st centuries, the way that communities have worked together to make the world better, and the role that we can all have in forging a brighter future for all.
“For a lot of the people listening here, I think there’s a really great opportunity to take on the adventure of trying out something different, trying out something that would be a positive thing for you to do today. Don’t worry about tomorrow, but just worry about this thing that you could do today. And realistically, not every single positive action is going to have a huge result, but there’s a lot to be said for allowing things to grow over time. I think the things that grow over time are the things that are the ones that last.”
WCIA has delivered global citizenship with schools for decades and has 60 years’ experience of international exchange. They’ve developed strong networks across schools through multiple Erasmus partnership projects, their global learning work
Amber is responsible for promoting global citizenship with young people and schools and is responsible for WCIA’s educational programmes, supporting schools making links between Wales and the world.
Get in touch with Amber to learn more about becoming a global citizen or about getting your youth group or school involved, here: amberdemetrius@wcia.org.uk.
Listen to the full episode in Wales, Africa and the World on your favourite podcast platform or via the Hub Cymru Africa website.
