The future can substantially change when we can inspire the youth and empower them with character, universal values, and moral and innovative leadership capacities. Global Peace Foundation’s new enterprise, Transforming Education in the Global South, incorporates holistic development and cultivation of character in educators and youth. The number of young people in the world is the most significant number it has ever been—over 1.2 billion, with almost 90% living in the global south. This presents a golden opportunity for families and educators to provide these young people with the principles, tools, and skills to develop the moral character crucial for their growth and development to lead the world toward peace.

Educating our youth is critical to their ability to establish a strong foundation of character to become moral and innovative leaders committed to a purposeful future of positively contributing to society. The Global Peace Foundation (GPF) recognizes the importance of this and, as such, has made transforming education one of its global core components. Transformative education expands the focus from conventional education and its rigid emphasis on academics, uniformity, and obedience to a more holistic model, underscoring the importance of character and creativity necessary to thrive in today’s rapidly changing technical world.

GPF’s new enterprise, Transforming Education in the Global South: Toward 2050 (TEGS:2050), embodies the principles of holistic development and cultivation of character first for educators and leaders as changemakers, followed by students. As noted in GPF’s TEGS: 2050 Launch Story, the number of young people in the world is the largest number it has ever been—over 1.2 billion, with almost 90% living in the global south and representing a significant portion of the population. This presents a rare opportunity for families and educators to provide these young people with the principles, tools, and skills to develop moral character and values crucial for their growth and development as future leaders under GPF’s vision of “One Family Under God.”

TEGS: 2050 utilizes a four-pronged strategy. In addition to holistically transforming educators, leaders, and students, the three additional focus areas are creating regional models in nations, creating great schools and universities, and building campaign awareness. The emphasis on developing regional models has seen the initiative grow from its initial inception in Region 3 of the Philippines in 2022 to its expansion to other areas, such as Kenya, Uganda, and India in the Global South in 2023. Further expansion is planned for 2024 and beyond.

Partnerships with schools, colleges, and universities have created an outline of core competencies for educators to champion change, embodying three areas: amazing culture, continuous innovation, and quality outreach extending beyond educational institutions to families, communities, and organizations.

For example, an Education Transformation Workshop (1 of 3 Series) for Senior Education Stakeholders was held at Makerere University Business School in Kampala, Uganda, on October 30 and 31, 2023. Dr. Tony Devine, GPF vice president of Education, was the workshop’s chief facilitator with a theme of Shaping a Purposeful Future Together through Transformative Education. The in-person event was attended by 81 people on October 30 and 95 people on October 31, with a supplemental audience of virtual attendees on both days and follow-up meetings and phone calls with several university and government officials shortly after the workshop concluded.

The workshop covered four topics delivered in three sessions: (1) Visualizing the Purpose and Future of Education—Towards 2050, (2) The Foundation of Character, and (3) The Holistic Development of Educators and Students and Moral and Innovative Leadership. Participants were enthusiastically engaged in each session. One attendee stated, “Technological changes are occurring today; hence, changes are inevitable, such as the use of smartphones. We should, therefore, find the best means of guiding our learners on responsible use of technology.” Another participant commented on the importance of building moral character: “Character is superior to knowledge. As a teacher, I should put more emphasis on character than content in my teaching to nurture more morally upright individuals.”

Building awareness of the TEGS:2050 campaign is ongoing. Efforts to align the initiative regionally and expand the vision across educational institutions were part of a targeted strategy during 2023. A key achievement was the Global Peace Leadership Conference in Region 3 of the Philippines, which began in December 2002, where over 300 education representatives gathered to learn about TEGS:2050 foundational concepts. The launch of TEGS:2050 was also highlighted at the Global Peace Convention in December 2023, where transformative education concepts were presented to an engaged audience of more than 300 educators and leaders.

The journey continues in 2024 as the strategy to actualize the transformative vision of TEGS:2050 grows stronger with activities such as the upcoming phases 4, 5, and 6 of Transformative Education workshops and Moral and Innovative Leadership training in the Philippines. Enhanced collaboratives will also be initiated with educators, policymakers, and leaders in the Philippines, Uganda, and Kenya to further align curriculum and national models with the TEGS: 2050 initiative.

The future of peaceful coexistence relies on today’s development of tomorrow’s moral and innovative leaders. In other words, today’s young people are our hope for a better tomorrow. However, they depend on an education that prepares them with the knowledge, tools, and skills to build the character and creativity necessary to positively assess, adapt, and act in ways that positively impact their families, communities, and society. TEGS:2050 provides a path to do just that.

The original post appears on Global Peace Foundation. Global Peace Foundation is an international non-sectarian, non-partisan, nonprofit organization, which promotes an innovative, values-based approach to peacebuilding, guided by the vision of One Family under God.  GPF engages and organizes a global network of public and private-sector partners who develop community, national, and regional peacebuilding models as the foundation for ethical and cohesive societies. Dr. Hyun Jin Preston Moon is the founder and chairman of the Global Peace Foundation.

In nature, a butterfly struggles to emerge from a cocoon. It is difficult and painful. Yet, were the butterfly cut out of its cocoon, without the vigorous physical exercise required to get out of the cocoon, the butterfly’s wings remain weak, brittle and it is ultimately unable to fly. We might take note of this to take a bigger view of the bitter and difficult experiences our children will need to go through.

Though it is the natural desire of parents to protect their children and help them succeed, this kind of parenting takes away opportunities for children to grow and gain independence. In The Coddling of the American Mind, Jonathan Haidt and Luke Kianoff surmise that the cause of “hothouse children” is a result of “a consistent message from adults: life is dangerous, but adults will do everything in their power to protect you from harm, not just from strangers but from one another as well.”

The dangers of this kind of parenting may not be immediately obvious, but underlying this idea is that children are fragile, weak, and unable to make his or her own choices.

The former editor-in-chief and editor-at-large of Psychology Today, Hara Estroff Marano, writes:

“Having had—or been allowed to have—few disappointments in their overparented, overtrophied lives, many have not learned to handle difficulty. In the absence of skills to dispel disappointment, difficulty becomes catastrophe.”

These hothouse children often come to expect or demand protection in exchange for essential qualities for a fulfilling life: agency, independence, and responsibility. A fuller view of life requires us to understand that the “hard things” are essential to realizing our innate potential.

This realization leads to a revision in the perspective of education.

A principal of a small kindergarten in the western edge of Tokyo explained, “Every child is strong; strength comes from within. So we have to step back and question if what we’re doing is for the good of the child or the convenience of the parent.”

The principal encourages parents to set clear limits and then to step back to let children learn and grow. The “education for the future” program in his school is designed with the idea that education needs to consider the long-term needs of the children. Within clearly defined boundaries, children are encouraged to play and to find answers for themselves.

“I want to consider what kind of adult the child will become… that the education each child receives here will help them to know that they are strong and help them to become responsible citizens.”

Parenting and education need to be for the sake of the child as well as for the good of society. Families can directly contribute to the health of a nation by raising strong, virtuous, and interdependent adults capable of making good choices and motivated to serve the greater good.

Schools can support this kind of education but as the primary locus of learning and self-understanding, the family can take a greater role in leading us back to education that prepares children for the future.

Youth in Tanzania are demonstrating the vital role young leaders play in paving the way for sustainable peace.

Since Tanzania’s independence in 1961, the education system in Tanzania has undergone multiple transformations based on political and economic changes and now faces a number of challenges in issues related to teen pregnancy, gender inequality, and youth unemployment. In commemoration of the 2020 International Day of Education, Global Peace Foundation (GPF) and partners organized a youth dialogue comprising of teachers and students from a local university and secondary schools, as well as education stakeholders, media personnel, parents, and education analysts to reaffirm education as a fundamental right and to celebrate its empowerment to foster peace.

The head information officer of the United Nations, Ms. Stella Vuzo presenting her opening remark before the dialogue session

The dialogue for the importance of education proceeded through multiple panels that tackled subjects within this year’s international theme: “Learning for People, Planet, Prosperity, and Peace.”

Presentations emphasized how access and quality of education contributes to developing talents, skills, and creative potential to discover innovative solutions to the greatest challenges facing humanity and the environment.

Kelvin Eduard from YUNA spoke at the panel, “Learning for Planet,” on using education to preserve the environment and to develop ways to help reverse unsustainable practices so that people could live in harmony with nature in the future. As our greatest classroom, nature is an imperative priority to protect and respect.

At the panel, “Learning for Prosperity,” Glory from TEDI emphasized that youth should equip themselves with soft skills to prosper in the workforce. She said that the positive results of acquiring these skills will would include enhanced access to work and increased income.

Youth participating in the active dialogue session

For the panel, “Learning for Peace,” Irene Ishengoma from GPF spoke about creating a foundation of peace from contributing to reconciliation, mutual understanding, and social cohesion in the family. She discussed the importance of teaching the children these concepts to develop them as future peacebuilders because our core character is developed from a young age in our own families.

After the panels, the participants, inspired by what they learned from the presenters, freely discussed ways to make education meaningful enough to empower people, preserve the planet, build the prosperity of the youth, and promote peacebuilding.

The original post appears on Global Peace Foundation. Global Peace Foundation is an international non-sectarian, non-partisan, nonprofit organization, which promotes an innovative, values-based approach to peacebuilding, guided by the vision of One Family under God.  GPF engages and organizes a global network of public and private-sector partners who develop community, national, and regional peace building models as the foundation for ethical and cohesive societies. Dr. Hyun Jin Preston Moon is founder and chairman of the Global Peace Foundation.

Family plays an essential role in the development of children in societies around the world. In Nepal for example, family is integrated into many social structures. One young woman is even helping to include the familial perspective in the education system to support students be successful not only academically, but holistically at home and in their communities.

Discovering that there was no formal system for recruiting school counselors and that less than 1% of schools even hired people for the position, Nepalese native and student of psychology Kripa Sigdel organized a project to address the academic, emotional, and social vulnerability of youth in schools.

Research shows that absenteeism, premature withdrawal from school, and students’ ineffective learning habits can be mitigated through the simple but effective process of teacher training. That is why Kripa decided to form an innovative series of workshops not only for teachers but also for parents to support students, incorporating the familial and cultural aspect essential to transforming the future of these students. Reaching out to three pilot schools in Kathmandu, the young leader organized “Workshops for Teachers and Parents on Identifying Problems and Supporting Students of Transitional Phase.”

More than fifty teachers and ninety parents from the three schools participated in the pilot workshops, indirectly affecting more than 4,000 students. Facilitators trained adults to recognize potential psychological issues among students, address behavioral challenges, provide support with problem-solving strategies, and create a support system to identify abuse, bullying, and even larger social problems like child marriage. Parents and teachers also covered assessment procedures and a process for intervention and referral throughout the workshop.

Kripa explained that the training sessions not only helped teachers, who often spend more time with students than their own parents but also the family as a whole to inform adults of empathetic understanding and listening styles that support children and students in the classroom and at home.

“Parents play the most important part in anybody’s life,” said Kripa. “If parents are able to support children in need, it will strengthen family values and the family system, consequently making the world a better place to live and the individual more able to strive for good.”

Pricilla Gurung, a teacher attending the workshop, described her experience saying, “After the program, I felt: Every child has different problems and we should not judge just by looking or observing their present condition. We can also deal with problems the child has with different effective ways, not by forcing them to do the things but listening and communicating with them properly.”

Kripa continues to monitor the schools to research the ongoing effectiveness of the program, collecting data to present to other school systems and government agencies to showcase the need for parents, teachers, and the larger community to take action in schools.

The original post appears on Global Peace Foundation. Global Peace Foundation is an international non-sectarian, non-partisan, nonprofit organization, which promotes an innovative, values-based approach to peacebuilding, guided by the vision of One Family under God.  GPF engages and organizes a global network of public and private-sector partners who develop community, national, and regional peace building models as the foundation for ethical and cohesive societies. Dr. Hyun Jin Preston Moon is founder and chairman of the Global Peace Foundation.

The Character and Creativity Initiative of the Global Peace Foundation is not just promoting academic excellence, but also cultivating peace and community-building skills for schools in Uganda, Paraguay, Malaysia, and other countries around the world.

These schools have begun to demonstrate a higher level of innovation, entrepreneurship, and teamwork, as well as cultivate a culture of peace that took hold in the school and wider community. Parents and community members have been key contributors to this school-wide transformation, pointing to the importance of the school-home-community connection in raising the “whole child”.

Education and Entrepreneurship in 2018

The active participation of administration, staff, teachers, students and parents inside and outside of school bolstered the teaching of character and creativity in CCI classrooms. The Character and Creativity Initiative worked to bring together local leaders of different faiths to be a part of this community-wide effort to further spread the message of respect, dialogue, reconciliation, teamwork and unity beyond religious and cultural boundaries.

When students of diverse backgrounds work together for projects such as community cleans-ups, tree planting and support work for orphans, they model desirable attitudes and behaviors for those they serve; developing a culture of care and service among students, families and the community.

1. In Uganda, parents of students are invited to participate and observe their children during School Visitation Days, which has helped to invite higher parent participation in schools. This, in turn, has shown to make more accurate assessments and evaluations to tailor learning and engagement in ways that improve discipline, academic performance and create effective solutions to a student’s unique challenges.

2. In Malaysia, teachers and administrators participate in retreats for teacher empowerment, rekindling their passion to help transform education to better serve their students, their families, and communities.

3. Kenyan students at a CCI school, Buru Buru, introduced an environmental program incorporating planting trees of virtues as a way of nurturing character and creativity.

This practice takes on the idea that in educating for a world of One Family Under God, individual families must be engaged to become the basis for peace and development of every individual.  Parents and teachers jointly work together to educate the “whole person” by engaging and implementing CCI’s best practices in schools, homes and the entire community.

Select schools in Uganda have been chosen to implement a curriculum which, in a complement to promoting academic excellence, helps to cultivate peace and community building skills. The Global Peace Foundation Uganda has been implementing the Character and Creativity Initiatives (CCI) towards this end.

These schools have begun to demonstrate a high level of innovation, entrepreneurship, and teamwork as well as a culture of peace in the school and wider community. Parents and community members have been key contributors to this school-wide transformation, pointing to the importance of the school-home-community connection in raising the whole child.

Teachers participate in CCI training programs

Participants including administration, staff, teachers, students and parents CCI schools have reported positive outcomes related to this inclusive, ethical framework and its corresponding CCI activities and programs.

A key practice of CCI actively involves parents as well as Muslim and Christian leaders to guide teachers on how to integrate the values of respect, dialogue, reconciliation, teamwork and unity beyond religious and cultural boundaries in the classroom and the school in general.

To reinforce these lessons, GPF actively engages students of different religious and cultural backgrounds to work and interact with one another in service to the community. This has helped to transform the culture not only in the schools but also in the students’ homes. When students of diverse backgrounds work together for projects such as community cleans-ups, tree planting, support work for orphans, they model desirable attitudes and behaviors for those they serve; they not only cultivate leadership skills but also naturally developing a culture of care and service among students, families and the community.

CCI demonstration schools have also embraced the idea of interfaith prayers, calling for unity in diversity, peace and academic excellence.  The schools also invite faith and cultural religious leaders to jointly work to nurture good character among students and the community at large.  This strengthens awareness of and commitment to the vision of One Family under God and motivates students to think of character and creativity as part of a “whole person education” even beyond the schoolyard.

Global Peace Foundation in Uganda

Parents of students are invited to participate and observe their children during School Visitation Days, which has helped to invite higher parent participation in schools. This, in turn, has shown to help to make more accurate assessments and evaluations to tailor learning and engagement in ways that improve discipline, academic performance and create effective solutions to a student’s unique challenges.

This practice takes on the idea that in educating for a world of One Family Under God, individual families must be engaged to become the basis for peace and development of every individual.  Parents and teachers jointly work together to educate the “whole person” through investing resources in CCI best practices.

These are just some of the best practices from the Uganda CCI schools. How might you bring character and creativity to your own community?

The original post appears on Global Peace Foundation. Global Peace Foundation is an international non-sectarian, non-partisan, nonprofit organization, which promotes an innovative, values-based approach to peacebuilding, guided by the vision of One Family under God.  GPF engages and organizes a global network of public and private-sector partners who develop community, national, and regional peace building models as the foundation for ethical and cohesive societies. Dr. Hyun Jin Preston Moon is founder and chairman of the Global Peace Foundation.