Contemporary Issues in Human Rights Education

Abstract

The format of this publication presents the main strands concerning the role of human rights education as well as the key elements for its implementation. Each strand addresses current issues and challenges faced when incorporating a culture for human rights, also illustrating the collective importance of human rights education as a fundamental base for a peaceful and just society. Under each strand, a list of examples inspired by country initiatives is proposed. The Delors Commission on Education for the Twenty-fi rst Century was established by UNESCO in 1993 to defi ne the emerging orientations of education policy, setting-out four basic pillars of learning essential for the future of education: “Learning to know”; “Learning to do”; “Learning to live together”; and “Learning to be”.1 Of these, the third pillar is arguably the most important in terms of intercultural education and learning. By learning to live together, children “develop an understanding of other people and an appreciation of interdependence-carrying out joint projects and learning to manage confl icts in a spirit of respect for the values of pluralism, mutual understanding …and peace”.