Development charities from across Northern Ireland have launched a new digital campaign to encourage people to ‘switch on’ to learning more about the world around them.
The campaign is fronted by a new animated video, which explores the importance of equipping young people and the general public with the knowledge, skills and values to contribute to making our world a fair and sustainable place for everyone.
The animation explains that, while it can be easier to ‘switch off’ to the world around us, it is much more beneficial for us all to ‘switch on’, learn about our world and find ways to take positive action to make it a better place.
Production of the 90 second animation was led by the Coalition of Aid and Development Agencies in Northern Ireland (CADA NI), an umbrella organisation for development NGOs in NI of Beyond Skin are proud members.
The short clip is also supported by a new ‘Education and Action’ section on the CADA website. For those wanting to learn more about global issues or take action you can find relevant links to local organisations you can get involved with. Educators can also find links to resources and school materials enabling them to bring global issues into their classrooms.
The animation suggests that all of us are exposed to world challenges whether we like it or not. This is supported by research carried out by Ulster University, on behalf of the Global Learning Programme, which states that our young people are “a new generation genuinely perplexed and, indeed, worried about conflict, corruption and poverty…”.
Such concerns have influenced a worldwide movement of educators who support learners to make sense of such issues and equip them with the skills and dispositions to effectchange. We can see this here in Northern Ireland, where over 50% of schools are involved in the Global Learning Programme, an initiative supported by CADA members which trains teachers to educate for a fair and sustainable world through the curriculum. Such education also contributes to the United Nations Global Goals, specifically Target 4.7 on Education for Sustainable Development and Global Citizenship.
Speaking of the campaign launch, David Thomas, Chair of CADA NI said, “We are delighted to launch our new #SwitchOn2GlobalIssuesdigital campaign today. Our centrepiece animation is designed to show people across Northern Ireland, and all over the world, that education should help learners to understand the root causes of the social, economic and environmental challenges our world faces. Learners should be supported to think critically about these issues, and explore them from different perspectives. All people in society, young and old, need to be equipped with the skills, confidence and motivation to get involved and make a positive change in the world. This campaign and animation is an excellent starting point for those who want to make a difference.”
This week, CADA members will engage in various promotional activities in support of the new campaign.
The CADA animation was funded by Trócaire’s ‘Mobilising for Justice’ grant.
For more information, contact Orla Devine on 028 9024 1879 or orla@centreforglobaleducation.com
