Dear all, We have read with interest your contributions to the discussion on the first phase of the World Programme. In order to put this discussion in context, it important to recall why the World Programme was proclaimed, on 10 December 2004. The UN Decade for Human Rights Education (1995-2004) was coming to an end. The work undertaken by all relevant actors during the Decade had contributed to put HRE on the international agenda, had facilitated existing HRE activities and encouraged the development of new ones, and had provided a platform for dialogue and cooperation among various national and international actors; for instance, the establishment of this listserv is one tangible achievement of such increased attention to HRE. Accordingly, both governmental and non-governmental actors, gathering at the international level, felt that there was a need to continue an international framework for HRE, this time organized in consecutive phases focussing on a specific sector/issue; this is how the World Programme (2005-ongoing) came into existence. That said, a United Nations initiative, like the UN Decade and the World Programme, is nothing else but an opportunity available to all interested organizations and individuals in order to increase mobilization and advocacy efforts towards a common goal; for the first phase of the World Programme, the common goal is to achieve primary and secondary school systems where human rights are promoted and practiced, as spelled out in the World Programme's Plan of Action adopted by all United Nations Member States in July 2005. It is an opportunity in everybody's hands - accordingly, its success depends on the use of it which everybody is able and willing to make. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) contributes to this global effort, in close cooperation with UNESCO, by putting at the disposal of all, through the World Programme's page (available in English, French and Spanish) at http://www.ohchr.org/english/issues/education/training/programme.htm, the following: * information about the World Programme's Plan of Action, which provides concrete methodological guidance on how to comprehensively infuse human rights education in the school system, including a summary (which was mentioned in one of the previous messages of this forum) and all relevant resolutions and reports of United Nations organs; * information on past and current initiatives taking place at the national level, such as the development of national HRE strategies and contact information for the national focal points nominated by governments to coordinate implementation of the World Programme's Plan of Action; * information on the activities of the United Nations Inter-Agency Coordinating Committee on Human Rights Education in the School System, established in September 2006 and composed of eleven UN entities as well as international organizations including the World Bank; * access to the OHCHR’s general section on human rights education and training, which contains various resources such as: - a list of free-of-charge human rights education and training materials published by OHCHR (including the "ABC of Teaching Human Rights: Practical activities for primary and secondary schools"); - a Database on Human Rights Education and Training institutions, programmes and materials (we sent a separate message on this few weeks ago); - information on the "Assisting Communities Together" (ACT) Project, which provides grants to human rights education and training projects conceived and implemented by NGOs and community organizations; - a section on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, containing more than 360 different language versions and other UDHR resources; and so on. We would like to invite you to look into the World Programme's page. You may send comments, as well as questions on how to connect with the various initiatives taking place nationally and internationally within the World Programme, by contacting us at the address wphre@ohchr.org. Kind regards, Elena Ippoliti and Thérèse Björk Methodology, Education and Training Unit Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, Geneva ======== Global Human Rights Education listserv ======= Send mail intended for the list to < >. Archives of the list can be found at: http://www.hrea.org/lists/hr-education/ **You are welcome to reprint, copy, archive, quote or re-post this item, but please retain the original and listserv source.
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