Expert Consultation Meeting: Global Citizenship Education for a Culture of Lawfulness; Meeting Report

In the context of a UNESCO/UNODC partnership on “Global Citizenship Education for a Culture of Lawfulness”, an expert consultation meeting was held in Paris on March 15 and 16 of 2018. The purpose of the partnership is to strengthen the capacities of educational systems to promote the rule of law. To this end, the partnership aims to empower and equip learners to act and engage in society as constructive and ethically responsible agents of change, supporting peace, justice, and strong institutions. This notably contributes to the achievement of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, and in particular Sustainable Development Goals 4 and 16. Additionally, the partnership intends to enable learners to be both motivated and capable to respond resiliently to crime and violence. 

The meeting had three broad objectives:

1. To help clarify the conceptual foundation of the partnership;
2. to identify the measures that can be taken in the education sector to promote a culture of lawfulness;
3. and to identify effective educational approaches.

Thus, the meeting is meant to elucidate core concepts and identify promising educational approaches in the promotion of a culture of lawfulness by asking fundamental questions, including: What constitutes the rule of law and a culture of lawfulness? How do we create demand for the rule of law? How do we ensure learners apply these principles? How do we ensure they survive in a context where there is no rule of law?