Who is a global citizen?

[Boyd Roberts]

The IGC Award focuses on the everyday lives and activities of young people, and how, they can become better global citizens – becoming better informed, more reflective and taking action as part of their everyday lives. Although there is a focus on action, the Award is underpinned by considerable research and thinking on the characteristics of a global citizen. As we come to the end of another academic year, at least in those centres operating on a northern hemisphere timetable, it seems appropriate to consider the characteristics of global citizenship we might hope to express ourselves and develop in the young people we work with.

One view is that we are all global citizens now, simply because we live in an increasingly global world. Even if we take this view, the question then is, are we good global citizens? If everyone is a global citizen, what does it take to live our lives as global citizens responsibly, and how can we develop to become better and more responsible global citizens?

One of the most challenging and influential descriptions of a global citizen comes from the development organisation Oxfam. Oxfam sees the Global Citizen as someone who:

● is aware of the wider world and has a sense of their own role as a world citizen

● respects and values diversity

● has an understanding of how the world works

● is outraged by social injustice

● participates in the community at a range of levels, from the local to the global

● is willing to act to make the world a more equitable and sustainable place

● takes responsibility for their actions.

 

This forms part of its excellent Education for Global Citizenship – a guide for schools

http://www.oxfam.org.uk/~/media/Files/Education/Global%20Citizenshi...

 

Oxfam’s definition includes a considerable challenge if we accept that a global citizen is “outraged by social injustice”. This raises questions about how we might work with students to develop an appropriate sense of outrage. The outrage of the student global citizen should stem from their own sense of right and wrong, fairness and unfairness – in other words social justice and injustice - and build on the natural sense of justice that is often so clearly expressed in the young, and becomes blunter as we get older. It should not simply be a copying of the outrage of an adult. Perhaps our role as adult mentors is to expose students to situations that raise issues of social justice and perhaps to provide prompting questions, if necessary. Outrage may then be a response.

 

Oxfam’s definition is excellent as far as it goes, but to my mind gives insufficient attention to the global citizen in relation to the natural world. The only reference to environmental concerns is in the reference to “sustainable place.”

 

In Educating for global citizenship (2009) I suggested that a global citizen also:

• has a sense of connectedness with and responsibility towards others, other species and the environment
• understands interconnectedness and complexity
• can see the world through the eyes of others
• views the future with hope.

 

In the US there are reservations about the term global “citizen”, and the term in most common use is “global competence”. I find this term unhelpful, as to my mind competence is associated with skills to function successfully, without necessarily embracing ethical considerations and a sense of responsibility. However, the work of the Asia Society and others in now influential in the US and provides another viewpoint. In this work, a “globally competent” student can

 

• investigate the world
• recognize perspectives
• communicate ideas
• take action.

 

See http://www.edsteps.org/ccsso/SampleWorks/matrix.pdf  for a summary overview and

http://asiasociety.org/files/book-globalcompetence.pdf for an elaboration by Anthony Jackson and Veronica Boix-Monsilla.

 

Some schools have worked out their own understanding of global citizenship. If your school has a written description then please share it HERE or just forward it to me to post.