Peace Education Around the World: Learning from the Past for the Future

This book was inspired by the 50th anniversary of the Peace Education Commission of the International Peace Research Association and the 2023 revision of the UNESCO Recommendation on Education for International Understanding, Co-operation and Peace, and Education related to Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, both 1974 landmark events in the field. Over the past 50 years the field has evolved substantially, and this new volume provides historical reflections on the origins of our work as well as future directions.

This essential anthology provides critical and reflective accounts of peace education in contexts around the world through 30+ chapters featuring researchers, educators, and activists from every inhabited continent, including timely contributions from Palestine and Israel, Ukraine and Russia. It casts light on the ways in which peace education has been prioritized in educational activities in diverse contexts, and of the importance of critical learning across formal, informal and non-formal settings. Historical, contextual accounts illustrate how peace education has responded to both pedagogical and institutional challenges. The critical need to address both structural and cultural violence in the search for planetary transformation is highlighted, as well as the importance of promoting 'cognitive justice' and work with indigenous knowledges.

The book includes many authors' accounts of their beginnings in the field, and the activities and ideas they have developed and practiced. Several chapters honor the contributions of recently departed colleagues, including Robert Aspeslagh, Mario Borrelli, Johan Galtung, Betty Reardon, and Olga Vorkunova.

Robin Burns (Australia), has worked, studied and published in psychology, social anthropology, comparative education, women's studies, and public health. Between her first Master's degree and returning to academia for her PhD on development education, she spent 3 years in the Australian Diplomatic Service. She followed Robert Aspeslagh as executive secretary of the Peace Education Commission and became the first female president of the Australian and New Zealand Comparative and International Education Society. Her last major research projects investigated the issues for scientists working in remote areas and took her to a summer on an Antarctic station.

Magnus Haavelsrud (Norway). Professor emeritus at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology. He took part in the creation of the Peace Education Commission of the International Peace Research Association and served as its first Executive Secretary 1975-79. He worked with Betty Reardon in the School Program of the Institute for World Order in New York and served as the Carl-von-Ossietzky Guest Professor of the German Council for Peace and Conflict Research. He was distinguished fellow of the South African Research Chair in Development Education 2008-18. His writings on peace include studies in political socialization and educational sociology. Co-founder (with Betty Reardon) of the Global Campaign for Peace Education and since 2023 member of the Campaign´s Steering Committee. Co-founder (with Anita Wenden et al.) of the Journal of Peace Education serving on its Editorial Board 2004 - 2023.