From June 17 to 20, a meeting of global education experts from Latvia and Ireland took place in Dublin, jointly organized by the Irish Development Education Association (IDEA) and the Latvian Platform for Development Cooperation (LAPAS). Baltic Human Rights Society (BHRS) board member Agnese Koligina represented LAPAS at this event.

The LAPAS delegation had the opportunity to participate in IDEA’s annual global education conference, where IDEA members shared experiences on applying the Code of Good Practice for Development Education in their daily work and led seminars on specific themes of the code.

LAPAS actively engaged in discussions, presenting their organizations and contributions to global education, and discussing development cooperation, current sustainable development issues, and the implementation of the Code of Good Practice in Latvia.

BHRS board member Agnese Koligina emphasized the key role of human rights education within global education. Human rights education is an integral part of global education because it fosters understanding of universal values such as dignity, equality, and freedom. This education not only strengthens individual awareness of rights but also promotes democratic values, social justice, and peace on a global scale. It helps younger generations become active, responsible citizens capable of critical thinking, defending their own and others’ rights, and participating in societal processes to build a more just and inclusive world. Thus, human rights education is not only a matter of rights but also a tool for global cooperation and sustainable development. As a development cooperation project implementer, BHRS works on these issues at both national and international levels.

Alongside the conference, there was an opportunity to begin collaboration with IDEA representatives on developing the Code of Good Practice for Latvia, planned to be piloted this autumn. There were also meetings with several IDEA member organizations working in various fields such as environment, peace, migration, and other educational issues. IDEA organizations highly appreciated the value of the Human Rights Guide as an educational resource to include in their training programs, with particular attention to human rights issues.

The meeting took place within the framework of the Erasmus+ project “Global Citizenship Education Code of Good Practice & Community of Practice: Ireland & Latvia”.