Blog.

e-zine issue 9: Sustainable Development Goals special

Special issue of the e-zine on the SDGs landed in Inboxes last week and can be read online. Sign up for future issues for the bimonthly news roundups and updates. Suggestions for blogs, resources and case studies can be sent to contact@developmenteducation.ie

10,000 missing children in Europe

  The refugee crisis is actually worse than we hear, talk about and even imagine.  Almost half of the world’s displaced people are children.  According to the EU’s criminal intelligence agency, refugee children are targets of criminals in the sex abuse and slavery. It is utterly disturbing that we can’t even

Development Education: where we’ve been; where we need to go

This blog was written to stimulate discussion at an Irish Development Education Association seminar in Dublin on 4th May 2016.  It is based upon my own thinking about what has been achieved over the past three decades, some trends and patterns I see dominating at the moment (not all positive)

Parents’ Association Tackling FGM and early childhood marriage

Tom O’Connor reports from County Kajiado, Kenya, on a local community’s response to female genital mutilation (FGM). Sometimes in life, we get an opportunity that 99% of other people will never experience; a chance to meet somebody who you regard as an inspiration, a hero.  It is one of those

What does signing the Paris Agreement mean to young people in Ireland?

Today is Earth Day. And today United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon is inviting leaders from all UN member states to attend the official signing ceremony of the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. This is a historic day for international action on climate change, a day which young Trócaire activists have

That Word ‘Illegal’

In these days of ‘crisis’ summit meetings, ‘floods’ of migrants ‘swarming’ at borders, ‘security’ forces ‘overwhelmed’ and Europe facing an ‘unprecedented’ crisis, words take on added significance as we search for a language that matches our feelings.  How we describe the situation, how we construct its meaning and contours, how

Syria: an appalling reality in 2016

‘The Syrian people wonder why the world is silent, and ask: ‘Why does the world punish us with its silence?  What did we do wrong to be forced to witness all of this murder and the destruction of our lives, homes and our dreams?’ – Aisha, 36 year-old aid worker

In review: What does International Women’s Day mean to women?

International Women’s Day – a time to reflect on progress made, a call for change and a celebration of acts by ordinary women who have played an extraordinary role in the history of their countries, communities and lives. Or is it? What exactly does International Women’s Day (IWD) mean to