If one thing is for certain, we are living in uncertain times. Last year was the “super year of elections,” and there’s no indication that things are slowing down.
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Conflicts rage on, wartorn countries are struggling to recover and climate disasters are the new normal. Taken together, it can feel overwhelming and hopeless.
This is why Canadian leadership is needed to rally nations together for a safe and secure world at the next G7 leaders’ summit in Kananaskis.
At present, the attention and resources of the international community have primarily focused on responding to crisis and violent conflict through a military and security lens, rather than a prevention lens. But we must not forget that conflict and crises are exacting a devastating toll on children’s lives. In Sudan, the civil war has left 17 million children out of school. In Gaza, 90 per cent of schools lie in ruins. In Ukraine, attacks on schools and infrastructure continue to undermine the right to learn.
In total, a staggering 455 million children — one in six globally — now live in conflict-affected areas.
According to the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS), investments in crisis prevention efforts — including through education — constitute 1/10th of one per cent of spending on response. It’s time to reorient our foreign policy and defence conversations to intentionally focus on conflict prevention and peacebuilding in and through education, leading to better use of existing resources and greater security for the next generation.
Findings from the Global Partnership for Education and the Institute for Economics and Peace show that education and peace reinforce each other. Countries with higher school completion rates tend to be more stable, and that stability enables further investment in education. Nations with higher secondary completion rates experience 52 per cent fewer internal conflicts on average.
The bottom line is we must act proactively, not reactively.
During times of uncertainty, countries can have a tendency to look inward and protect what’s ours — our borders, our economy, our jobs — rather than consider the common good. This ignores a fundamental truth: In a globalized world, no nation thrives in isolation. Securing our own future requires investing in the futures of others.
Children and young people are strong, innovative and resilient. But if we allow war and disaster to continue to slam the classroom door shut, they are denied the knowledge and skills they need to build a better future. Education can help foster inclusion and safety through curriculum that emphasizes problem-solving and social cohesion. Education gives hope to young people who might otherwise be at risk of poverty, recruitment or radicalization, breaking multi-generational cycles of violence. Education fosters critical thinking and civic participation, so children grow up to be leaders and create positive change in their communities and countries.
The Canadian International Education Policy Working Group is mobilizing a campaign with its global education, peace and security partners. We are calling on Canada to protect its legacy of global impact at the G7 in Kananaskis and elevate the importance of education for peace. Canada can get it done because we have a knack for mobilizing political will and financial investments at these summits.
At the G7 in 2010 in Muskoka, Canada mobilized more than $6 billion to save the lives of mothers and children from preventable diseases. In 2018 in Charlevoix, Canada secured $3.2 billion to help close the funding gap in education across development-humanitarian response efforts. Canada’s direct contribution of $400 million in Charlevoix changed the course for more than four million out-of-school children and youth, especially marginalized girls, refugees and displaced learners.
However, the work is far from over. Canada has a tremendous opportunity to build on its legacy as a champion for the next generation and advance peace and prosperity for all. Canada has set a precedent for real impact at the G7.
Let’s make it three for three.
Shelly Whitman is executive director of Dallaire Institute for Children, Peace, and Security.
Fred Witteveen is CEO of Children Believe.
Laura Frigenti is CEO of The Global Partnership for Education.