The shift is moving us from a culture of mind to a culture of heart where we are connected on a much more profound level with each other (Jay Weidner)
Defining, enhancing, evaluating and understanding global citizenship is no longer a matter of selectivity, but rather a question of understanding that every individual, and every leader, should have the right to familiarize, and educate themselves with. Global citizenship, as defined by the UNESCO, and by the UWS (United World Schools), is the capability of any global citizen to care passionately about and the world we live in.
Furthermore, the UWS sees a Global Citizen, and a global leader, as someone who:
- Has awareness of the wider world
- Has a sense of their role as a world citizen
- Respects and values diversity
- Wants to tackle social injustice
- Believes that all children and young people have a right to an education
- Takes action to make the world more equitable
- Lives and promotes a sustainable way of life
The UWS, together with UNESCO and with multi-local associations, promotes global citizenship through a number of activities, including partnering with schools and educational institutions from affluent countries with their own community in an are of significant educational poverty. For more information, please visit Global Citizenship and United World Schools
and watch the following video:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ajy4KsuRaNQ
Moreover, global citizenship, and global leadership, have become terminologies of the majority, necessary for every leader to comprehend, and to include in their vocabulary if not yet, at the latest by now, and through upcoming activities within all business, leadership, and organizational activities.
Surprisingly enough, the trends of global citizenship and global leadership are spreading faster than imagined. Our world, despite its size, has in the past couple of decades, through technological advancement and other global activities, become a global village, where global citizenship and global leadership both awakens individuals, businesses, and organizations, and also leads to increased actions through and by a number of factors such as ethically and morally correct business and leadership activities.
Philip Kotler, in Marketing 3.0., is one of the examples of progressive global leaders and citizens in his field of expertise to have taken into consideration the millennium, and now, the Sustainable Development Goals set by the UN in order to create a world with justice, no poverty, gender equality, equal human rights for all citizens of the world, along with the other sustainable development goals that we ultimately all wish to see come true, the sooner the better.
As part of my vocational teacher studies, I had the pleasure to participate as an observant, and a negotiator/mediator, at a simulated workshop organized by FinMUN (Finnish Model United Nations) in Tampere on November 23rd. The simulation took place at Tampere University, with a current topic upon the Syrian Refugee Crisis, including participants from 18 different countries in the world discussing at a simulated event arranged by the UNHRC (United Nations Human Rights Council), trying to find solutions to solve the largest humanitarian crisis of this century. Unless yet familiar with the humanitarian crisis in Syria, including significant details, please read the following article, written by Kathy Gilsinan and published by The Atlantic, to gain more insight on the topic:
The Confused Person’s Guide to the Syrian Civil War
The fact is that no individual, no business, and no organization can afford to ignore globalism as a part of their business, personal, or organization activities and life. We are all affected, and involved, either directly or indirectly.
And, it is a matter of every business, every leader, every citizen, and every organization to take into consideration and to plan their (strategic) activities, at all organizational levels, in order to influence global events in a positive manner.
As defined by the UNESCO, a global citizen (and, a global leader) is:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XVSgbU6WVSk
From a combined business, and educational point of view, global citizens, and global leaders, must understand and take into consideration, and include following points into both personal, and business-related agendas:
- Literally, understanding where “ones ́s breakfast comes from”. This citation is from the book Geographic Economy (Coe, Kelly & Yeung, 2007). Please, if not already, read this book in order to increase your understanding about the global economy and the driving forces behind it. The content of it will definitely not leave you cold – on the opposite, the book will most definitely increase your awareness and serve as an alarm clock for people not yet fully conscious about how the world economy, and international trade, actually functions at the time being. Strongly recommended for any global citizen, and global leader.
- Making sure to integrate, and to centralize, CSR (corporate social responsibility) as a major function in all business-related activities. CSR, when fully and correctly integrated into business, and into leadership practices, is a powerful strategic tool enabling your business to create a competitive advantage in today’s rather harsh business world.
- Realizing that global citizenship, and global leadership, are synonyms for the capability of your organization to survive, and to thrive. No matter the size of your organization, or its strategic plans (of expansion, and of creating new market space), understanding global markets and knowing how to best operate in these in an ethically and morally correct manner, is a definite competitive advantage as long as you actually make global citizenship and global leadership central terms included in your organization’s values.
Anne-Maria Yritys 