International GCE Exchange: Latvian Delegation Visits Dublin as Part of IDEA’s Erasmus+ Partnership

Five delegates from Latvia attended the events in Dublin, including one staff member from LAPAS and four educators who are members of the new Global Education network for Latvia, which has been created as part of the project. It was a real pleasure to welcome Paula Anškena (LAPAS), Lija Indāne (Riga State classical gymnasium), Laura Bužinska (Green Liberty), Agnese Koligina (Baltic Human Rights Society), and Elīza Loja (Time for Youth) to Dublin! The programme for the LAPAS delegation was designed to support LAPAS as they develop their own national version of the Code and offered opportunities for networking, peer learning, and practical exploration of quality GCE in action.
Day 1: Connecting and Learning at the Code Network Meeting
On 18 June, the LAPAS delegation joined the IDEA Code members at our Code Network Meeting at Wynn’s Hotel in Dublin. The day-long event brought together 45 educators and practitioners from the IDEA community for discussion, reflection and peer learning on quality global education. LAPAS representatives introduced their work and progress on the Code so far. They worked with IDEA members during the morning sessions to share good practice in GCE and reflect on the ‘Code Journey’ and how IDEA members incorporate the Code into their work. We shared both successes and challenges, and we will use these to inform the development of the Latvian Code. There was lots of informal networking throughout the day, and we look forward to seeing what connections develop from this.
We used the workshop space in the afternoon for a focused Erasmus+ session on critical GCE and adapting the Code in Latvia. The session began with more detailed presentations on the Latvian representatives' organisations. IDEA members had the chance to ask questions and dig deeper into GCE practice in Latvia. Georgina Eastaugh (Concern Worldwide), who is part of the Erasmus+ task group and presented at the kick-off meeting for the project in Riga , then led an activity on soft versus critical GCE. We explored the concept of soft and critical GCE as described by educator and activist, Vanessa Andreotti, and worked together to tease out what is involved in a critical approach to an action, activity or lesson. Discussions during the activity helped us to get to the root of what makes quality GCE which is at the heart of the Code of Good Practice.

Day 2: Strategic Support and GCE in Action
Thursday morning began with a project management meeting at the IDEA office where we laid out the next steps for adapting the Irish Code framework for use in Latvia and for future collaboration. This was followed by a dedicated ‘Code Clinic’ session, where LAPAS representatives and IDEA staff reflected on our learnings from the Code Network Meeting and applied these learnings to the Latvian Code and new Global Education Network.
Later, the delegation visited ECO-UNESCO, a leading Irish youth and environmental organisation and IDEA Code member. The ECO-UNESCO team gave us a warm welcome at their Dublin offices. They shared valuable insights into their work and in particular how Irish organisations implement the Code in practice.

Looking Ahead: The Next Steps in the Project Paula Anškena, Head of Education and Sustainability at LAPAS: “This visit helped us to better understand the development of our Code of Good Practice, but most importantly, the development of it after the project ends. Besides the Code, it was the conversations and networking that made the biggest impression on the Latvian team. It's always nice to talk to like-minded people, but especially during these hard times when the strength of democracy has been tested again and again.”
The visit marked another milestone in the collaboration between Irish and Latvian GCE actors and reinforced a shared commitment to strengthening global education practice across Europe. We feel energised by the connections made over this visit and we’re looking forward to building more on those with online meetings between the IDEA and LAPAS GCE communities in the Autumn. On a national level, IDEA’s Erasmus+ task group is developing a visual or video resource on quality, critical GCE to support members in Ireland in introducing the concepts at the centre of quality GCE and the Code to new audiences, be they colleagues, educators, organisations abroad, or members of the public.
As the project progresses, we are excited to continue learning from our peers in Latvia and expanding the reach of quality, critical GCE through the IDEA Code of Good Practice.

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Improving your Results Framework Workshop 2026

October 7, 2026

Date: Thursday 12 November, 11.00am – 1.00pm Location: Online This workshop is part of IDEA’s support for the Irish Aid Global Citizenship Education Grants Round. It is the second of two distinct and complementary workshops developed by IDEA on ‘Results Frameworks for Global Citizenship Education’ that we are running this year. This session will be led by Susan Gallwey, independent consultant, and Elaine Mahon, IDEA. This session is focused on supporting those who are familiar with Results Frameworks and have begun work on the Results Framework for their application. This runs on Thursday 12 November, from 11.00am – 1.00pm, online via Zoom. Anyone new to Results Frameworks can attend the ‘Results Frameworks for Beginners’ workshop on Tuesday 2 November register here or watch a recording of a session from 2024 called ‘Results Frameworks for Beginners’, led by Susan Gallwey and Elaine Mahon, which is available here . Participants are invited to prepare for 'Improving Your Results Frameworks’ session as follows: a) Those participants from organisations who have previously submitted a Results Framework for Development Education/Global Citizenship Education to Irish Aid should be familiar with their existing Results Framework. Before the event they will be asked to share (with the trainer and IDEA) an outcome and associated indicators that is working well and also identify an outcome and associated indicators that posed some challenges. b) Those participants from organisations who have NOT previously submitted a Results Framework for Development Education/Global Citizenship Education to Irish Aid and/or people who are new to Results Frameworks should first attend/ view the session Results Frameworks for Beginners here . IDEA provides support for members - and spaces for members to support one another - in applying for Irish Aid Global Citizenship Education Grants. This training and support is free of charge to all and offered online. As in recent years, this year we also invite any other actors who are not yet members of IDEA to these training events. The training is based on content from IDEA’s toolkit ‘Results Based Approaches to Development/Global Citizenship Education’. While created to reflect Irish Aid’s Results Framework for Development Education Grants rounds, the approach outlined in the toolkit can be applied to many other Development Education settings. In 2024, IDEA recorded a session which goes through Results Frameworks for Beginners. This was published on IDEA’s YouTube channel in November 2024 and is available here .

Results Frameworks for Beginners Workshop 2026

October 7, 2026

Date: Tuesday 03 November, 2.00 - 4.00pm Location: Online This training supports practitioners to understand monitoring and evaluation for Development Education/ Global Citizenship Education projects. It is an introduction to result-based approaches and will support those who are new to this type of framework in DE/GCE contexts. This training will take participants step by step through the process of building an effective results table to reach the change you want to achieve, within the timeframe of your project. It will also introduce participants to the terminology associated with Results Frameworks including Goal, Outcome, Indicator, targets, Baseline, Results and so on. This workshop will integrate learning from IDEA’s GCE impact framework and will also talk through Irish Aid’s approach to monitoring and evaluation for GCE. This workshop will also support those who are planning to apply for the Irish Aid Global Citizenship Education Grants Round for 2027. The online training will be led by Susan Gallwey, independent consultant, and Elaine Mahon, IDEA. IDEA provides support for members - and spaces for members to support one another - in applying for Irish Aid Global Citizenship Education Grants. This training and support are free of charge to all. As in recent years, this event is open to those who are not yet members of IDEA. The training is based on content from IDEA’s toolkit ‘Results Based Approaches to Development/Global Citizenship Education’. While created to reflect Irish Aid’s Results Framework for Development Education Grants rounds, the approach outlined in the toolkit can be applied to many other Development Education settings. In 2024, IDEA recorded a session which goes through Results Frameworks for Beginners. This was published on IDEA’s YouTube channel in November 2024 and is available here .

IDEA signs citizenship statement and encourages organisations to support

October 6, 2026

IDEA has signed a joint civil society statement, We build Ireland together: Citizenship is how we make that official, and encourages other organisations to lend their support. Led by the Irish Refugee Council, the initiative calls on Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan, to withdraw proposals that would make it harder to gain Irish citizenship. The statement argues that citizenship recognises the belonging of people who put down roots here through working, studying, raising families, paying taxes and contributing to community life. It warns that granting citizenship only to people with a high income and no experience of hardship risks treating some people as more deserving of belonging than others. It also raises concerns about the proposals alongside wider changes to family reunification, income requirements for migrant workers and international protection. Taken together, the statement warns, these measures make it harder for migrants, people seeking protection and refugees to build secure lives in Ireland. IDEA members including AkiDwA, ActionAid Ireland, Africa Solidarity Centre Ireland, Comhlámh and Síolta Chroí have signed, alongside organisations from across civil society. IDEA’s support reflects the emphasis in Development Education and Global Citizenship Education on human rights, equality, solidarity and participation in society. It is also an expression of solidarity with colleagues, educators and communities who could be affected by these proposals. People who put down roots here and contribute to our communities should have a fair opportunity to gain citizenship and the security and recognition it brings. The statement calls on the Minister to focus instead on building a cohesive society that recognises the people who live, work and build Ireland together. To find out more or add your organisations support please get in touch through IDEA or the Irish Refugee Council direct.

IDEA calls for GCE to be included in Northern Ireland’s new curriculum framework

October 6, 2026

IDEA calls for GCE to be included in Northern Ireland’s new curriculum framework IDEA recently shared its views on the new draft Northern Ireland Curriculum Framework as part of the public consultation, which closed on 30 September. Our submission welcomed the framework’s aim to give learners “access to powerful knowledge and develop the skills needed to participate fully in society, the economy and civic life.” However, we also highlighted a key gap: “global” has been dropped from the scope of citizenship education within the curriculum. Global Citizenship Education (GCE) is not mentioned at all. Alongside an important focus on the local reality in the North, we consider it vital that the curriculum also addresses the global reality. As UNESCO puts it, “economically, environmentally, socially and politically, we are linked to other people on the planet as never before” (UNESCO, 2026). We recommended integrating key dimensions of GCE and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) into the framework without creating a new strand or making widespread amendments. Changes to the language and framing could embed GCE and ESD principles in the core capabilities and in subjects such as Geography, History, English and Drama, and Personal, Social, Civic and Careers (PSCC). Our recommendations echoed the key asks of the CADA submission . IDEA also contributed to that submission through a focus group discussion and by reviewing and providing feedback on the draft. Our recommendations were to: Include GCE and ESD as concepts in the capabilities document and cross-reference them in the subjects for Geography, History, English and Drama and PSCC. Include the concept of global citizenship in the capabilities document and in PSCC, as a distinct but complementary concept to citizenship and civic understanding. Include the concepts of solidarity, justice and local-global interconnection and interdependence (and thus shared responsibility) in the subjects English and Drama and PSCC. Increase the progression of human rights knowledge in PSCC across Stages towards its global application by Key Stage 3. Add shared responsibility and justice as key dimensions of sustainable development and global inequality to the environmental and ecological responsibility capability, as well as to Geography. Include addressing misinformation, disinformation and factchecking under the language and communication capability and in English and PSCC. Build on Northern Ireland’s experience of peace education by including opportunities, particularly in History and PSCC, for pupils to explore connections between peace and reconciliation locally and globally as part of GCE and ESD. Thank you to IDEA members who reviewed our submission and provided feedback. You can read our full submission here .

Code Network Meeting December 2026

September 26, 2026

Date: Tuesday 01 December, 10.00am – 4.00pm Location: Richmond Barracks, Inchicore, Dublin 8, D08 YY05 IDEA is looking forward to welcoming all members of the Code of Good Practice for Development Education to our next Code network meeting on Tuesday 1 December, in Richmond Barracks in Inchicore, Dublin. There are places for two representatives, staff, volunteers, etc., from each Code member. One of the commitments in joining the Code is to contribute to the Community of Practice for this Code, including sharing successes and learning with other Code members and attending at least one of two Code network meetings annually. If you have questions, please contact code@ideaonline.ie.