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

In June, a delegation from our Erasmus+ partner organisation LAPAS (Latvian Platform for Development Cooperation) visited Dublin for a two-day learning and exchange visit hosted by IDEA. The visit was part of an ongoing collaboration with LAPAS to strengthen quality global citizenship education (GCE) in Ireland and Latvia, using the IDEA Code of Good Practice as a framework. You can find out more about the Erasmus+ project here. 

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.

Launch of IDEA's Theory of Impact for GCE

September 26, 2025
Date: Tuesday, 04 November, from 3.30–4.30pm Location: Online via Zoom IDEA is thrilled to invite members to the online launch of our new “Theory of Impact for Global Citizenship Education” on Tuesday, 04 November, from 3.30–4.30pm, Online via Zoom. During this session, we will present the model, share insights into the process behind its development, and explore how it will be used to strengthen impact across the sector. We will also introduce a new tool in progress, an interactive data visualisation map designed to showcase our collective impact as a network. For many years, IDEA and its members have been grappling with the concept of impact in Development Education/Global Citizenship Education (hereinafter ‘GCE’). As GCE practitioners, tracking impact helps us to identify how, where and with whom our work is creating positive change, as well as investigating areas in which our impact could be stronger. Furthermore, we can also benefit from examining the collective impact of GCE carried out by the wide-ranging work of IDEA members, and from exploring how these impacts contribute to the major social changes to which the GCE community aspires. Driven therefore by the need to understand how projects and programmes are collectively “making a difference” in IDEA we looked at models that could help us visualise and capture GCE “impact networks”. We formulated our vision of impact and then a theory of how we expect this desired impact to be achieved to allow us to map our activities and collect data to corroborate that theory. This Theory of Impact model is how we hope to illustrate this complex GCE impact network. Building on work done by IDEA over many years including building sectoral capacity in using Results Frameworks for GCE, our Quality & Impact working group, engagement with Irish Aid on their Performance Measurement Framework (PMF), and the successful roll-out of a Code of Good Practice for DE/GCE, this Theory of Impact represent the next stage of our effort to ‘develop a consistent approach to measuring impact among the sector’. We are therefore thrilled to invite you to the presentation of our ‘Theory of Impact for GCE’. At this online presentation, we will tell you about the process that led to the creation of this model, how it will be used and what we hope it could bring to the sector. We will also touch on a new tool being developed based on the model, which should allow the creation of an interactive data visualisation map of our collective impact as a network. Join us as we launch into this exciting new phase of our Impact Measurement work. Join us as we begin this exciting new phase of our Impact Measurement work. Register below!

IDEA Advocacy Toolkit and GCE Policy Guide Workshop, November

September 26, 2025
Date: 11 November, 10.30am – 4.30pm. Location: IDEA offices, 6 Gardiner Row IDEA launched its new Advocacy Toolkit and GCE Policy Guide resource pack in early March. The advocacy toolkit and policy guide were developed for IDEA members to strengthen their capacity to effectively advocate with policymakers and to actively engage in policy processes on GCE in Ireland and the wider world. IDEA will facilitate a full-day in-person workshop on these resources in the IDEA offices on Tuesday, 11 November ,10.30am – 4.30pm. Places are limited to 20 participants and will be given on a first come, first served basis. Please note that this is a repeat of the workshop that took place in May and is aimed at members who did not have the opportunity to participate in May. A vegetarian lunch will be provided. Register below!

Racial Justice Training: Exploring Contemporary Crises and Issues through Global Citizenship Education 2025

September 26, 2025
Date: 06 November a nd 18 November from 3.30–4.30pm Location: IDEA offices, 6 Gardiner Row, Dublin 1 Due to positive feedback following a workshop during our annual conference, we are thrilled to invite members to a full 2-part interactive workshop about “Racial Justice” on 06 November and 18 November. This event will take place in-person in Dublin. Our facilitators Bronwyn April and Mdahyelya Bassi will guide participants through a critical exploration of the interconnections between racial justice, philanthropy, migration, and decolonisation within global and Irish contexts. The workshop will delve into how historical and ongoing colonial legacies influence contemporary issues of racial equity and social justice in Ireland and beyond. The dates for this event are fast approaching, so if you have any specific accessibility requirements, please email events@ideaonline.ie as soon as possible. Places for this event are limited, and registration is mandatory. Deadline to register is Monday, 04 November. Register below!