2023 Theme: Hope Away from Home World Refugee Day is an international day designated by the United Nations to honour refugees around the globe. It falls each year on June 20 and celebrates the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their home country to escape conflict or persecution. World Refugee Day is an occasion to build empathy and understanding for their plight and to recognize their resilience in rebuilding their lives. Background Every minute 20 people leave everything behind to escape war, persecution or terror. There are several types of forcibly displaced persons: Refugees A […]

The 2024 Holon IQ Future of Higher Education & Workforce Summit is a program of presentations, discussions and networking sessions on the key trends and strategic shifts shaping the future of higher education. The program features insights and case studies from institutions leading the way in educational innovation.  Key topics include: Future Higher Education Models; Alternate Credentials & New Approaches to Lifelong Upskilling, Engaging Students and Reinventing Curriculum; Online, Hybrid and On-Campus Higher Education; The Outlook for International Education; and, Integrating Artificial Intelligence. Victoria Galan-Muros, Chief of Research and Analysis at UNESCO IESALC will be among the speakers at the […]

2023 Theme: Unleashing the power of gender equality: Uplifting the voices of women and girls to unlock our world’s infinite possibilities What women and girls want matters. They make up 49.7% of the global population, yet women and girls are often ignored in discussions on demographics, with their rights violated in population policies. This pervasive injustice keeps women and girls out of school, the workforce and leadership positions; limits their agency and ability to make decisions about their health and sexual and reproductive lives; and heightens their vulnerability to violence, harmful practices and preventable maternal death, with a woman dying […]

In order to raise awareness of the needs of these population groups, every 9 August commemorates the International Day of the World’s Indigenous Peoples. This date, adopted in December 1994 by UN General Assembly resolution 49/214, marks the date ofthe first meeting of the UN Working Group on Indigenous Populations of the Sub-Commission on the Promotion and Protection of Human Rights held in Geneva in 1982. Each year, UNESCO marks the celebration of the Day by sharing information on projects and activities that are relevant to the annual theme. "Marked every year on 9 August, the International Day of the World’s […]

On 17 December 1999, in its resolution 54/120, the United Nations General Assembly endorsed the recommendation made by the World Conference of Ministers Responsible for Youth (Lisbon, 8-12 August 1998) that 12 August be declared International Youth Day. The Assembly recommended that public information activities be organized to support the Day as a way to promote better awareness of the World Programme of Action for Youth, adopted by the General Assembly in 1996 (resolution 50/81). Security Council Resolution 2250 on Youth, Peace and Security represents an unprecedented acknowledgement of the urgent need to engage young peacebuilders in promoting peace and countering extremism, and clearly […]

Honouring the contributions of the African diaspora The International Day for People of African Descent was celebrated for the first time on 31 August 2021. Through this Observance the United Nations aimed to promote the extraordinary contributions of the African diaspora around the world and to eliminate all forms of discrimination against people of African descent. International days reflect the values that society shares. All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights and have the potential to contribute constructively to the development and well-being of their societies. Any doctrine of racial superiority is scientifically false, morally […]

Since 1967, International Literacy Day (ILD) celebrations have taken place annually around the world to remind the public of the importance of literacy as a matter of dignity and human rights, and to advance the literacy agenda towards a more literate and sustainable society. Despite steady progress made across the world, literacy challenges persist with at least 763 million young people and adults lacking basic literacy skills in 2020. The recent COVID-19 crisis and other crisis, such as climate change and conflicts, have been exacerbating the challenges. #LiteracyDay Celebrations in 2023 Rapidly changing global context took a new meaning over […]

On May 28, 2020, the UN General Assembly adopted Resolution 74/275, establishing September 9 as the International Day to Protect Education from Attack. Recognizing the importance of raising awareness of the dire need to preserve education and protect it from attack, the Resolution designates UNESCO and UNICEF to serve as co-facilitators for the yearly observance of this Day and calls upon stakeholders to keep this issue at the top of the international agenda and duly act to alleviate the plight of students affected by armed conflicts. The observance of this International Day serves as an annual platform to amplify advocacy and galvanize action […]

University sport has a very special place in the sporting world as a vector of human, social and civic values, fully integrated into the education of today’s and tomorrow’s citizens. By putting sport at the heart of dialogue between teachers and students, the International Day of University Sport, celebrated by UNESCO and the International University Sports Federation, aims to promote these values among young adults and, through them, to society as a whole. Dialogue, self-respect and respect for others, fair play and pursuit of excellence are all framing principles of student training. Education and sport need to be at the […]

The International Day of Peace celebrates the power of global solidarity for building a peaceful and sustainable world. This has never been so important at a time of unprecedented challenges. New forces of division have emerged, spreading hatred and intolerance. Terrorism is fuelling violence, while violent extremism seek to poison the minds of the vulnerable and young. In the poorest and least-developed parts of the world, climate-related natural disasters are compounding existing fragility, increasing forced migration and heightening the risk of violence. The barriers to peace are complex and steep - no one country can solve them alone. Doing so […]

Sign languages unite us! The International Day of Sign Languages is a unique opportunity to support and protect the linguistic identity and cultural diversity of all deaf people and other sign language users. During the 2023 celebration of the International Day of Sign Languages, the world will once again highlight the unity generated by our sign languages. Deaf communities, governments and civil society organizations maintain their collective efforts - hand in hand - in fostering, promoting and recognizing national sign languages as part of their countries’ vibrant and diverse linguistic landscapes. According to the World Federation of the Deaf, there are more […]