Education. What does the word mean to you? Inspiration? Stress? Boredom?

Nelson Mandela described education as “the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world”. That’s true if education is relevant to our lives and helps us understand the world and imagine ways to improve it. But often education is too dry and disconnected from the real world to excite or inspire.

This year’s International Day of Education focusses on how to strengthen education as a public endeavour and common good, to unlock the potential in every person to contribute to collective well-being, and build a more sustainable, inclusive and peaceful future.

We certainly need education and skills to enable us to thrive and to overcome the collective challenges we face – the climate crisis, impacts of the pandemic and inequality. The Sustainable Development Goals (Global Goals) give us a wide-angled lens to address these challenges, but these can only be reached with creative solutions and widespread education and engagement. Everyone learns differently, and using creative and digital tools expands our mindsets, captures our imaginations, and enables more people to be included.

At the Global Goals Centre we work creatively to engage children and young people with these Goals via themes relevant to their lives, such as fashion and migration. Using digital games, art projects and filming, people of all ages can be inspired and empowered to learn, and to find ways they can make a difference, individually and collectively. Education can and should be fun!

So, on this International Day of Education, embrace the opportunity to learn something new – be surprised and get inspired! Check out some of the resources on our Resource Hub – watch a film about incredible environmental projects in Africa, view an art installation by Syrian refugees or learn about growing projects in local schools. You can search by theme to follow your own interest or passion.

Watch the Bristol 17 films to find out what 17 brilliant Bristolians of all ages are doing in our city to help achieve the 17 Global Goals. And share inspiring films, books and projects with others – great ideas can be contagious!

Happy International Day of Education.