IDEA Knowledge Shares

Member knowledge shares are an opportunity for IDEA members to hear about each other’s Global Citizenship Education practice in a peer-led session. They started in 2020 during the Covid-19 pandemic to serve as a way for members to connect informally, feel part of our network and keep up to date with each other's work. Since then, the knowledge shares have developed into a weekly learning opportunity run during the summer months when members have more time to attend the sessions while also gaining inspiration for their own planning.

Each session runs for 40-45 minutes online via Zoom and is led by an IDEA member who shares a specific aspect of their Global Citizenship Education practice. It includes a short presentation by the IDEA member who is showcasing their work that week and is followed by a Questions and Answers session. Members are welcome to contact IDEA if they have a practice or idea they wish to share with other members, and IDEA staff also contact members directly when we are aware of particular projects or initiatives we feel could be showcased in a Knowledge Share. The Zoom link is shared with all IDEA members and no prior registration is required. 


IDEA Member Knowledge Shares 2024


Knowledge shares this year facilitated the exchange of up-to-date knowledge and skills within the Development Education sector and contributed to a dynamic, professional sector that embodied the latest thinking in Global Citizenship Education.


Our sessions expanded the horizons of GCE knowledge and practice. The E-TICK course, an award-winning online course on ethical communication by Comhlámh, fostered critical thinking and digital literacy. WWGS shared their revised guiding principles to enhance accessibility and inclusivity in the GCE sector. Saolta shared its experience of strategic partnership for GCE in the Adult and Community Education Sector, emphasizing the importance of diverse partnerships. Maynooth University Department of International Development hosted a session on Learning for Ethical Communications, encouraging participants to share their organization’s practices and resources. Trócaire led a session exploring the intersection of Development Education, Global Citizenship, and Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) practice and provision. The Praxis Project at University College Cork showcased its efforts to embed GCDE into pedagogy, policy, practice, research, and community engagement. The Global Village team presented updates on research and resources for GCE in primary schools. Lastly, the DICE Project shared its publication Global Citizenship Education: Curious Teachers, Critical Classrooms, a comprehensive guide for teaching global citizenship education.


You can learn more about 2024 Knowledge shares in the video resource below


  • IDEA Knowledge Share: A partner on an Erasmus+ project, Soil, Soul, Society

    This session was led by Grainne O’Neill from Síolta Chroí.  Participants learned about the involvement of Síolta Chroí in the Erasmus+ project, ‘Soil, Soul, Society’, and shared their learnings and experiences with Development Education.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Global Village Research and Resources for GCE in Primary Schools

    This session was led by Claire Glavey and Ailbhe Joyce of Global Village. They presented updates on research, including “Teachers and Global Citizenship Education: Values, Attitudes and Practices—A Research Report on a National Survey of Irish Primary Teachers and Global Citizenship Education.” Global Village resources for GCE in primary schools were shared, including two cross-curricular guides accompanying the picture books ‘The Day War Came’ and ‘The Promise’.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Curious Teachers, Critical Classrooms, A GCE Textbook

    Led by Dr. Brighid Golden, Lecturer in Global Education, DICE Project, this session focused on sharing and exploring a recent (freely available) publication from the DICE Project, which is a book titled Global Citizenship Education: Curious Teachers, Critical Classrooms.  The book is a ‘one-stop-shop’ for all you need to get started in teaching global citizenship education. While it is aimed at primary school teachers, the majority of the content is applicable to those in other education settings too. The book includes contributions from 24 authors across 41 chapters, 7 appendices, a glossary, and a resource directory. Participants learned about the book's motivations, how they can use it in their own practice, and where the ‘curious and critical’ journey will go next.

  • IDEA Member Knowledge Share: Saolta's Experience with Strategic Partnership

    Led by Nick Doran this session looked at the experience of Saolta, how the partnership works, the lessons learned, the benefits gained, and the importance of partnership for GCE/DE. Development Perspectives is the lead partner in Saolta which is funded by Irish Aid, and consists of Aontas, Maynooth University Department of Adult and Community Education, Irish Rural Link, Concern Worldwide, and Cork Education and Training Board, which joined the partnership in 2024. Partnerships are vital to achieving a better, more equitable and sustainable world for all. The strength of the partnership lies in the diversity of knowledge, skills, access and experience that each partner brings, which includes large memberships, smaller organisations and individuals

  • IDEA Member Knowledge Share: The Praxis Project, Embedding GCE&DE Across UCC

    Led by Gertrude Cotter this session explored the highs and lows of the Praxis Project’s efforts to embed GCDE into pedagogy, policy, practice, research and community engagement across campus. Participants also explored an interdisciplinary approach to research and community engagement. This session showed successful project examples, discussed methodologies, and the impact of these initiatives across different academic disciplines beyond teacher education.

  • Knowledge Share Session: Development Education, Global Citizenship and ECCE

    Led by Colette Saunders, Trócaire, this session explored the intersection of Development Education, Global Citizenship, and Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) practice and provision. It also dived deep into the interrelatedness between the Aistear practice framework, Global Citizenship, and Development Education concepts. This session brought these connections to the forefront, enhancing understanding and applying these critical areas in professional practice in the early years. The concept of sustainability, as defined in the 1987 Brundtland Report ‘Our Common Future, From One Earth to One World’, was used as a lens to explore these links, with a specific focus on sustainability as a ‘way of being’.

  • IDEA Member Knowledge Share: Learning for Ethical Communications

    Led by Dr. Eilish Dillon, Lecturer and Assistant Professor in the Department of International Development at Maynooth University, it focused on approaches and resources organisations use for ethical communications training. This is part of your Irish Research Council New Foundations research with Dóchas, aims to explore and share learning and training practices within Irish NGOs. The session began with presentation of findings from a survey on ethical communications training among Dóchas members, followed by an open discussion.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Ethical Communication – the E-TICK Course

    Led by Sive Bresnihan this focuses on the journey of E-TICK, an award-winning online course on ethical communication, launched in 2020 by Comhlámh and partners across Europe, including Slovakia and the Czech Republic. As we navigate an increasingly 'image' and 'news' saturated world, the course's central questions about our roles as creators and consumers of messages have become even more pertinent. E-TICK 2.0 is set to launch very soon, and this session shaded light on the development and piloting of this latest version and how the E-TICK 2.0 writing team has endeavoured to live up to E-TICK's core principles of critical thinking and reflexivity

  • IDEA Member Knowledge Share: A glimpse of the WWGS Guiding Principles

    Led by Lizzy Noone, this session explored how to utilize these principles most effectively in order to guide all work within the GCE sector, foster open discussions and encourage everyone to act as critical friends. WWGS has recently revised their guiding principles to enhance accessibility in their work. They presented these updated principles to colleagues in the sector. This initiative underlines WWGS’s commitment to transparency, inclusivity and continuous improvement in delivering high quality programmes in the sector

IDEA Member Knowledge Shares 2023



Knowledge shares this year facilitated exchange of up-to-date knowledge and skills within the Development Education sector and contributes to a dynamic, professional sector that embodies the latest thinking in Global Citizenship Education. This year our knowledge shares included a focus on innovation and partnership in Global Citizenship Education.


In particular IDEA Members participated in an introduction to Maynooth University's Certificate in Global Citizenship Education session led by Dr Tom Campbell, Maynooth University. This looked at how the programme was designed and delivered as a collaborative (inter Department) initiative, the kinds of content covered, and how it endeavours to meet the principles and indicators found in the Code of Good Practice for Development Education.


You can find out more about 2023 Knowledges shares in the videos below.


  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Charity Shops as a Global Citizenship Education site

    This focuses on the findings of a feasibility study into Charity Shops as a Global Citizenship Education site, and was led by Mella Cusack, A Partnership with Africa. It looks at APA's Get up and Goals project's work to determine the potential of charity shops as a site for Global Citizenship Education.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Connecting Cultures A GCE approach to inclusion and sustainability

    This session led by Fiona Duignan, shared Meath Partnership’s Innovative approach to Inclusion through GCE for ACE practitioners and volunteering of migrants/refugees and asylum seekers in Meath.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Maynooth University's Certificate in Global Citizenship Education

    This provides an introduction to Maynooth University's Certificate in Global Citizenship Education and was led by Dr Tom Campbell, Maynooth University. It looks at how the programme was designed and delivered as a collaborative (inter Department) initiative, the kinds of content covered, and how it endeavours to meet the principles and indicators found in the Code of Good Practice for Development Education.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Baseline Report on GCE in Ireland’s Adult and Community Education Sector

    This focuses on the baseline’s insights derived from Saolta’s research and work in this area, and was led by Sara Hurley from Saolta. The session also highlights the opportunities for the sector for building capacity, trends in participation and collaboration in future research.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Erasmus+ Just Action Project challenges and opportunities

    In this Knowledge Share Alex shared  insights into how Erasmus+ Just Action project has developed from the application process and the different features of Erasmus+ projects including the application of Design Thinking to diverse project management tools. He also shared challenges and opportunities of working on an Erasmus+ partnership.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Exploring ‘Home’ by providing GCE to Adults in the Community in Donegal

    Myra McAuliffe Project Coordinator Inishowen Development Partnership, led the session where participants explored about ‘Home’ by providing Global Citizenship Education to Adults in the Community in Donegal’. Members will learnt about a time when the defective blocks crisis is causing havoc in County Donegal and how  ChangeMakers Donegal has employed its practice of merging community development work with global citizenship education to examine the theme of home, homelessness and the global refugee crisis using creative methodologies such as story exchange and a book club with no books.

  • IDEA Knowledge share: A culturally Competent lens on Social Justice Affecting Migrants in Ireland

    Delivered by Dr Caroline Munyi, participants explored about how AkiDwA is actively integrating Global Citizenship Education into their programmes to raise awareness about migrants' rights impacts of sexual and gender-based violence, dismantling racism and curbing Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) by putting cultural competence at the centre of this interaction with key professionals.

  • IDEA Knowledge share: Start With a Story, Global Citizenship Educator's back to school book club

    Led by Tony, this session shares emerging items from the draft Guidelines for Producing DE/GCE resources (set for publication in September) and look at five spotlight resources to add to educator's 'back to school' reading list.

IDEA Member Knowledge Shares 2022



In 2022, we organised a series of summer knowledge share sessions that covered a diverse range of topics related to Global Citizenship Education . These sessions aimed to foster discussion and collaboration among educators, activists, and organizations working towards positive global change. Another session titled 'Put Children First - End Orphanage Care' was led by Emma Lynch of Tearfund Ireland. This session focused on the Comhlámh Put Children First campaign, emphasizing the importance of prioritising children's welfare and ending the practice of orphanage care. Another engaging session was hosted by Young Social Innovators and led by Barry Peak. This was focused on 'Generation Z and Climate Change - Anxieties and Opportunities,' this discussion delved into the concerns and opportunities young people from Generation Z face concerning climate change. It provided valuable insights into how this generation perceives and engages with environmental challenges. Stephanie Kirwan from Meath Partnership led the session on the world of Erasmus+ in Adult and Community Education which shaded light on the opportunities and benefits of participating in Erasmus+ programs within the realm of adult and community education.


'Amplifying Voices' Project by Development Perspectives, led by Paul Crewe, was also among the session in 2022. This project aimed to amplify the voices of marginalized communities and individuals, highlighting the importance of inclusivity and diversity in development work. Furthermore, 'An Introduction to Global Village,' led by Claire Glavey and Elisha Kelly from Global Village, explored a strategic partnership for Global Citizenship Education at the primary level. Finally, Susana Núñez and Vera Shanahan from Educate Together facilitated a session on 'Ethical Education,' emphasizing the significance of ethical considerations in educational practices. Lastly, Jen Harris of Slí Waterford led a discussion on 'Being a Partner in DEAR Projects,' offering insights into participation and collaboration within DEAR-funded projects, particularly for smaller organisations.


These diverse sessions collectively contributed to a rich knowledge-sharing experience within the development education sector in 2022. Find out more in the videos below.


  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Generation Z and Climate Change - Anxieties and Opportunities

    This focuses on the Generation Z and Climate Change - Anxieties and Opportunities, and was led by Barry Peak, Young Social Innovators. It explores the work carried out by Young Social Innovators in partnership with Amárach Research to gain insights into Ireland's young people on issues such as mental health, employment opportunities, education and their hopes for the future.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Put Children First - End Orphanage Care

    This focuses on the Comhlámh Put Children First campaign, and was led by Emma Lynch, Tearfund Ireland. It explores why Development Education approaches are so important when seeking to challenge the practice of volunteering in orphanages.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Amplifying Voices

    This focuses on the Amplifying Voices Project by Development Perspectives, and was led by Paul Crewe, Development Perspectives. The project, which won an AONTAS Star Award 2022, supported migrant communities to engage with cultural and educational activities for social integration, and included podcasting and storytelling where migrants shared their stories of moving to Ireland.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Exploring the world of Erasmus+ in Adult and Community Education

    This focuses on Exploring the world of Erasmus+ in Adult and Community Education, and was led by Stephanie Kirwan, Meath Partnership.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Ethical Education

    This focuses on Ethical Education, and was led by Susana Núñez & Vera Shanahan, Educate Together. It looks at the Learn Together curriculum, at primary level, and the Ethical Education curriculum, at second level, their links to Global Citizenship Education, embedding these across the school, and the Knowledge-Values-Action approach taken.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: An Introduction to Global Village

    This focuses on Global Village, and was led by Claire Glavey and Elisha Kelly, Global Village. It explores this new strategic partnership for Global Citizenship Education at primary level between Irish Aid, DCU, INTO, IPPN and Trócaire.

  • IDEA Knowledge Share: Being a partner in DEAR Projects

    This focuses on Being a partner in DEAR Projects, and was led by Jen Harris, Slí Waterford. It explores learning around participation, specifically for small organisations, in DEAR-funded projects.

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