‘Learning to live sustainably in cities: Implementing Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in learning cities’ was the theme of a regional conference held in Aswan, Egypt, from 5 to 7 March 2018. Around 50 participants, including city leaders and other stakeholders from the region as well as special guest Her Royal Highness Princess of Jordan and UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador Dana Firas, attended the event. Aswan, a member of the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities since 2017, has put ESD at the centre of its learning city initiatives. Localizing Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), ESD, and the learning city concept and its role in achieving the SDGs and ESD were the central topics at the event. This workshop was part of a series of events to promote ESD across all UNESCO regions.

The six articles contained in this year’s first issue of the International Review of Education – Journal of Lifelong Learning remind us that the forms, uses and values of education are as diverse as the human societies on Earth. Not only is there no one size to fit all; the shapes and sizes of learning that best fit each individual or society are themselves constantly changing. These articles offer us experiences and developments of literacy and learning in various educational contexts shaped by specific economic, political, geographical and ethnic conditions.

The former UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning (UIL) scholar and current focal point for the ADEA Working Group on Books and Learning Materials for Anglophone countries, Ms Lily Nyariki, held a keynote presentation for the ADEA Triennale in Dakar, Senegal, in March 2017, drawing attention to the need for national book and reading policies in Africa. An action plan comprising innovative and effective mechanisms to provide local-language reading materials is needed, Mr Nyariki said, and should encompass production, acquisition, distribution, and the management and use of textbooks and other reading materials in local languages.

 

UNESCO and Microsoft have joined forces for the Advancing Mobile Literacy Learning (AMLL) project, which promotes the use of technology to enhance literacy skills. The project, launched in 2015 and implemented in selected communities in Bangladesh, Egypt, Ethiopia and Mexico, equips educators and education leaders with technology training to enable them to provide more flexible learning opportunities and address individual learners’ needs. The overall aim of the project is to reach those literacy learners whose needs were previously unaddressed.