Evolution of UN Policies for Peace Education with a Focus on Human Rights

Education is central for promoting the UN values of peace and human rights. Focusing on the work of UNESCO, this article begins by overviewing the links between peace education (PE) and human rights education (HRE) in terms of aims, thematic content and pedagogical approaches. It then compares UNESCO’s updated treatment of PE and human rights in its soft policy of the 2023 UNESCO Recommendation on Education for Peace, Human Rights, and Sustainable Development, which is a revision of the 1974 Recommendation concerning Education for International Understanding, Co-operation and Peace and Education. The article concludes with some reflection on the implications for PE and HRE moving forward, drawing on UNESCO’s expanded definition of peace education infused with human rights, and the existing foothold of the themes of peace and human rights within most national curricula.