Is hope enough? Navigating the complexities and competing pressures of action and global justice in education

Abstract

Global citizenship education (GCE) aspires to meet complex and contested global challenges within systems built on violence, exploitation and extractivism. This article comments on the silence surrounding the toll that this can take on educators working to meet the impossible task of making the world fairer, more just, more equitable, and sustainable for all. While the goals of GCE are themselves challenging and problematic, the content involved can also give rise to trauma. This article discusses the challenge of engaging with ‘difficult knowledge’ as an educator aiming to facilitate a space which honours the complexities inherent in global justice, while also being mindful of the psychological safety of all those involved in the learning space. The ‘call to action’ is often proposed as a mitigating factor to address the potential harm inherent in GCE. While recognising the possible transformative impact which engaging in action can have, it is crucial to also comment on the contradiction of seeking to build a ‘fair’, ‘just’ or ‘sustainable’ world within the neoliberal and capitalist societies which have themselves given rise to existential threats. Yet, we find hope in examples of GCE practitioners engaging with these multiple challenges in their daily practice, and in the development of frameworks and pedagogies that open educational spaces to consider and build as yet unimagined alternatives.