Global citizenship: GNED500

David Himbara

Global citizenship is about:

• The rights, responsibilities, and duties of a self-identified “global citizen.”
• A self-defined global citizen considers his/her identity to transcend geography or political borders.
• This does not mean that such a person denounces or waives their nationality; does not abandoning other identities, allegiances to countries, ethnicities or political beliefs.
• Rather, a global citizen adds a layer of responsibility – being a member of a world-wide community of people who share the same global identity.
• The term global citizen has same meaning as “world citizen” or cosmopolitan.
• Cosmopolitan means “free from local, provincial, or national ideas, prejudices, or attachments; at home all over the world.” Or “belonging to all the world; not limited to just one part of the world.”

What aspects of the world do global citizens seek to address?

The major challenge is embracing and building sustainable values to make the world a better place.

For the past 70 years, efforts of creating values for a better world have included:

• Human rights;
• Environmental protection;
• Religious pluralism;
• Gender equity;
• Sustainable worldwide economic growth;
• Poverty alleviation;
• Prevention of conflicts between countries;
• Elimination of weapons of mass destruction;
• Humanitarian assistance and; Preservation of cultural diversity.

Where are we in the journey of becoming global citizens?

Are we on the path to global citizenship? Are we still somewhere at the beginning of our journey?

Have our eyes been opened and our consciousness raised?

Do we feel a connection with others around the world?

Are we ready to pull back the veil that keeps us from seeing more clearly the world as a whole – which is the basis of finding more sustainable ways of connecting with those who share our common humanity?

Who are the global citizens who changed the world?