For a hard copy version, please contact Anne Breivik on abreivik@unesco.org.uk or 020 77663460.

'The Citizen Artist in a Fractured World' is a week long congress organised by ARROW (Art: A Resource for Reconciliation over the World) taking place in Plymouth 27 June - 5 July 2009.  ARROW is based at University College Plymouth St Mark and St John and is a member of UNESCO Associated Schools in the UK. The event will draw together artists, educators, young people and others from across the UK and Ireland and will include a week long programme of workshop activities, training opportunities, speakers, discussion groups and social activities.

ARROW aims to develop a global network of artists, educators, young people, organisations and institutions with a commitment to building bridges across perceived boundaries and barriers, by sharing stories, challenging prejudice and stereotypes and developing the arts as a resource for reconciliation and the creative transformation of conflict. For further information about the congress, please click here or contact Anne Breivik on abreivk@unesco.org.uk or 020 7766 3460.

CEWC Cymru is organising a number of Model United Nations conferences across Wales in March. The events will enable students to discuss important international issues in a setting that encourages constructive dialogue, rather than competitive debate. Students work in teams of 3,  representing a country or non-governmental organisation. The idea is to come up with internationally acceptable solutions to a problem, such as protecting human rights while combating terrorism.

The conferences will take place on the following dates:
· County Hall, Cwmbran - 4 March 2009
· Penallta House, Ystrad Mynach - 6 March 2009
· County Hall, Mold - 19 March 2009
· County Hall, Caernarfon - 20 March 2009

For further information, contact Ona Flindall on OnaFlindall@wcia.org.uk or 029 2022 8549.

The Schools Linking Network helps schools across England create links with each other, support community cohesion work and explore identity and diversity issues. The Schools Linking Network provides:

• a database of schools to link with
• free CPD to get started
• case studies of successful school linking
  
• resources and ongoing support
  

For further information about the Schools Linking Network, please click here.

Creative Partnerships is looking for 30 new schools to share a £1.4 million fund to become 'Schools of Creativity'. Schools that become 'Schools of Creativity' will help to shape policy and practice throughout Creative Partnerships. Each school selected in 2009 will receive £20,000 each year, for two years and a funded education consultant to develop and promote creative learning. Participating schools will be expected to contribute £5,000 a year to the scheme.

Creative Partnerships is the Government's flagship creative learning programme, designed to develop the skills of young people across England.To read more about the Schools of Creativity initiative, please click here.

Facing History and Ourselves is offering an online seminar titled "Facing History and Ourselves: Holocaust and Human Behavior," from 19 March- 13 May 2009. The seminar will explore Facing History's content, methodology, and approach to teaching history. The eight-week seminar requires a commitment of approximately four hours of work per week. There are no "live" events, so seminar participants find the time to do the weekly assignments and participate in the online discussions at their convenience.

Facing History and Ourselves is an international educational and professional development non-profit organisation whose mission is to engage students of diverse backgrounds in an examination of racism, prejudice, and antisemitism in order to promote the development of a more humane and informed citizenry. For further information about the online seminar, please click here.

The United Nations General Assembly has proclaimed the year commencing on 10 December 2008 as the International Year of Human Rights Learning, to be devoted to activities to broaden and deepen human rights learning. As we mentioned in the December newsletter, UNESCO Associated Schools in the UK has teamed up with the United Nations Association of the UK to develop a human rights teaching pack for secondary schools to promote human rights education. The pack contains a teacher's handbook and a CD-ROM with five slide presentations and corresponding fact sheets for students. The five topics covered are:

1. the UN Universal Declaration of Human Rights
2. the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child 
3. child rights and armed conflict
4. child rights and climate change
5. human rights and international development

The CD-ROM also includes 'student-friendly' versions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, in addition to the official documents. All member schools on the primary and secondary level should have received a hard copy of the pack in the post in December. To down load the electronic version, please click here. If you have not received your copy in the post or would like additional copies, please contact Anne Breivik on abreivik@unesco.org.uk or 020 7766 3460.