Attitude Determines Altitude

The UN General Assembly and the Summit of the Future gave us not only an indication of what the future for young generations may look like, but also a platform to speak up for – and with – the children and adolescents, whose future is at stake.

Brutal armed conflicts in the Middle East, Sudan, Ukraine, the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo and beyond are ending the learning of millions of children and adolescents, along with decades of progress made in the education sector. Today, approximately 32% of the world’s crisis-affected children are out of school.

To make this even worse, climate change is destroying schools, causing forced displacement and disrupting the education of millions of children and youth at risk. In all, 62 million crisis-affected children and adolescents across 27 countries have had their education disrupted by climate shocks since 2020.

It is fair to say that these devastating consequences stem largely from our attitude towards the world, or as the American essayist Ralph Waldo Emerson said: “People seem not to see that their opinion of the world is also a confession of character.” After all, the world is not an anonymous entity. It is inhabited and governed by human beings. Our attitude determines the future.

More than 224 million children and adolescents – the number is rapidly escalating – are seeing their most important foundation in life – education – disrupted right now due to armed conflicts, climate change and forced displacement. They are victims of choices made based on attitudes of greed, power, discrimination and scarcity-thinking. We cannot allow such attitudes to govern the world. We must reclaim the United Nations principles and its role as the cornerstone for a more healthy and peaceful co-existence that is conducive to the future of every child, no matter who or where they are.  

The intrinsic human values enshrined in the UN Charter and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, along with all other international law, can no longer be brushed aside or trampled upon. An attitude of abundance, humanity and respect for the law would without doubt have had completely the opposite outcome and be more conducive for the future.

A trust in abundance, a commitment to international law and a profound sense of empathy can only lead to increased financing for education and reduced financing for wars. Such an attitude promotes human rights, non-discrimination, non-selectivity and brings a culture of peace and justice.

Only this type of attitude can deliver on the commitments outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals and Pact for the Future, which stresses “the importance of investing in, and ensuring equitable access to, essential services for all children and young people, especially health, education and social protection, to advance their social and economic development.”

The way we look at the world, to paraphrase Ralph Waldo Emerson, determines the world we create for the next generation. The essence of Emerson’s words have been spoken and written since ancient times, from the Greek philosophers to the UN Charter and human rights law. As Aristotle said: “Educating the mind without educating the heart is no education at all.”

We cannot live in a world where ethics and universal values are not at the top of our mind; where the young generation is deprived of an education while suffering wars, displacement and climate change. It is totally illogical to think otherwise.

Together with our strategic donor partners, Education Cannot Wait is building a value proposition to use education as a tool for building a better future of justice, human rights, sustainable development, and peaceful co-existence – locally, nationally, regionally and globally.

As ECW lays out in our 2023 Annual Results Report, by embracing a new way of working we also bring everyone together to reduce competition over financial resources and strengthen coordination through joint programming. By delivering with speed, we show it is possible to make a difference that is less bureaucratic and more accountable.

In 2023 alone, ECW, together with its strategic partners, provided quality education to 5.6 million children and adolescents. Since starting operations in 2017, ECW has reached over 11 million girls and boys and mobilized more than US$1.6 billion for its Trust Fund alone, not including in-country top-ups which also exceed over US$1 billion.

Still, much more is needed. As we look to accelerate and scale-up this proven model, ECW urgently needs US$600 million in additional funding so that together, our partners can reach more crisis-affected children in-country. In the larger scheme of things, the additional funding required for ECW by 2026 is nothing compared to the resources invested in wars or the resources possessed by billionaires and the public and private sector around the globe. It is possible to change attitude and invest in the future of humanity.

Action is happening on the ground with real results for children through the impactful and profound leadership of inspiring governments, UN agencies and civil society. In this month’s high-level interview, we feature the insight and wisdom of UNICEF Representative in Egypt Jeremy Hopkins, as we come together with UNHCR and a number of civil society organizations and host-governments, as well as communities, to address the Sudan Regional Refugee Crisis. This joint response is still underfunded, as are all responses for the 224 million children and adolescents whose right to a quality education remains unmet.

One can indeed change attitude to make an epic and profound impact for the future. Investing in education is probably the most rational shift of mind we can do. No matter how wealthy we are as governments, companies or individuals, we cannot afford to deprive the young generation of a quality education and thereby deny them their future.