The Hub is a catalyst for joint action among members and across sectors to prioritise education in emergencies.
The urgent need to respond effectively to the education needs of the most vulnerable children and youth is why the co-signatories pledged at the 2019 Global Refugee Forum to promote Geneva as the Global Hub for Education in Emergencies.
The pledge was co-signed by Education Cannot Wait (ECW), the Global Education Cluster (GEC), the Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE), the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC), Switzerland, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNICEF, the Geneva Graduate Institute and the University of Geneva. These organizations are referred to as the ‘initial co-signatories’, and founding members of the Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies.
Since the Geneva Global Hub’s launch in January 2021, 32 additional members joined the Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies: Action For Development (AFD), Aga Khan Foundation (AKF), Arigatou International, Catholic Relief Services (CRS), Canada, Concern Worldwide, Danish Alliance for Education in Crisis, education.org, Educators Without Borders International (EWBI), Enfants du Monde, Finn Church Aid, Fraternity International Humanitarian Missions, Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA), Global Partnership for Education (GPE), Helpcode, Humanitarian Development Partnerships (HDPi), Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (iDMC), International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC), International Parliamentary Network for Education in Emergencies (IPNEd), International Rescue Committee (IRC), IsraAid, Jacobs Foundation, Jesuit Refugee Service (JRS), Niger, NORCAP, Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC), People in Need (PIN), Plan International, Safe to Learn Coalition, Save the Children, the Special Rapporteur on the Right to Education, and World Vision International.
Our Members
The members work together towards three main goals:
Growing demand for change
The EiE Hub is a catalyst for partners to come together to increase prevention and response to education needs in emergencies. It will strengthen policy and integrated approaches across the humanitarian, development, migration and peace spectrum to better prioritise and deliver inclusive education in emergencies for crisis-affected children and youth through better collaboration of International Geneva actors and beyond, including linking up with other relevant global and regional initiatives.
Inspiring commitment
Bringing together the Geneva strategic community of committed thought leaders will inspire political will and influence agenda setting so that governments and partners see education as a top priority before, during and after emergencies and in protracted crises.
Boosting country-level impact
All children and youth affected by conflict, violence, disaster, epidemics and forced displacement must have their right to a quality education realised. The Hub aims at boosting the country-level impact of education in emergencies preparedness measures and responses through better data, evidence on what works and innovative research and solutions that support the delivery of safe and quality education while building resilient education systems.
The Hub is a catalyst for joint action among members and across sectors to prioritise education in emergencies.
ECW is the first global fund dedicated to education in emergencies and protracted crises. Based on the recognition that continuous access to quality learning is a priority for children and families affected by conflicts, natural disasters and displacement , ECW comes as a ground-breaking initiative bringing together public and private partners eager to work together differently and mobilise the funding required to deploy immediate and sustainable programmes tailor-made to the educational needs of these children.
The Global Education Cluster supports 30 Country Clusters and Education Working Groups to ensure more predictable, relevant, equitable and well-coordinated education responses by providing technical support, guidance and capacity strengthening, as well as advocating for the continued prioritization of education to meet growing education needs of crisis affected children and youth.
Graduate Institute Geneva of International and Development Studies
The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies is an institution of research and higher education dedicated to the study of world affairs, with a particular emphasis on the crosscutting fields of international relations and development issues.
Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies (INEE)
The Inter-agency Network for Education in Emergencies is an open global network of members working together to ensure all persons the right to quality and safe education in emergencies and post-crisis recovery.
The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) is an impartial, neutral and independent organization whose exclusively humanitarian mission is to protect the lives and dignity of victims of armed conflict and other situations of violence and to provide them with assistance. The ICRC also endeavours to prevent suffering by promoting and strengthening humanitarian law and universal humanitarian principles. Established in 1863, the ICRC is at the origin of the Geneva Conventions and the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement. It directs and coordinates the international activities conducted by the Movement in armed conflicts and other situations of violence.
Switzerland is the host country of the Geneva Global Hub for Education in Emergencies, and it was the Swiss government which originally pledged to create this Hub at the 2019 Global Refugee Forum.
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)
United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization seeks to build peace through international cooperation in Education, the Sciences and Culture. UNESCO’s programmes contribute to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals defined in Agenda 2030, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 2015.
United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) aims to aid and protect refugees, forcibly displaced communities, and stateless people, and to assist in their voluntary repatriation, local integration or resettlement to a third country. UNHCR advocates for the specific needs of refugees of all ages to be considered within education in emergency responses and promotes response options that support inclusion in national education systems from the start of an emergency.
UNICEF or the United Nations Children’s Fund, is a United Nations agency responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to children worldwide working in over 190 countries and territories to save children’s lives, to defend their rights, and to help them fulfil their potential, from early childhood through adolescence.
ERDIE is a research group at the university of Geneva (Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences). Our work is based on field studies that can help us better understand the contexts of education in emergencies and rethink international cooperation.
Members
Since launch, the following entities have become members:
Action for Development (AfD) is an international NGO headquartered in Geneva and providing services in Afghanistan. AfD was founded in 2011 and through cooperation with local populations, AfD assists communities in developing their skills and knowledge to ensure a successful future for Afghan children and society as a whole. AfD provides educational and professional opportunities for young girls and women, as well as essential healthcare services.
The Aga Khan Foundation (AKF) brings together human, financial and technical resources to address the challenges faced by the poorest and most marginalised communities in the world. Special emphasis is placed on investing in human potential, expanding opportunity and improving the overall quality of life. For over 50 years, AKF has worked in some of the most remote parts of Asia and Africa to partner with communities to improve the quality of life for decades and generations. AKF works primarily in six areas with gender equality and inclusion mainstreamed throughout all programmes: Agriculture and Food Security; Economic Inclusion; Education; Early Childhood; Health and Nutrition; and Civil Society.
International NGO that develops and sustains multi stakeholder initiatives designed to ensure that all children are treated with dignity and that all of their rights are respected and protected, through interfaith and intercultural approaches.
As the international humanitarian agency of the US Catholic community, CRS engages a wide variety of both faith-based and secular local partners, communities, and governments at pre-primary through tertiary levels to ensure that all children–including the most vulnerable and marginalized—have the right to a quality education and that all teachers and schools are prepared to play a positive role in building a culture of peace.
Concern Worldwide is an international humanitarian organization that delivers life-saving and life-changing interventions to the world’s poorest and most vulnerable, by means ranging from rapid emergency response to innovative development programming.
Danish Alliance for Education in Crisis
The Danish Alliance for Education in Crisis was launched in mid-2021 to build a diverse network of committed education champions to mobilize political and public support for enhanced action on EiE. It actively facilitates and strengthens cooperation between Danish parliamentarians, private companies, foundations, UN agencies and civil society organisations.
Education.org was established to fill a significant gap: to make relevant knowledge and evidence transparent, accessible, and decision-ready for education leaders everywhere.
Their mission is to build resources for education leaders to reach each learner, by synthesising and translating an inclusive range of evidence. They enable these resources to be used by those who make education happen, by building bridges between knowledge actors, policymakers and practitioners.
Educators without Borders International is an independent non- governmental organization, based in Geneva. It supports educational systems around the world and the right to education for all people without distinction as to race, gender, language, or religion.
For 50 years, Enfants Du Monde is an NGO focused on quality education. EDM conducts long term development projects with a top down and bottom- up approach. EDM conduct a field study and co construct with the ministries of education of all the countries the projects and ensure that they will be embedded in the state school system in formal and/or informal system education.
Finn Church Aid (FCA) is Finland’s largest international aid organisation, with more than 75 years of experience. FCA empowers people in the most fragile places to make a positive and sustainable change in their lives through Peace, Quality Education and Livelihoods. We work with the most vulnerable people, regardless of their religious beliefs, ethnic background or political convictions. Our vision is a world of just and resilient societies.
Fraternity International Humanitarian Missions (FIHM)
The Fraternity – International Humanitarian Missions (FMHI) is a civil association with global operations, headquartered in Brazil and registered affiliates in Switzerland, Portugal, Greece, and Colombia. With a philosophical, cultural, humanitarian, environmental, and charitable character, consists of 25 national and international civil associations that make up the network of its affiliates, operating in 18 countries with groups of fully committed volunteer collaborators.
Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA)
The Global Coalition to Protect Education from Attack (GCPEA) is a coalition of organizations, both UN and civil society, working in the fields of education in emergencies and conflict affected contexts, higher education, protection, and international human rights and humanitarian law, joining forces to prevent and respond to ongoing attacks on education.
GPE brings together all partners invested in education –lower-income countries, donors, international organizations, civil society, including youth and teacher organizations, the private sector and private foundations– to transform education systems focusing particularly on the places and people with the greatest needs.
GPE’s unique model has helped partner countries make significant progress in improving access, learning and equity, and achieving better outcomes for hundreds of millions of boys and girls.
Helpcode is an NGO working both in development and the humanitarian sector in Mozambique, Democratic Republic of Congo, Libya, Tunisia, Yemen, Nepal and Cambodia. Helpcode’s mission is to contribute to improving the wellbeing of children, their families and the communities where they live, focusing on support to education, social cohesion, protection, local economic empowerment, food security and access to basic rights and services using gender-transformative, and conflict- and environmentally-sensitive, approaches.
Humanitarian Development Partnerships International, HDPI, is a global network of not-for profit people with knowledge and experience in humanitarian programmes. Our goal is to provide support to programmes in development and humanitarian contexts through the specialised Teams.
The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre (IDMC) is the official source of global data and analysis on internal displacement, working to inform policy and operational decisions that improve the lives of the millions of people living in internal displacement, or at risk of becoming displaced in the future.
International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC)
The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies is a worldwide humanitarian aid organization that reaches 160 million people each year through its 192-member National Societies. It acts with impartiality as to nationality, race, gender, religious beliefs, class and political opinions, to meet the needs and improve the lives of vulnerable people.
The International Parliamentary Network for Education (IPNEd) helps mobilise the political leadership necessary to accelerate quality education for all. As the only global parliamentary network dedicated to education, we seek to grow and deepen political understanding of and commitment to inclusive and equitable quality education for all. To do this we work with individual parliamentarians along with groups of parliamentarians at the national, regional and global levels.
The Network consists of parliamentarians from around the world who are committed to achieving Sustainable Development Goal 4 – Quality Education – through increasing the funding, quality and equity of education globally.
The International Rescue Committee responds to the world’s worst humanitarian crises and helps people whose lives and livelihoods are shattered by conflict and disaster to survive, recover and gain control of their future. In more than 40 countries and over 20 U.S. cities, their dedicated teams provide clean water, shelter, health care, education and empowerment support to refugees and displaced people.
IsraAid’s mission is to support people affected by humanitarian crises, partnering with local communities around the world to provide urgent aid, assist in recovery, and reduce the risk of future disasters. They collaborate with communities at the deepest level in an approach they call ‘Communities First’, in which the communities supply local knowledge, experience, people-power, and tools, whilr IsraAid delivers technologies, resources, and long-developed professional expertise.
The Jacobs Foundation invests in the future of young people so that they become socially responsible and productive members of society. In order to achieve this goal, children and youth must be given better opportunities for positive development and equitable access to education. Whatever their background, place of residence or family income, all children should have the chance to reach their full potential.
The Jesuit Refugee Service is an international Catholic organisation with a mission to accompany, serve, and advocate on behalf of refugees and other forcibly displaced persons, that they may heal, learn, and determine their own future. This involves ensuring that refugees are afforded their full rights as guaranteed by the 1951 Geneva Convention relating to the Status of Refugees and working to strengthen the protection afforded to Internally displaced persons.
NORCAP is NRC’s global provider of expertise to strengthen international, regional and national actors’ and local systems’ capacity to prepare for and respond to crises, supporting humanitarian, development and peacebuilding sectors. NORCAP provides experts to a wide range of sectors and facilitates a cross-sectoral approach including expertise on cross-cutting areas such as protection, gender-based violence and cash. NORCAP continuously develops its pool of experts, including education experts, and adapts strategies and interventions to be able to rapidly deploy professional and relevant experts to respond to emerging and changing global dynamics, contexts and needs.
The Norwegian Refugee Council is a principled, rights-based, independent humanitarian organisation helping people forced to flee. We work in crises in more than 35 countries, and education is one of our six areas of expertise. We aim to ensure that all displaced children and youth enjoy quality education that is relevant to their psychosocial, emotional and cognitive development, from the start of emergencies.
People in Need (PIN) was established in 1992 and is one of the biggest non-profit organizations in Central Europe, working in the humanitarian, development and human rights sectors in over 30 countries.
Plan International is a rights based development and humanitarian organization, working in over 70 countries across four regions, with a particular focus on programming and influencing that helps make a reality of the rights of adolescent girls, especially in crisis contexts.
With 25,000 dedicated staff across 122 countries, Save the Children respond to major emergencies, deliver innovative development programmes, and ensure children’s voices are heard through our campaigning to build a better future for and with children. We are a global membership organisation, made up of Save the Children International and 30 national members. We share one name, one strategy and one ambition for all children to survive, learn and be protected.
Safe to Learn is an initiative of the Global Partnership and Fund to End Violence Against Children dedicated to ending violence in and through schools so children are free to learn, thrive and pursue their dreams. Safe to Learn presents an opportunity to unlock the multiple wins of ending violence in schools, improving learning outcomes, better leveraging investments in education, and raising awareness and changing attitudes towards violence against children.
The Special Rapporteur on the right to education is an independent human rights expert appointed by the United Nations Human Rights Council. First established in 1998, the mandate was most recently renewed in 2020 under resolution 44/3. The mandate of the Special Rapporteur on the right to education was established to examine the crucial issue of the right of all persons to access quality education without discrimination, and to provide recommendations to Governments and other stakeholders. The Special Rapporteur addresses issues of availability, accessibility, acceptability and adaptability of education, from pre-primary to tertiary levels, including in non-formal education systems or mechanisms. The work of SR is supported by the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), with staff in Geneva.
World Vision International, one of the largest international federated NGO in the world. World Vision has 70 years of experience serving the world’s most vulnerable children and communities. We are present in 100 countries and we are currently responding to over 60 emergencies in more than 45 countries serving approximately 20 million people.
