Democracy in a post-truth age: educating the next generation of global citizens
As misinformation strains democracies, educators are turning to global citizenship education to rebuild critical thinking, civic trust and youth participation.
Elijah Chidiebere
News Anchor, China Desk
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Democracy depends on citizens who can weigh evidence, listen across difference and take part. Those habits are learned — which is why educators increasingly treat civic and global citizenship education as democratic infrastructure.
The theme of the 10th International Conference on Global Citizenship Education in 2025, 'Democracy in the Post-Truth Crisis', captured the moment: misinformation, polarisation and declining trust testing institutions worldwide.
Global Citizenship Education (GCED) equips learners with critical thinking, media and information literacy, and an understanding of human rights and cultural diversity — competencies framed as essential for active, informed participation.
In 2025 UNESCO recognised a Tanzanian youth-led initiative for countering hate speech and building social cohesion, a reminder that young people are not only a target of division but a powerful force against it.
For diaspora youth, who often hold more than one national story, global citizenship is not abstract — it is lived. Channelling that perspective into civic life is part of how democracies renew themselves.
