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ISL Hosts Luxembourg NGOs and Peter Fuchs at 2nd Annual Global Issues Day
The International School of Luxembourg’s Upper School students learned about Global Issues first-hand from guest speakers who are making a difference both in Luxembourg and abroad. The second annual Global Issues Awareness Day on Friday, 24 October, featured school-wide presentations and a series of small group sessions for middle and high school students complemented by a midday “hunger lunch.”
Luxembourg representatives of six international non-governmental organizations (NGOs) took part in the Global Issues Awareness Day. Representatives from Médecins Sans Frontières, Greenpeace, CARE, Transfair, SOS Villages d’Enfants, and UNICEF made presentations to students on a range of global issues such as child malnutrition and mortality, climate change, refugees, tracing where food comes from, child rights, community building, and education in Africa. Presentations were informative and interactive; students listened attentively and time was allotted for questions and answers.
ISL was honoured to welcome special guest speaker Peter Fuchs of the Fuchs Foundation, a UK charity which sponsors young educators on polar expeditions. Mr Fuchs addressed students about the state of the Antarctic today, its influence on the world’s physical systems and global warming. Mr Fuchs made three different presentations, very much tailored to his various audiences, but all with the common goal of sensitizing students to the issue of global warming, as he put it, “leading very much to what individuals can do to ‘save the planet’.” Mr Fuchs described his remarks as “intentionally controversial,” aiming to stimulate students to reflect and discuss.
The midday meal consisted of a “hunger lunch,” a simple, rice-based meal similar to what might be eaten in developing countries. Eurest, the school’s caterer, donated a portion of the proceeds from the sale of this lunch to ISL charities.
“We were delighted to welcome such an outstanding group of presenters for our second annual Global Issues Awareness Day,” ISL Director Chris Bowman commented. “We hope that the programme will continue to cultivate awareness among our students of the complex issues they face as global citizens.”
