Melbourne, Australia—The first of a series of three Values Education Summits for 2022, sponsored by UPF-Australia and the International Association of Academicians for Peace (IAAP)-Oceania, was convened on February 26.
Fifty participants—including educators, community leaders, and academics from IAAP-Oceania and UPF leaders—discussed the importance of values education. Among the presenters were leaders in the field of values education from around the world. The content of the event was transcribed and added to a position paper that will be shared with governments and other stakeholders to provide a comprehensive vision for values education. The moderator was Mrs. Lillian Mwanri, an associate professor at Flinders University in Adelaide, Australia.
The first speaker was Ambassador for Peace Dr. Joy de Leo OAM JP, founding president of the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO)-Asia-Pacific Network for International Education and Values Education (APNIEVE)-Australia, a network of educational institutions and educators involved in international education and values education, and president of UPF-South Australia. In her presentation on “Implementing Values Education in all Areas of Schooling,” she outlined a comprehensive structure and approach for implementing values education in all areas of schooling both at the national and community levels.
The second speaker was educator Dr. Maria Lourdes Quisumbing-Baybay, president of UNESCO-APNIEVE-Philippines. She currently teaches research classes in psychology in the graduate and undergraduate programs of Miriam College in Quezon City, Philippines, where she was the vice president of academic affairs (2016-2019) and dean of the College of Arts and Sciences (2004-2010). She spoke on the topic, “Values Education in the Philippines: Navigating towards a Preferred Future.”
The third speaker was Dr. John Bellavance coordinator of IAAP-Oceania and vice president of UPF-Australia. He has a PhD in computer ethics and values education. He spoke on, “Right and Wrong, and Human Responsibility - How Does the Direction of Right and Wrong Differ?” He argued that this is a critical component of values education.
The final speaker was Mr. Chris Drake, president of the Association for Living Values Education International and co-founder and former chairman of the Asia-Pacific Network for Moral Education (APNME). He spoke on the topic, “Values Education: The Pathway to a Better World.” Mr. Drake is also the co-founder of three other organizations: the Mother and Child Health and Education Trust, the International Values-based Education Trust and TCK Learning Centre for Migrant Workers. Additionally, he serves as the chairman of the University of Oxford's China Advisory Group and Council and is a member of the Hong Kong International Institute for Education Leadership (HKIIEL).
The summit was supported by Women’s Federation for World Peace (WFWP), an affiliated organization; the Center for Global Nonkilling (CGNK); the Australia Arab Chamber of Commerce & Industry (AACCI); the Global Opportunities Commercialisation; the Global Somali Diaspora (GSD); and UNESCO-APNIEVE.