Education Diplomacy: Greasing the Wheels of Collaboration and Collective Action

By Amlata Persaud, Global Practice Area Lead for Leadership, Childhood Education International

As we work toward building bright futures for all children worldwide, collective action is key achieving our goals for positive change. Education Diplomacy can promote and facilitate effective collective action, which is needed now more than ever.

The education space of today has changed in unprecedented ways.

An important change has been the drastic increase in the number of stakeholders who have initiated and joined education initiatives. There are new actors and organizations at global, regional, and local levels — in education and related sectors. Together with existing entities, they create a large and complex mélange of well-intentioned stakeholders working to advance educational outcomes.

Stakeholders need to be better at working together.

A key challenge is harnessing the collective energies and efforts of all these stakeholders to create change in a sensible and meaningful way. This requires coordination, communication, and collaboration among all those involved in educational change.

To do this, stakeholders need to improve their skills and abilities to work together efficiently and effectively. Too often, what takes place in the name of collaboration and collective action does not represent good practice, and instead wastes resources, time, and energy.

Education Diplomacy will get us to better outcomes through collective action.

Education Diplomacy is a concept and practice that can support effective partnership-building and collaborative work in the education sector to achieve and amplify outcomes.

Through its incorporation of diplomatic skills and insights, Education Diplomacy prepares education stakeholders to create strong and effective partnerships. Education Diplomacy addresses the key competencies to be built and steps to be followed in undertaking collective action to achieve collective impact. It presents an actionable way forward for education stakeholders in better navigating the ever-expanding education space in which we work today.

Childhood Education International has pioneered the concept and practice of Education Diplomacy. We have developed guidance, resources, and training for Education Diplomacy, including courses and consulting services.

Access Resources and Learn More About Education Diplomacy

About the Author

Amlata Persaud, Global Practice Area Lead for Leadership

Amlata Persaud is the Global Practice Area Lead for Leadership at Childhood Education International. She is committed to work that supports equitable and inclusive provision of high-quality education for all persons around the world. Her expertise is in multi-sectoral collaboration and systems-based approaches to advancing education reforms, and she centers her research and work in early childhood development.

Amlata has worked in education research, training, project management and policy analysis roles in multiple countries around the world. At CE International, she supports the organization’s work in fostering education leadership and strengthening education systems as key pillars for educational reform.