By Kristen Powers
TPL Concierge Specialist
April 16, 2024

Spring has sprung, and with it Earth Day is upon us! This celebration reminds us of the importance of caring for, protecting, and creating a more sustainable and healthy planet. To that end, we want to celebrate our learning village by cultivating a community of global citizenship that fosters connections between ourselves and our neighbors - both in our backyard, and around the world.

What is global citizenship?

A global citizen is defined as someone who is aware of and respects their place in the world and how their actions impact the social, economic, and environmental outcomes for other citizens- both in their immediate community and across the world. As a steward of global citizenship, it is imperative to teach even our youngest learners the importance of a steadfast commitment to the planet and to each other.

Why foster a global perspective at a young age?

Within the TPL community we encourage students and families to develop a globally minded perspective; recognizing and celebrating different cultures, heritages, and identities, and caring about people and the environment worldwide. There are many ways to cultivate a lifestyle of global citizenship within the home. Here are some practices to instill in your family.

Fostering Global Citizenship at Home

Supporting Environmental Best Practices

Sustainability is key in supporting the planet. Consider discussing with your child why shopping locally, only purchasing what you need, relying on reusable items and ensuring there are enough resources for others is vital. This is a great time to discuss cause and effect with younger children; how purchasing locally made items requires less travel time and fuel. For older children, you can discuss this in simple economic terms - like how and why to support small businesses to ensure a robust economy.

Helping Others

Starting at an early age, we all encourage our children to keep an eye out for friends, classmates, and family members needing help. In a global citizenship sense the goal is to encourage children to look beyond just their immediate environment to a broader perspective of people in need. Discuss with your children how they can help people, animals, and the environment within the community. Look for opportunities to work on a neighborhood garden, volunteer at an animal shelter, participate in a food drive, or consider making a donation to a charity of your choice. Remember, no good deed is too small.

Respecting and Valuing Differences

Recognition of cultural differences is a key element to global citizenship. Even young children can and should be exposed to communities that are different from their own. Providing information to your child about different languages, religions, food, housing, celebrations, careers, and family units at a young age will foster an appreciation of and understanding towards the many differences that make people unique. Consider working with your child to pick a different country and develop a research project studying the special aspects of that nation and the similarities and differences between your own country and community.

A society grows great when old men plant trees in whose shade they shall never sit.” — Greek Proverb

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