UNESCO, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation, firmly believes that media and information literacy (MIL) is a key skill for today’s world. In the face of a seemingly endless amount of information, and with growing threats from mis- and disinformation, the need to build MIL competencies is greater than ever.

UNESCO’s annual Global Media and Information Literacy (MIL) Week is a high-level opportunity to bring stakeholders together to raise awareness of and celebrate progress towards achieving MIL for all. From 24-31 October, you are invited to highlight library progress on MIL.

Collaboration is Key in 2023

This year’s theme is: “Media and Information Literacy in Digital Spaces: A Collective Global Agenda”. The goal is to bring together many different perspectives to develop new ideas and reinforce existing initiatives to advance MIL in the digital environment.

UNESCO recognises that it is critical to bring together a diverse range of stakeholders to integrate MIL into policies, operations, and digital products. Collaboration is key for achieving MIL for all, and libraries are essential partners.

The strong role of library professionals in advocating for an inclusive, rights-based information society means that defining a collective global agenda for MIL in digital spaces requires the participation of our sector.  Opportunities like Global MIL Week offer a chance to highlight to policy- and decision-makers the important contribution of the field, as well as reach out to new audiences and collaborators.

Organise a Celebration Event

You are invited to spark conversation on MIL in your library and beyond to celebrate Global MIL Week! This does not have to be elaborate or expensive – there are many ideas for low/no-cost ways to encourage a dialogue about MIL and provide insight into good practices of MIL competencies in the digital environment.

For ideas on how to celebrate Global MIL Week, read IFLA’s Get Into Guide.

Get into Global Media and Information Literacy Week 2023

The goal of Global Media & Information Literacy (MIL) Week is to raise awareness of the need for an international effort towards helping citizens become informed consumers and creators of information and media. This guide can help libraries think about how they can take part in discussing and celebr...

Help demonstrate how libraries promote MIL for all by registering your Celebration Event on UNESCO’s website. Registered events will be featured on the Global MIL Week official website, and might even be highlighted in UNESCO press releases and other communications material.

Register a celebration event here.

Don’t forget to engage with your community on social media. Tag #GlobalMILWeek to join the global conversation

Get in touch with IFLA to let us know that you would like to plan a celebration event!

Contact:

claire.mcguire@ifla.org

Tags: News, Digital literacy, Global Alliance for Partnerships on Media and Information Literacy, Information literacy, Media and information literacy, Media literacy, UNESCO