Multicultural citizenship and intercultural education

The concept of citizenship was elaborated in Western countries after the Second World War. The concept of multicultural citizenship is an evolution thereof in the era of accelerated globalization, which has brought about a considerable increase in intercultural exchanges. In this era, education is frequently considered the most important setting for enhancing young people’s multicultural citizenship. In European countries, and in line with UNESCO’s definition, education dealing with multicultural citizenship is intercultural education. Intercultural education is thought to to promote positive intercultural relations, enhancing both cultural diversity and intercultural interconnectedness, thus being a form of intercultural dialogue. Intercultural dialogue is meant to promote a new, participated form of cosmopolitan citizenship, which can fit in a global interdependent world; however, this seems to be a complex and difficult task.