PH Zurich’s Department for International Projects in Education officially launched DEM-ED, a new academic network for democracy and peace education. The three-day opening conference brought together teacher educators from ten countries which will collaborate over the course of the project.
In March 2026, lecturers from ten countries gathered at the Zurich University of Teacher Education for the opening conference of the Academic Network to Empower Educators for Democracy and Peace (DEM-ED). Under the title “Learning for Peace, Teaching for Democracy: Challenges and Best Practices,” the three-day event marked the official launch of a network that aims to strengthen democracy and peace education in teacher training across Europe and beyond.
Rector Andrea Schweizer opened the conference, welcoming teacher educators and guests who had travelled from across the network's partner institutions to exchange ideas and build connections. Keynote speeches by Loizos Loukaidis and Rolf Gollob set the tone for three days of discussion on how digitalisation, polarisation and conflict are reshaping the challenges facing democracy and peace education today.
A key outcome of the conference was the formation of the first working groups, which will develop learning materials, practical approaches to peace and democracy education, and research addressing both teacher training students and school pupils.
DEM-ED brings together institutions from Switzerland, Ukraine, Kosovo, North Macedonia, Moldova, Georgia, Cyprus, Armenia and Germany. The project is coordinated by PH Zurich's Department for International Projects in Education and is financially supported by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI).
The network's founding members now look ahead to shaping DEM-ED together over the coming months and years. More information about DEM-ED is available on the official project website.
