Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book traces the tensions that characterized the founding of United Nations Scientific, Educational and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) in 1945, examines the origins of UNESCO's humanism and outlines the theoretical and conceptual underpinnings of the study. It focuses on what the concept of education as a human right meant to the founders of UNESCO. The book also examines the role that human rights played for the legitimization of the international organizations created in the aftermath of World War II and revisits the debates of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) from a UNESCO perspective. It also focuses on the French and international influences on the concept, its close connection to adult education and its existentialist underpinnings. The book further examines the context from which the report emerged, its main messages and the reactions it triggered.