Online Dialogue with the Director-General: Shaping UNESCO for the People

Zonta International President-Elect Fernanda Gallo-Freschi joined the event, "Online Dialogue with the Director-General: Shaping UNESCO for the People," on 29 April 2026 for a virtual dialogue with UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany.

The event was organized by the UNESCO Unit for Civil Society Partnerships. The forum featured 76 non-governmental organization leaders as panelists, including Zonta International, alongside 61 additional attendees.

Director-General El-Enany and NGO-UNESCO Liaison Committee President Stoyanove Svetlomira opened the session, emphasizing the importance of partnerships with NGOs.

Gallo-Freschi contributed a comprehensive strategic statement, “Zonta International - and its Foundation for Women- is a global organization focused on human rights for women and girls, present in 65 countries with 25,000 members, currently working on 4 key focus areas according to our strategic plan to 2030: Education, Gender Based Violence, Climate Justice and Women in Leadership.

From Zonta’s perspective, UNESCO’s role on gender equality in education is foundational, shaping norms and global standards—particularly around ethics in science, AI and cultural preservation is fundamental.

In terms of priority areas for UNESCO moving forward, Zonta would encourage UNESCO to continue moving from gender equality as a theme to gender equality as a lens applied across all its work. There are a few areas where UNESCO could sharpen its focus:

  • Gender equality as a cross-cutting priority
  • Ethics of emerging technologies
  • Education for global citizenship, including climate literacy, human rights and intercultural understanding

In our view, NGO partnership with UNESCO represents recognition and credibility, and access to global dialogue. Simplified mechanisms for engagement would be welcome.

In conclusion, Organizations like Zonta stand ready to collaborate more through our representatives at UNESCO Paris. The challenges we face—gender inequality, climate change, digital transformation—require exactly this kind of alliance between global institutions and civil society.”

27 MAY 2026