INTRODUCTION at a conference on global citizenship held in 2014, participants discussed topics ranging from effective models for basic education, to ending violence against women, to models of reconciliation and forgiveness in the aftermath of ethnic cleansing (Melton Foundation, 2014). The variety of meanings ascribed to global citizenship that appeared in the Melton Foundation 2014 Springboard Sessions is representative of that found in the research, usage, and practice of global citizenship throughout the world. Our original intent for this chapter, to thematically catalogue the discourse of global citizenship throughout space and time, proved naïve and unreasonable very soon after we began our research. In short order, we identified the term global citizenship in education and social science literature, in the context of nongovernmental organisations, corporations, educational policy and advocacy groups, private student exchange services, and K-20 formal and non-formal educational settings. Researchers have examined the term global citizenship from many angles, from the mention and meaning of the term in major world newspapers (Dill, 2013), to the creation of the term in academic discourse (Parmenter, 2010), to creating typologies of the multiple conceptualisations of the term (Oxley & Morris, 2013). In opening our eyes to the volumes of research on the meaning and usage of this complex concept, we noticed that, despite its multitude, the great majority of those doing the inspection have been associated with Western institutions. To understand the fullness of this concept as it is defined and used in the 21st century, global perspectives are needed.
