Global Student Forum
We work to connect, inspire and empower students globally through solidarity, democracy, representation and the practice of radical change.
Who we are
The Global Student Forum is the umbrella organisation of the world’s major representative student federations and the only independent, democratic and representative student governance structure dedicated to promoting the rights and perspectives of student organisations and movements on the global level.
Who we represent
The Global Student Forum was founded by the All-Africa Students Union (AASU), Commonwealth Students’ Association (CSA), European Students’ Union (ESU), Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions (OBESSU), Organización Continental Latinoamericana y Caribeña de Estudiantes (OCLAE), the New Zealand Union of Students’ Associations (NZSUA) and other national student organisations and movements. Through its membership it currently represents 202 student unions from 122 countries.
Why are we here?
The Global Student Forum is a platform for students and their movements to build networks and facilitate active solidarity through digital campaigns and on the ground action.
Through cooperation, analysis and strategy it serves as a coordinator for targeted political action and advocacy efforts facilitated for and by students.
What activities does the GSF facilitate?
We provide capacity building opportunities to our membership where they lack institutional resources, are weak or nascent. We furthermore organise training sessions and exchanges through which we can learn from each other and strengthen our work.
The overarching objective is to establish a culture that ensures the sustainable transfer of knowledge and preservation of organisational memory within the student movement, to bridge the gaps caused by a high turnover of activists and leaders.
Learn more about our upcoming events here.
What are the political priorities of the organisation?
Our cooperation is based on a set of shared principles and values that guide the way we work and define the overall political direction. In 2021, 2022 and 2023 we will focus on mitigating the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on our constituency while working on democracy, human rights and solidarity issues as well as equality, education for all, gender-, racial- and environmental justice.
How does the governance structure of the GSF look like?
The political leadership of the GSF lies in the hands of the Steering Committee. It consists of 7 elected student representatives from the member organisations and movements working from all parts of the world.
The Steering Committee is supported by a Secretariat based in Brussels, Belgium.
How can I contact the GSF with a solidarity request?
We aim to amplify the struggles of student organisations and movements around the world, whether campaigns against rising costs for education, violence in and outside of our educational institutions or other forms of human rights infringements.
Submit your solidarity request by contacting the Steering Committee via email under: steering.committee@globalstudentforum.org
How can my organisation apply for membership?
The membership of the Global Student Forum is open for student-led organisations of all kind and aims to encompass the diversity of unions and movements from all parts of the world.
Learn more about the membership criteria and application process here!
Latest news
The GSF at the People’s Global Summit!
A Global Student Declaration, for a fair Future in Education. The crucial importance of the advocacy demands of the international student movement in co-building a new democratic and eco-social world. In the framework of the path towards the World Higher Education...
Students Call on Governments to Alleviate the High Costs of Education on Poorest Families
As the 82nd Board Meeting and 40- year anniversary celebration of the European Students’ Union begins, the Global Student Forum join UNESCO’s GEM Report #RighttheRules campaign urging policy leaders to strengthen oversight of private actors so that the poorest are not priced out of education.
Launch of WHEC2022 – Global Student Declaration
Read the WHEC 2022 – Global Student Declaration developed by the Global Student Forum in cooperation with the All-Africa Students’ Union, the Commonwealth Students Association, the European Students’ Union, the Latin-American and Caribbean Continental Student Organisation, and the Organising Bureau of European School Student Unions.
Call for Applications Working Group on Environmental Justice
The Steering Committee of the Global Student Forum is hereby launching an open call for volunteers to be part of the working group on environmental justice, which will be working on issues related to climate action and sustainable development. Representatives from the...
Statement concerning World Intellectual Property Day
On the occasion of a World Intellectual Property Day focused on Intellectual Property and Youth, we call on governments to ensure that national and international copyright laws ensure the right to education for all. We applaud the choice of theme, which draws attention to the largest generation in history, who will be the driving force for sustainable and inclusive development. Yet, young people today are faced with considerable barriers to engage politically, economically and socially.
UNESCO World Higher Education Conference 2022 GSF Policy Briefs
The Global Student Forum launches the GSF-led transnational policy briefs that the GSF WHEC Working Group has prepared for the upcoming UNESCO World Higher Education Conference 2022, that will take place in Barcelona from the 18th to the 22nd of May.
Global Student Forum
Policies and Statements
The Steering Committee ongoingly issues statements and policy papers as well as ad-hoc reactions to developments within formal and informal international decision making spaces.
Press Releases
Policy Papers
Statements
Resolutions
Mission and Values
Our cooperation is guided by a shared set of values. They direct our actions and define the mission and vision of the organisation.
Events
We ongoingly host conferences, seminars and congresses. Join our next event!
Membership
We currently represent 202 student organisations and movements from 122 countries.
Team
Our team is as diverse as our membership and works from all parts of the world.
About GSF
Join our global community
We are united by the beliefs that democratic, representative and independent student movements are essential and that they should be able to operate without repression. We are fighting for free, public, accountable education that guarantees equal opportunity for everyone without discrimination.
We campaign against segregation and defend the rights of the marginalised. We are against war as a means of resolving conflict and are using solidarity as a way to build peace; and we stand for the human rights of the displaced, migrants and people forced to live under occupation.
As ecologists, we are fighting the destruction of the planet and working towards a safe and dignified life for our species in the future. As feminists, we are fighting for political, economic, personal, and social equality. We stand together because we recognise the interconnectedness of our struggles.
Featured Publications
Bologna with Students Eyes 2020
Bologna with Student Eyes is the European Students Unions reality-check of what has been agreed upon by national governments within the Bologna Process and what the actual situation is for students.
Demands on Refugee and Migrants' Education
Student representatives from all over the world came together for the “Global Student Voices: education and migration” forum. We developed these demands to address the challenges of access to quality education, legislation, living conditions and building solidarity and cohesion.
A Fair Share for Children: Preventing the loss of a generation to COVID-19
With the input of the 100 Million youth activists, Laureates and Leaders for Children published an emergency report to prevent a child rights disaster occurring as a result of the global pandemic.
Want to leave us a message?
Reach out now!