This Webfest, organised by Peter Mayo, UNESCO Chair in Global Adult Education, held under the auspices of this very same UNESCO Chair, and recorded and edited by Dr Joseph Vancell, celebrated the life, work and impact on education in Latin America of Gabriela Mistral. Gabriela Mistral (real name Lucilla Godoy Alcayaga) is a renowned Chilean poet and was the first Latin American to win the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1945. Her pseudonym derived from the names of two of her favourite poets, Gabriele D'Annunzio and Fredric Mistral.
The meeting featured presentations from four speakers, two from and based in Latin America and two based in Italy: Professors Carola Gabriela Sepulveda Vasquez (Chile), Sylvia Schmelkes (Mexico), Claudia Camicia (Italy) and Paolo Vittoria (Italy). They discussed Mistral's innovative approaches to education and her work with marginalised communities, especially Indigenous/ rural communities. The discussion explored Mistral's collaborations in Mexico and her impact on educational reforms, while also examining her relationship with Mexico Education Minister, Jose Vasconcelos. Quite significant was her advocacy for Indigenous people's rights despite working under a government figure who championed metissage. Vasconcellos felt that Indigenous people should crossbreed with those whom, he felt, were of ' superior' ( sic.) and wholesome European stock.
The contradictory situation in which Mistral must have found herself was given prominence in the discussions. After all, Mistral did not shy away from adopting principled stances in adversarial political contexts. She withdrew from a diplomatic posting in Naples when Italy was under the Nazi-Fascist government of Benito Mussolini allied to Adolf Hitler, author, in her view and that of many, of the most anti-Indigenous and anti-Mestizo text, the ultra notorious Mein Kampf; her posting in Fascist governed Italy would have been untenable.
The involved presentations on her educational philosophy and its connections to that espoused by other educators, such as Jose' Marti, and on her use of and views on communication technology in education. Also addressed was her spiritual legacy, despite her often being at loggerheads with the established institutional Catholic religion. She was well known for her denunciation of patriarchy, especially the Latin American brand of machismo, Western colonialism and Nazi-fascism Quite noteworthy were her efforts in promoting literacy and post literacy, the latter through the fostering of literacy sustaining environments through setting up libraries, especially with Vasconcellos in Mexico. She also promoted literacy sustaining cultural events including cinema events as a means of popular and community education. Her idea of the qualities a teacher should possess is expressed in a beautiful poem 'La Maestra Rural' ( The Rural Teacher) to which reference was made by Paolo Vittoria in the final presentation of the event.
Spanish and English were the two languages used in this webfest, the only one for 2025, the eight UNESCO Chair in Global Adult Education webfest to date.
The meeting featured presentations from four speakers, two from and based in Latin America and two based in Italy: Professors Carola Gabriela Sepulveda Vasquez (Chile), Sylvia Schmelkes (Mexico), Claudia Camicia (Italy) and Paolo Vittoria (Italy). They discussed Mistral's innovative approaches to education and her work with marginalised communities, especially Indigenous/ rural communities. The discussion explored Mistral's collaborations in Mexico and her impact on educational reforms, while also examining her relationship with Mexico Education Minister, Jose Vasconcelos. Quite significant was her advocacy for Indigenous people's rights despite working under a government figure who championed metissage. Vasconcellos felt that Indigenous people should crossbreed with those whom, he felt, were of ' superior' ( sic.) and wholesome European stock.
The contradictory situation in which Mistral must have found herself was given prominence in the discussions. After all, Mistral did not shy away from adopting principled stances in adversarial political contexts. She withdrew from a diplomatic posting in Naples when Italy was under the Nazi-Fascist government of Benito Mussolini allied to Adolf Hitler, author, in her view and that of many, of the most anti-Indigenous and anti-Mestizo text, the ultra notorious Mein Kampf; her posting in Fascist governed Italy would have been untenable.
The involved presentations on her educational philosophy and its connections to that espoused by other educators, such as Jose' Marti, and on her use of and views on communication technology in education. Also addressed was her spiritual legacy, despite her often being at loggerheads with the established institutional Catholic religion. She was well known for her denunciation of patriarchy, especially the Latin American brand of machismo, Western colonialism and Nazi-fascism Quite noteworthy were her efforts in promoting literacy and post literacy, the latter through the fostering of literacy sustaining environments through setting up libraries, especially with Vasconcellos in Mexico. She also promoted literacy sustaining cultural events including cinema events as a means of popular and community education. Her idea of the qualities a teacher should possess is expressed in a beautiful poem 'La Maestra Rural' ( The Rural Teacher) to which reference was made by Paolo Vittoria in the final presentation of the event.
Spanish and English were the two languages used in this webfest, the only one for 2025, the eight UNESCO Chair in Global Adult Education webfest to date.
