ce for the promotion of lifelong learning as a means of achieving the UN Sustainable Development Goals at the local level.
New membership regulations have recently been introduced; namely:
- the UNESCO GNLC only accepts up to three new member cities per country per year;
- applications are reviewed and accepted in the period from 1 March to 30 April only;
- cities that are already members of the network are required to submit a progress report on their learning city project to the UNESCO GNLC Coordination Team every two years.
Become a member
From 1 March to 30 April each year, cities in UNESCO Member States are invited to apply for membership of the UNESCO Global Network of Learning Cities. Application forms are available on the UNESCO GNLC web page. The form must be filled in electronically and must include the city mayor’s signature.
The application form should be sent by email to the responsible National Commission for UNESCO for endorsement; the UNESCO GNLC Coordination Team (firstname.lastname@example.org) should be included in all correspondence. Contact information can be found online in the Directory of National Commissions for UNESCO. Please note that National Commissions have the right to request additional documents and records from the city if necessary prior to endorsing the application.
Once the application has been endorsed, the relevant National Commission is asked to submit the completed application to the UNESCO GNLC Coordination Team. The applicant city should be sent a copy of this correspondence. Alternatively, following endorsement by the National Commission, the city can submit the final application directly to UNESCO GNLC, copying in the relevant National Commission. Please note that UIL has the right to request additional documents and records from the city in order to complete the application process.
Time-frame for application: There is one open call for applications per year, from 1 March to 30 April, during which time cities may submit their membership applications to their National Commission for UNESCO. After this application period has ended, National Commissions have up to one month to send endorsed applications to the UNESCO GNLC Coordination Team.