The Conference stands at the core of contemporary debate on the deep interconnection between education, citizenship, and social justice in the twenty-first century. At its heart lies the reciprocal bond between education and democracy—an idea that transcends the mere transmission of democratic principles and instead calls for a theoretical, political, and practical engagement aimed at cultivating the knowledge, values, and practices essential for genuine democratic coexistence.

This journey unfolds across multiple dimensions: from active and critical participation in collective life to respect for human, civil, and social rights; from valuing diversity and fostering intercultural dialogue to advancing education for peace and the capacity for renewed negotiation. Can democracy be learned? In our time, it is both an urgent and complex challenge—one that demands political imagination, pedagogical courage, and an unwavering commitment to social justice. Schools, and society as a whole, are thus called to become living spaces of democratic learning—places where democratic values are not merely taught but lived, tested, and reimagined daily.

The Conference explores in particular the dynamic interplay between two complementary perspectives. Learning for Democracy conceives of education as a means of acquiring the dispositions and capacities necessary for active citizenship. Democracy for Learning, in turn, positions democracy itself as the organizing principle of educational processes, promoting inclusive, participatory, and dialogical environments. The challenge lies in transcending the rigid separation between these visions to embrace an integrated one—recognizing both the political dimension of learning and the imperative of practicing democracy within educational spaces. Only through such synthesis can we lay the groundwork for a more just and genuinely participatory society.

This relationship between democracy and education raises pressing questions. How can we educate for democracy when democratic institutions themselves are under strain? How can we foster inclusion and social justice amid widening inequalities and populist backlash? How do we prevent democratic education from becoming a hollow exercise, detached from lived experiences of inclusion? How can we build a democratic vision that embraces diverse cultures, languages, and religions through authentic dialogue rather than assimilation? And how might we cultivate democratic societies capable of acting responsibly toward future generations?

These questions are made even more urgent by the realities of the contemporary infosphere—a communication environment saturated with disinformation, hate speech, and polarization. Such a context demands a renewed democratic literacy, one that equips citizens to navigate complexity with critical awareness and ethical responsibility.

Active, conscious, and critical education stands on the shoulders of thinkers who have shaped the democratic imagination of learning: from John Dewey, who saw education as a laboratory of democracy grounded in experience and cooperation; to Paulo Freire, for whom teaching was an act of liberation through dialogue and critical consciousness; from Martha Nussbaum, who placed human capabilities at the center of a substantive citizenship; to Henry Giroux, who underscored the political nature of education as a vehicle of emancipation and resistance to inequality; and Gert Biesta, who distinguished between socialization, qualification, and subjectification, showing how democratic education seeks to form individuals capable of acting responsibly in a shared world.

Building on these theoretical foundations, the Conference aims to foster a broad and multifaceted dialogue—ranging from the effort to move beyond Eurocentric perspectives in pursuit of epistemic justice, to feminist and gender-based analyses, to rethinking education as a practice of global and sustainable citizenship. Particular attention is devoted to the digital dimension and artificial intelligence: nurturing active and responsible citizenship today requires cultivating critical awareness in the use of technology, ensuring it serves as a tool of empowerment rather than of fragmentation and isolation.