By Eylül DEMİRÖZ, Youth Speaker | Youth Section
The speech below was delivered (virtually) at the “Compulsory Peace & ICT Education in Support of the International Day of Democracy on the 13th of September 2025.
Organized and presented virtually by Light Millennium Global along with the Coalition on September 13, 2025. #CompulsoryPeaceICTEducation | #DemocracyDay

Background / Concept / Expected Outcomes  |  Bio of the Speakers & Profiles of the Participating Orgs.

Executive Summary

[LMGlobal.Org] Speaking on the potential of technology, student Eylul Demiroz highlights how AI and IT tools in K-12 education can act as a bridge for cultural understanding. She explains that these technologies, particularly through translation and collaborative platforms, can reduce prejudice, build empathy, and strengthen democracy by connecting students across borders. Eylul emphasizes that for this to be successful, human guidance is crucial to teach digital empathy and critical thinking, ensuring a safe and respectful environment.

A speech by Eylül DEMİRÖZ:

Today’s students can connect with a classroom across the world in seconds. This wasn’t possible until recent generations. AI and IT tools in grades K through 12 can be used as a powerful bridge across countries and cultures. With that being said, connecting classrooms from across the globe through AI and IT tools can be a gateway to cultural understanding which can reduce prejudice, build empathy and understanding, and strengthen democratic societies.

Since students from other countries don’t all necessarily share the same common language, breaking language barriers with the help of AI translating tools plays a huge role on how this can work. This will allow students from different countries to work together on projects in real time. For example, a Turkish student can collaborate with Korean students in a time efficient way learning academic and cultural perspectives.

On the other hand, IT platforms can expose students to different worldviews, which will build respect and tolerance, along with sharing democratic values, rather than being isolated with their own views. Of course, there are outside factors that we need to implement on our own. Teachers should teach digital empathy and critical thinking so that students engage in topics respectfully, and that misinformation isn’t spread across the internet. AI and IT aren’t enough; we still need human guidance so we can create a safe space without having to worry about stereotypes or misinformation being spread.

AI and IT can transform classrooms into arenas of global connection. By helping children understand each other across borders, we can strengthen democracy and peace. To achieve a more democratic and peaceful future, teaching students only math and science won’t help, but we must also teach them to see how to see the world through each other’s eyes, with the help of technology.