Gertrude Cotter

Dr. Gertrude Cotter is a lecturer in Global Citizenship and Development Education (GCDE) at the School of Education, University College Cork. She brings a lifeling commitment to transfformative, cross-disciplinary education, with a strong focus on social justice, human rights, advocacy, and building sustainable futures. 

Wit extensive experience in higher education, Dr. Cotter has a distinguished record in teaching, research, and publication, complemented by the completion of ten postgraduate degrees. She maintains an exceptional success rate in securing competitve research and education grants.

A proven leader and strategic thinker, Dr. Cotter has served as CEO of a highly impactful human rights organisation, established a successful social enterprise, and contributed her expertise on several national civil society boards. She has also led research teams that bridge academic scholarship with meaningful civic engagement.

Her professional practice is defined by a deep commitment to creative, collaborative, and participatory approaches to pedagogy, research, and active citizenship. This is exemplified in her leadership of the Praxis Project which engages UCC staff and students in embedding GCDE principles across research, teaching, policy and practice. 

Education Qualifications

Languages

As a Lecturer in Global Citizenship and Development Education (GCDE) at the School of Education, my research centres on embedding GCDE within higher education through interdisciplinary approaches, innovative methodologies, and transformative North-South partnerships. Coordinating the Praxis Project, I lead collaborative efforts with UCC staff and students to investigate the most effective ways to integrate GCDE into the university's pedagogy, research, policy, and practice. 

• Current Research Focus #1 Global Citizenship and Development Education (GCDE) in Higher Education

Role: Principal Investigator

Research Aim: This study seeks to understand how GCDE can be systematically embedded across higher education institutions and what insights this can offer for academia broadly. While focusing on UCC, this research has broader implications for higher education as a whole. The project is now in its third year, with initial findings from Years 1 and 2 already published and a final report forthcoming. Research findings are available here. https://praxisucc.ie/research/

Research Question: How can the theory and practice of Global Citizenship and Development Education (GCDE) be embedded across all disciplines and functions within higher education institutions, and what insights can be drawn from UCC’s experience for broader academic application?

• Current Research Focus #2 Interdisciplinary Global Partnerships

Role: Principal Investigator

Research Aim: This project redefines global partnerships in GCDE, moving beyond traditional 'North-South' paradigms by creating collaborative models with universities and communities in Kenya, Palestine, Peru, and Ireland. Using postcolonial and social justice frameworks, this research aims to foster equitable, culturally sensitive partnerships that enrich GCDE across disciplines and support global academic communities committed to equity and social trasnformation.

Research Question: How can diverse global partnership enhance the integration and practice of GCDE in higher education, given the unique contexts of each partnership?

• Current Research Focus #3 Anti-Racism in GCDE

Role: Prinicple Investigator

Research Aim: The 'Elephant in the Room' project uses symbolic papier-mache elephants as creative tools to foster dialogue and reflection on racism at UCC. This project aims to frame GCDE through an anti-racism lens, documenting community experiences of racism and supporting anti-racist practices in teaching, research, and university policies. Findings from this study aim to support other higher education institutions in integrating anti-racism with GCDE.

Research Question: How can GCDE be framed through an anti-racism perspective, and what insights can be gained from UCC's community experiences to strengthen this approach?

• Current Research Focus #4 GCDE and the Creative Arts

Role:  Principal Investigator

Research Aim: Exploring how creative arts can deepen engagement with GCDE, this project uses painting, crafting, storytelling, and similar methodologies to encourage critical inquiry into global issues. As part of "Unsettling Education", a series of talks and workshops supported by UCC's Centre for Arts Research and Practice, participants co-create an educational resource and an academic article, revealing how the arts can offer new approaches to complex social issues within GCDE.

Research Question: How can creative arts serve as an effective medium for embedding GCDE in higher education, and in what ways can they enhance participant engagement with global challenges?

• Current Research Focus #5 Oral History of Development Education using Community Radio

Role: Presenter and Principal Investigator

Research Aim: This ongoing research will culminate into a book, We Lived It: An Oral History of Global Citizenship and Development Education in Ireland, based on seven years of interviews from The Global Hub radio show, which Dr. Cotter presented. This resource not only explores the history of GCDE but also demonstrates how community radio can serve as an educational tool. While the resource offers practical guidance for educators, the book provides a comprehensive exploration of storytelling and radio as methodologies in GCDE, capturing the voices and histories of those who have contributed to the field in Ireland.

Other Research Interests:

• GCDE and Community-linked Learning
• Storytelling and Social Justice
• GCDE and Digital Humanities
• Research methodologies, including Critical Pedagogy, Multimedia, Community-linked Learning, Creative Arts, Drama, Radio, Digital Storytelling, and Film.

Teaching approaches and methodologies include, where relevant: Critical Pedagogy; Multimedia; Community-Linked Learning; Creative Arts, Drama, Digital Storytelling, Radio and Film.