Cultivating Cultural Humility: A Cosmopolitan Framework for Intercultural Competence and Global Citizenship Education

In the context of rapidly evolving global socio-cultural landscapes, there is an imperative to redefine the concepts and practices that underpin the cultivation of intercultural competence and global citizenship. This theoretical paper examines the paradigm shift from cultural competence to cultural humility as a foundational framework for intercultural education. A critical review and synthesis of interdisciplinary literature spanning education, anthropology, social work, and psychology was conducted to explore how cultural humility addresses limitations in traditional competence-based models, particularly regarding power dynamics and Western-centric assumptions. This conceptual analysis draws on cosmopolitan theory and critical pedagogy, integrating Tervalon and Murray-García’s (1998) cultural humility framework with Hansen’s (2011) cosmopolitan orientation and contemporary intercultural communicative competence models. In this examination, three core principles are analyzed: lifelong self-evaluation and critique, recognition and mitigation of power imbalances, and institutional accountability. The article explores pedagogical implications for digital intercultural learning, community engagement, and assessment practices, while addressing structural barriers including ethnocentrism, linguistic imperialism, and educational inequalities. Synthesizing perspectives from cosmopolitanism, decolonial studies, and critical global citizenship education, we propose an integrated framework that balances universal ethical principles with cultural particularity. This framework prepares educators and learners for ethical engagement in an interconnected yet unequal world.