Arne Carlsen from Denmark is the Director of UNESCO Institute for Lifelong Learning. Mr Carlsen, Director for International Affairs at the Danish School of Education at Aarhus University in Copenhagen, has a long-standing professional background in teaching and research and a leading role in several international initiatives in lifelong learning.

He is Executive Director of the International Alliance of Leading Education Institutes (IALEI), Programme Manager of the Erasmus Mundus European Masters Programme in Lifelong Learning Policy and Management, and Chair of the ASEM Education and Research Hub for Lifelong Learning, a network of Asian and European universities and researchers.

Mr Carlsen has a long-standing affiliation to UIL, for example as a member of the Consultative Group for the Sixth International Conference on Adult Education (CONFINTEA VI).