Education For Sustainable Development

ESD tackles about the role of education in Sustainable Development.

1. EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (ESD)

2. UNESCO, 2005 It has been acknowledged that there is no single route to sustainable development. Furthermore, it is coherent that understandings and visions for sustainability will be different for each of us and that we will need to work together to negotiate the process of achieving sustainability.

3. The concept of sustainable development was popularized in 1987 with the publication of the “Brundtland Report”—the report of the World Commission on Environment and Development. This landmark report highlighted the need to conceptualize sustainable development that would “meet the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.

4. Sustainable development is generally thought to have three components: (1) Society , (2) Environment , and (3) Economy. SOCIAL Peace, Equity, Democracy ECONOMIC Work, Money, Education ENVIRONMENT Conservation, Preservation, Protection

5. Society : understanding of social institutions and their role in change and development as well as the democratic and participatory systems. Environment : awareness of the resources and fragility of the physical environment and the effects on its human activity and decisions. Economy : sensitivity to the limits and potential of economic growth and their impact on society and on the environment, with a commitment to assess a personal and societal levels of consumption out of concern for the environment and social justice. Thus, achieving sustainable development will require balancing environmental, societal, and economic considerations in the pursuit of development and an improve quality of life.

6. UNESCO, 2002 Education for sustainable development is a dynamic concept that encompasses a new vision of education to empower people to assume responsibility for creating a sustainable future. Its overall aim is to empower citizens to act for positive environmental and social change implying a participatory and action-oriented approach.

7. ESD is fundamentally about values, with respect at the centre; respect for other, including those present and future generations, for difference and diversity, for the environment, and for the resources of the planet that we inhabit. Education enables us to understand ourselves and others, and our links with the wider natural and social environment; and this understanding serves as a durable basis for building respect. Along with a sense of justice, responsibility, exploration and dialogue, ESD claims to move us to adopting behaviors and practices that enable us to live a full life without being deprived of basics.

8. Education is an essential tool for achieving sustainability. Education at all levels can shape the world of tomorrow, equipping individuals and societies with the skills, perspectives, knowledge and values to live and work in a sustainable manner. It directly affects sustainability plans in the following area: Implementation Decision-making Quality of life

9. Implementation. An educated citizenry is vital to implementing informal and sustainable development. Nations with high illiteracy rates and unskilled workforces have fewer development options. An educated workforce is the key to moving beyond an extractive and agricultural economy. Decision making. Good community based decisions—which will affect social, economic, and environmental well-being—also depend on educated citizens. Quality of life. Education is also control to improving quality of life. Education raises the economic status of families, it improves life conditions, lowers infant mortality, and improves the educational attainment of the next generation.

10. Skills that are essential in the development of ESD: (Adapted from Tilbury D. And Wortman, D. 2004) Envisioning - being able to imagine a better future. C ritical Thinking and Reflection - learning to question our current belief systems and to recognize the assumptions underlying our knowledge, perspective and opinions. Systematic thinking - acknowledging complexities and looking for links and synergies when trying to find solutions to problems. Building Partnerships - promoting dialogue and negotiation, learning to work together. Participation in decision making - empowering people.

11. How can Education for Sustainable Development improve the quality of education? ESD teaches individuals how to make decisions that consider the long-term future of the economy, ecology, and equity of all communities. ESD mirrors concerns for education of high quality, encouraging a holistic interdisciplinary approach. It should be locally relevant, stimulate critical thinking and encourage the use of problem solving techniques. In order to create ESD programs all sectors of education community need to work together in a cooperative manner.

12. Quality education understands the past, is relevant to the present, and has a view to the future. It relates to knowledge building and the skillful application of all forms by unique individuals that function independently and in relation to others. A quality education reflects the dynamic nature of culture and languages, the value of the individual in relation to the larger context, and the importance of living in a way that promotes equality in the present and fosters a sustainable future.

13. UNESCO’s Role in Education for Sustainable Development In December 2002, the United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution putting in place a United Nations Decade for Sustainable Development (DESD) spanning from 2005-2014. The founding value of ESD is respect: Respect for others; Respect in the present and future generations; Respect for the planet and what it provides to us (resources, fauna, and flora).

14. The DESD breaks down the traditional scheme and promotes: Interdisciplinary and holistic learning rather than subject based learning. Values-based learning; Critical thinking rather than memorizing; Multi-method approaches: word, art, drama, debates, etc; Participatory decision-making; and Locally relevant information, rather than national.

15. The DESD aims at changing the approach to education so that it can integrate the principles, values and practices of sustainable development. Its goals can be broken down into four key objectives: Facilitating, networking, and collaboration among stakeholders of ESD; Fostering greater quality of teaching and learning of environmental topics; Supporting countries in achieving their millennium development goals through ESD efforts, and Providing countries with new opportunities and tools to reform education.

16. UNESCO’s role, including its member States, are defined by the four major thrusts of ESD, as follows: Improving access to quality basic education; Reorienting existing educational programs; Developing public understanding and awareness; and proving training.

17. There are key action themes for Education for Sustainable Development. They are as follows: 1. Gender Equality. Where each member of society respects others and plays a role in which they can fulfill their potential. 2. Health Promotion. Schools should act not only as centers for academic learning, but also as supportive venues for the provision of essential health services, in collaboration with parents and the community.

18. 3 .Environment. Teaching society how to behave responsibility and respect the environment lies at the core of education for sustainable development. 4. Rural Development. Education and training are essential in addressing rural poverty and ensuring sustainable development in these parts of the world.

19. 5. Cultural Diversity. ESD aims at promoting teaching which respects indigenous and traditional knowledge, and encourages the use of indigenous language in education, the integration of worldviews and perspectives on sustainability into education programs at all levels. 6. Peace and Human Security. Peace and security are fundamental to human dignity and development, the sustainable development of any culture is always endangered by a situation of insecurity and conflict.

20. 7. Sustainable Development. With responsible decision-making, however, cities also hold promising opportunities for social and economic advancement and for environmental improvements at local, national, and global levels. 8. Sustainable Consumption. Our choices as consumers today will impact the way people will live tomorrow. Sustainable consumption means consuming goods and services without harming the environment or the society.

21. Education for Sustainable Development, therefore, is focused on giving people knowledge and skills for lifelong learning to help them find new solutions to their environmental, economic, and social issues.

22. ESD as the right attitude to globalization. The optimist globalists see only the boon of globalizing influences in terms of improved quality of life, higher living standards, and greater social cohesion and understanding. The pessimist globalists see the dark side of globalization with dominant First World Countries imposing their own economic and political agenda on the world. The traditional globalists who would not stand and wait but take a proactive stand. ESD takes the proactive stand. It seek to face the dangers of globalization and actualize the process for creating a new world system, even as unresolved and grave global and regional concerns loom in the world today.

23. Being an Educator for Sustainable Development Environmental awareness. This program promotes environmental education, active approaches to teaching-learning citizenship education, research and exchange of experience internationally. Competencies for the knowledge economy. This delineates the skills of knowledge workers and specifies conditions to be met for lifelong learning for all.

24. Human/social capital economic growth. This studies the specific roles of both human and social capital in economic growth. Inclusive education. This addresses the special education needs of students with organic disabilities, learning difficulties and social disadvantages.

25. Guidelines were also set for effectively incorporating ESD into the curricula: Decide the themes to ensure programs fit the environmental, social, and economic conditions and goals of their community/region/nation. Ensure educators/administrators understand the concept of sustainability-- and are familiar with its principles; that they distinguish between “education about sustainable development” (cognitive theories) and ESD as “a tool to achieve more sustainable futures.”

26. Use the UNESCO design criteria for ESD program evaluation: relevance and appropriateness, based on the local needs/perceptions/conditions, lifelong endeavor, addresses context/content/pedagogy/local priorities/global issues, deals with the well-being of 3 realms of sustainability (environment, ecology, and economy), not imported from another culture/region, not “one size fits all, but created to fit local/regional differences.

27. The g uidelines set for Teachers Acknowledge their key role as cornerstones of effective ESD programs and co-developers of the curricula. Understand the cross-cutting (mainstreaming) and multi-disciplinary nature of ESD. Avoid overloading the curriculum and to solely link ESC to one or two disciplines. Be open to divers learning strategies. Appreciate the importance of multi-stakeholder partnerships-- working together to solve a shared problems.

28. ESD teaching-learning process in the classroom Values-based learning . The processes of self-reflection and critical inquiry fosters critical thinking of one’s values and the values of others. Learning to transform. This involves developing a vision for ESD and subsequent transformation-of-thinking for change. Whole-school approach. This is to develop an entire school culture committed to ESD, not focusing on ESD simply within the curricula, and Community-based learning. The schools act as a social agent, as part of the community and involving the community as a resource and participant in decision-making processes.

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