Addressing Transformative Education and Governance Through the Sustainable Development Goal 4: A Case Study

Abstract

The United Nations 2030 Agenda designed the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which were adopted in 2015 with the primary aim of achieving sustainable development by 2030. One of these goals is SDG 4, which aims to ‘Ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all’. Implementing SDG 4 calls for initiatives that instill knowledge, attitudes and skills as clearly indicated in Target 4.7. This requires a change in mindset, where transformative ideologies fused in both sustainability governance and education are required to encourage behavioural change. This research presents a case study regarding an exhibition, which toured Maltese schools and the community, in the form of a large Rubik’s cube possessing 17 cubicles in which an artifact about each SDG is presented. This case study aims to examine how this exhibition contributes to SDG 4, specifically Target 4.7. It also seeks to explore whether the case study contributes towards transformative approaches in tandem with education and governance for sustainable development. The methodological framework presents two innovative approaches – a visual qualitative analysis of each artifact and a matrix that attributes scores reflecting the effectiveness of each exhibit vis-à-vis the main components of Target 4.7. Qualitative and quantitative findings, supported by reflexivity, are garnered to examine the implications of this case study, which acts as a good springboard to emanate the SDGs within the community by creating a link between formal and non-formal learning spaces. Drawing upon such insights, a Transformative Education-Governance model is proposed where a number of action points are delineated. This provides a fertile terrain in reconceptualising education and governance, useful for researchers and practitioners in the fields of sustainability and education.