Education for Sustainable Development Through Policies and Strategies in the Public Portuguese Higher Education Institutions

Abstract

Many European countries, particularly in Northern Europe, have conducted integrated studies on Sustainable Development in Higher Education. In Portugal, no attempt has been made to evaluate how Public Higher Education Institutions (HEI) are incorporating Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) at policy and strategy level and how it was implemented within Ministry of Education and Science. The aim of this paper is to discuss the integration of sustainability in the 14 public HEI in Portugal through policies and strategies within the framework and goals of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) 2005–2014. The methodological approach is based on a documental content analysis where pre-selected key terms were used after a review of the literature in a deductive approach theory. Documentary research on polices, plans and programs from the Governmental Great Planning Options as Governmental Constitutional Plans and the Portuguese Ministry of Education and Science was performed through the analysis of the possible forms of implementation of DESD, and their consequent impacts on strategies of the public Institutions taking part of the Portuguese Council of Rectors. Given that 2014 was the final year of DESD 2005–2014 and 2005 was the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) assessment year, the integration of sustainability through policies and strategies in the Public Portuguese HEI is on schedule. More detailed studies must be undertaken at a later stage, namely interviewing the key stakeholders in the Government, Ministry of Education and Science or Portuguese University Rectors Council (PURC). Notwithstanding some international drivers and a few practical examples at University level, preliminary results showed that ESD is still in its early stages of development and that there is a lack of national integrated strategies or policies. We do believe that there is an absolute need for a change in the paradigm of Portuguese HEI and several barriers to overcome, as from learning as from the application of best practices from other European and worldwide countries. This paper will be useful to academics and researchers interested in further develop the topic of integration of sustainability through policies and strategies in Public HEI in Portugal.