Decade Of Education For Sustainable Development Research Articles

The prospect of education for sustainable development ameliorating specific abiotic factors in the environment: A Finnish case study

UNESCO has indicated the need for more research to test the effectiveness of education for sustainable development (ESD). This study analyzes how ESD is included in the Finnish national core curriculum and examines four environmental indicators to determine if a correlation exists between ESD and a cleaner physical environment in Finland. The study’s results indicate that increased environmental consciousness through ESD does not completely correlate to a cleaner physical environment. Two of the environmental indicators, total CO2 and greenhouse gas emissions from household fuel combustion, reduced after the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD); however, it could not be determined if ESD or government policies are responsible for these reductions. The other two environmental indicators, municipal waste and electricity consumption, increased post-DESD. This study concludes by recommending that ESD be institutionalized in teacher education programs alongside ecopedagogy throughout the Finnish education system.

BỘ TIÊU CHÍ ĐẠI HỌC BỀN VỮNG (SUSTAINABLE CAMPUS): KINH NGHIỆM QUỐC TẾ VÀ ĐỊNH HƯỚNG XÂY DỰNG BỘ TIÊU CHÍ TRƯỜNG ĐẠI HỌC BỀN VỮNG Ở VIỆT NAM

University model incorporates 4 basic components: Administration and policy; Operate; Training, research and extracurricular activities and Community involvement and social responsibility - is “a model of sustainability” of university that is being sought by many countries around the world. In Vietnam, education for sustainable development (ESD) had been launched and promoted during the Decade of ESD under the UNESCO support (2005 – 2014). Despite the initial achievements, study related to sustainable campus remains limited in both theory and practice. On the basis of analyzing the basic characteristics of the sustainable university model and in-depth analysis of 4\12 sustainable campus assessment frameworks such as AISHE (Netherlands, 2009), BIQ-AUA, (Asia-Pacific, 2009) STARS (USA, Canada, 2014) and Green Metric (Indonesia, 2014), we provide the necessary theoretical issues about sustainable university, thereby proposing some suggestions to build a sustainable campus assessment framework in Vietnam appropriate with the regional context.

Knowledge, Perceptions and Attitudes on Education for Sustainable Development of Pre-Service Early Childhood Teachers in Greece

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is an important issue for the education of students worldwide becauseit offers knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary to ensure a sustainable future for humanity at local andglobal levels, which is nowadays becoming critical. The decade 2005-2014 called ‘Decade of ESD’ was an initiativeby the United Nations to promote ESD worldwide, followed currently by the Agenda 2030. ESD should be anongoing subject for students in formal and informal education, at all educational levels, and in life-long learningprograms, starting with early childhood education. This paper reports on the knowledge, perceptions and attitudes ofpre-service early childhood teachers of the University of Ioannina, Greece, on ESD using a quantitative approachutilizing a questionnaire. Our findings showed that most pre-service teachers had knowledge on environmentalaspects but did not consider societal and financial matters to be aspects of ESD. Furthermore, most students hadnever ESD lessons during their formal education. Our findings depict that pre-service students believe that ESD is animportant issue, that it should be included in the curricula and that lessons on EDS during their studies woulddevelop their ability to teach ESD to their students.

What have we done and where will we go? - Brief Review and Outlook of Education for Sustainable Development in China

Since the beginning of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) (2005-2014) in 2005, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) has been started a new era of educational innvation progress in China. Up to now, China has created a new histroy of ESD for 21 years, and ESD, the abstract conception from international academia has been became a leading thought of teaching and learning innvation for more and more teachers in China, and in 2010, ESD was been writen in the Outline of the National Program for Medium and Long-term Education Reform and Development (2010-2020) by Chinese Ministry of Education as a strategic direction of education deveopment for the coming ten years. Exactly, ESD has readlly played a positive role in educational reform and innovation.

Research in EE and ESD in Portuguese public universities

Purpose This paper aims to outline the scientific production in Portuguese universities in environmental education (EE) and education for sustainable development (ESD). It takes doctoral theses presented in public universities as reference, assuming that, in Higher Education, the production of doctoral theses is a key beacon of the scientific development in academic fields of knowledge. Design/methodology/approach The theses selected were subject to documentary and content analyses. Findings The results allow the identification of research trends and the recognition of detached aspects, such as the influence of the UN Decade of ESD in the research themes and the clear preponderance of a qualitative-led research tradition. Originality/value This paper provides an original and extensive review of PhD studies on EE and ESD in Portuguese public universities.

Environmental Sustainability Competency Framework for Polytechnics Engineering Programmes

Sustainability challenges such as degradation of ecosystem, loss in biodiversity, depletion and destruction of natural resources, numerous instances of pollution, and the extreme poverty of millions of human beings all originated from how people think. In an effort to improve the situation, the UN declared the years 2005–2014 as Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), calling for a thorough integration of competencies in sustainability issues at all levels of education. In line with this, addressing numerous sustainability-related problems requires an urgent need to reorient the school curricula, so that appropriate sustainability competencies are injected. Since the contents of HEIs curricula revolve around knowledge-based goals, skill-based goals and affective goals, this study investigated competencies (Knowledge, Skills and Attitudes) in the environmental sustainability suitable for incorporation into Higher National Diploma (HND) electrical/electronic engineering curriculum in Nigeria. The study employed qualitative approach through document analysis and semi-structured interview with the participants. The documents analyzed were twelve Journal Articles and five Skill Standards. The researchers also conducted interviews with electrical/electronic personnel in the academia and industry. The empirical findings of the semi-structured interviews corroborated the theoretical findings in the documents analyses. The study discovered several competencies in the document analysis as well as interviews, which were ultimately analyzed thematically. The themes include: Climate change, Ecology, Environmental Resource Management, System Thinking, Sustainable urbanization, Recycling/Re-use, and Empathy and Ethics. The researchers analyzed only 17 documents and conduct 10 interviews, thus, conclusions derived from these sources rely on the genuineness of the information provided by the participants. The findings provide the researchers, accreditation body as well as curriculum developers with competencies in environmental sustainability in the events of curriculum upgrade or renewal to integrate sustainability. The findings are the results of triangulated data elicited theoretically and empirically.

Response of educational research in Turkey to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development

With the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), nations’ engagement with sustainability has differed considerably on the basis of their socio-political priorities. Since reviewing research trends is one way of getting a broad understanding about the value attached to an internationally prioritized issue, such as Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), this study aims to see the coherence and effectiveness of the DESD on the Turkish stakeholders’ side and portrays how such a global issue is addressed in educational research by local actors. The study employed a mixed-method design through a two-step process: a quantitative investigation through numbers to assess the level and direction of the attention paid to ESD; and a qualitative examination through content and collocation analyses to identify key dimensions and prevalent themes. As the sample, the papers published with a focus on ESD themes between the years 2005 and 2014 in three high-impact educational journals in Turkey were included. The data analyses were carried out through: (a) descriptive statistics by use of frequency distribution tables and percentages; (b) a content analysis employed with thematic coding and categorization and (c) a collocation analysis done by means of the software AntConc. The most prevailing themes emerging from the publications were on environmentalism; human values; gender equality; democratic values; multiculturalism; interculturality; morals and character education; student dropouts and absenteeism; life-long learning; community service and responsibility; human rights; children’s rights; citizenship and peace education. All those themes gave crucial hints about the local concerns and socio-cultural priorities of the case of Turkey.

Regional Centres of Expertise (RCEs), Green Economies and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) as Dialogue: Who is Expert?

As a central part of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) from 2005 to 2014 Regional Centres of Expertise (RCE) serve as agents of education for sustainable development through multi-stakeholder networks with an interest in the advancement of sustainable societies. In this article, the question is raised about the nature of ‘expertise’ found among RCE programmes directed towards the development of local green economies; and further, the implications of expertise with respect to the practice among RCEs of education for sustainable development worldwide. Regional Centres of Expertise have put into practice a range of approaches to ESD, some based on a knowledge-transfer approach to learning, which positions post-secondary education as well as other authoritative technical and research institutions as the principal overseers of knowledge and expertise; however, social learning through the facilitation, or convening, of dialogue has also been adopted as an approach to learning that is inclusive of civil society and marginalized others, with implications for social and environmental justice.

Levels of Governance in Policy Innovation Cycles in Community Education: The Cases of Education for Sustainable Development and Climate Change Education

While there is little doubt that social networks are essential for processes of implementing social innovations in community education such as Climate Change Education (CCE) or Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), scholars have neglected to analyze these processes in the multilevel governance system using Social Network Analysis. In this article, we contribute to closing this research gap by exploring the implementation of CCE and ESD in education at the regional and global levels. We compare the way CCE is negotiated and implemented within and through the global conferences of the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) with the way the UN Decade of ESD is put into practice through networks in five different German municipalities. We argue that the role of social networks is particularly strong in policy areas like CCE and ESD, which are best characterized as multi-level and multi-actor governance. Based on data derived from standardized surveys and from Twitter we analyze the complex interactions of public and private actors at different levels of governance in the two selected policy areas. We find, amongst others, that the implementation of CCE and ESD in community education depends in part on actors that had not been assumed to be influential at the outset. Furthermore, our analyses suggest the different levels of governance are not well integrated throughout the phases of the policy innovation cycle.

Sustainability-oriented higher education networks: Characteristics and achievements in the context of the UN DESD

Higher education institutions (HEIs) are, as a sector, an important actor in society and their role in sustainability transition has been acknowledged. However, their commitments to sustainability expressed through the adoption of various declarations are often not effective unless combined with other ‘internal’ and ‘external’ strategies (concerned with activities within and outside the institution, respectively). Networking is an example of the latter: universities enter into coalitions in order to discuss progress in sustainability implementation, exchange experience and formulate joint policies. The presented research explores the field of sustainability-oriented higher education networks, analyses their key areas of interest, inter-network relationships, links with the policy field, and (conditions for) cooperation in joint programs and strategy development. Based on information gained through desk-top research to map the field from 14 HE networks' web pages, a survey was designed and distributed to selected university networks, with 15 responses received (30% response rate). Qualitative analysis of the data concentrated on the elements of social capital: the diversity of the networks, heterogeneity of the membership, size, regional scope and communication formats. The networks' activity areas range from those supporting sustainability initiatives within individual HEIs (education, research, campus operations, outreach) and networking initiatives directed beyond individual institutional change (contribution to policy debate at national, regional and global level, professional development and student network initiatives). The achievements of the analysed networks show a considerable contribution to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) in all their reported outcomes. Dialogue with key actors held after the exploratory mapping and the survey stages resulted in further delineation of the benefits and goals of cooperation: achievement of academia's cumulative impact on the sustainable development of our societies. This study highlights the significance of the autonomous character of HEIs based on data from 25 HE networks in total, and how they not only follow, but also stimulate the policy environment, consciously contributing to shared (sustainability) goals. Networking thus may be an important mechanism for systemic change in higher education, and the nature and role of social capital embedded in higher education networks should be the subject of further exploration.

Agenda setting in multilateral contexts: the example of the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development

ABSTRACTA number of papers have focused on UN policy formulation processes, but little is known about how particular issues come to policy-makers’ attention in the first place. This very early stage of policy formulation, called agenda setting, remains under-researched and more so in multilateral contexts. Applying Kingdon’s multiple streams model to the example of the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), this study analyses the trajectory of the policy from being just an idea to the point of being placed on the UN agenda. This paper goes on to argue that there are three conditions that supported the successful trajectory of DESD: a funding-backed policy entrepreneur, policy oligopoly, and a highly predictable policy window. Its theoretical contribution is to fill the gap between current studies and theories by presenting an analysis of one policy in a multilateral context.

Education for sustainable development, nature and vernacular learning

Education for Sustainable DevelopmentIn the last thirty years the idea of sustainable development has come to be widely advocated as the best hope for alleviating the global environmental condition, a condition marked by the degradation and thinning of ecosystems, huge biodiversity loss, the ubiquitous spread of toxicity, the desertification of land and deadening of oceans, a worsening epidemiological environment for both humans and other-than-humans, depletion of groundwater, and the spoliation of land not least through the outward march of land-devouring urbanisation (Ehrlich & Ehrlich, 2013). Lurking behind and fueling this multi-crisis syndrome, in which crises in the human socio-economic condition also figure prominently, lies stealthy but rapid onset climate change (Selby, 2014, p. 166).Sustainable development was famously defined in the Brundtland Commission report, Our Common Future (World Commission on Environment and Development, 1987, p. 43) as 'development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their needs' a definition that continues to enjoy wide currency. It is generally depicted as a process of maintaining a dynamic balance between three interrelated 'pillars' or 'dimensions', i.e. economy, environment and society as the development process is taken forward, with the aim of staying within the constraints imposed by the 'carrying capacity' of the planet.At the 2014 conference in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, wrapping up the 2005-20 UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), education for sustainable development (ESD) was declared to be an 'enabler for sustainable development' with the potential to 'empower learners to transform themselves and the society they live in' (UNESCO, 2014a). The Global Action Programme on Education for Sustainable Development, designed to provide the roadmap for the post-2015 ESD agenda and launched at the conference, rehearses the core learning content, approaches and competencies of ESD:* It involves developing in the learner the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes enabling informed decision making and responsible action for environmental integrity, economic viability and the just society in the present and with an eye to the future;* It entails the use of participatory learning and teaching methods that motivate and empower learners;* It is fundamentally a rights-based approach;* It relates to the environmental, social and economic pillars of sustainable development in an integrated, balanced and holistic way, comprehensively embracing, inter alia, poverty reduction, climate change, disaster risk reduction, biodiversity and sustainable consumption and production;* It encompasses but does not seek to usurp historical and/or current 'adjectival' educations such as environmental education, global education and development education (UNESCO, 2014b, p. 33).From the perspective of anyone concerned about the wellbeing of the natural world, ESD would seem at first glance to offer an auspicious agenda. The environment, it would appear, figures significantly. A second glance, however, unearths a decidedly anthropocentric vein. 'People' we are told without further elaboration in the preface to the Aichi-Nagoya Declaration on Education for Sustainable Development, 'are at the centre of sustainable development' (UNESCO, 2014a). So where, we might ask ourselves does nature truly stand in the ESD landscape?A De-naturing of LearningA word search of recent key international ESD documents, such as those cited above reveals only limited reference to 'nature' and 'natural world'. Rather, nature is referenced through the filter of 'environment, a term derived from the French 'environs', i.e. that which surrounds us but in which we are not necessarily embedded. Only very rarely in the literature searched does the descriptor 'natural' ever precede the term 'environment' thus further confirming the impression of the environmental pillar of sustainable development as a reductively de-natured conception. …

Higher education for sustainable development: a systematic review

Purpose This study aims to provide a complete understanding of academic research into higher education for sustainable development (HESD). Design/methodology/approach This study utilizes a systematic review of four scientific literature databases to outline topics of research during the UN’s Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). Findings This study compares research trends and United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO’s) strategic perspectives, worldwide topics and the number of studies. The results show that the research trends did not match UNESCO’s perspectives well and that researchers’ focus on popular events led to the variation between the numbers of articles each year. In summary, the findings indicate that most researchers base their topics on environmental issues, and research trends indicate the need for the integration of HESD. Practical implications This study provides a systematic review of higher education for academic research into sustainability, and it has implications for researchers and educators by identifying the gaps between the research conducted and the UN’s policies during the DESD. Originality/value This study attempts to offer an integrated view of HESD and to understand the bias of research trends during the DESD.

Education for sustainability-challenges and opportunities

This article will focus on the challenges of leadership and management of a key initiative of the 20052014 UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), namely the Regional Centres of Expertise in Education for Sustainability (RCEs). It will argue that in order to achieve sustainability, there is a need to move away from outdated hierarchical and technocratic models towards more flexible, democratic and empowering approaches to leadership.

A Web-Based Distance Learning Joint Master Programme on ICT in Education for Sustainable Development

This paper deals with a M.Sc. joint programme in the field of ICT in Education for Sustainable Development. The UNESCO and European Union Strategy for the worldwide implementation of ESD require numerous key elements, which appear to be indispensable for the success of the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). These elements include partnerships, network developments, capacity building, development and innovation, and monitoring and evaluation. In this context, the UNESCO Chair of ICT in Education for Sustainable Development established at the University of Crete in cooperation with the RCE Crete took the initiative to jointly develop a M.Sc. programme on ICT in Education for Sustainable Development to be delivered online through a virtual learning environment. This project was approved by the European Commission and was financially supported (Project Number: 510212-LLP-1-2010-1-GR-ERASMUS-EVC and agreement number 2010-3494/001-001). This paper starts with an overview of the rationale and context for such a programme, continues with the main concepts involved in its course curriculum design and development. It ends with a description of the programme and a discussion for its potential contribution to education for sustainability.

Education for sustainable development in national tests: The case from Slovenia

United Nations declared the period from 2005 to 2014 as a Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). This shows that nowadays education for sustainable development (ESD) is one of the priorities on the international and national levels. To find out if elements of ESD are present in Slovenian schools, we were analysing in the framework of a wider research project the Slovenian national curricula, textbooks, worksheets and national tests. In this paper, we are presenting the results of the analyses of national tests that 15 years old pupils write at the end of primary school. Based on fundamental documents for ESD, prepared by UNESCO, UNECE, European Union, United Nations and others, we constructed the criteria that define ESD. Fourteen keywords were determined and used in analyses of national tests, which were used in the school year 2005/06. Most elements of ESD were found in national tests for biology, some of them also in tests for Slovene language, while almost none were found in tests for mathematics. After 10 years the same analyses were made because we wanted to know if there was any effect of the DESD on Slovenian national tests. Comparative analyses of national tests used at the beginning and on completion of the DESD showed that in Slovenia we can hardly speak of a planned and systematic integration of ESD in national tests. This study shows the mirror to the authors of the national tests as well as the politicians that established the guidance of development of ESD.

Sharing practice from around the globe: Feedback from the Best of Both Worlds Environmental Education and Education for Sustainable Development Conference 2014

The Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) draws to a close in 2014, resulting in individuals and organisations reflecting on the evidence-based impact of Environmental Education (EE) and Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) programmes in the last decade, both nationally and internationally. In the UK, as we continue to define a curriculum for sustainability and an integrated agenda for outdoor learning, are there lessons we can learn from around the globe? In May 2014, the Best of Both Worlds Conference on Environmental Education and Education for Sustainable Development took place in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil. This is where countries at various stages of ‘development’ and with vastly varying carbon footprints came together to discuss and share EE and ESD practice. In this paper we will feedback the learning from this conference and attempt to define a global picture, comparing and contrasting the story of EE and ESD, through presenting, and subsequently analysing, case studies from some of the participating countries.

What Happened During the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development?

The United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) drew to a close at the end of 2014. People ask: What happened? In broad brushstrokes, the author describes activities of the DESD in the formal and nonformal education sector of the education community. The author also identifies some enablers and barriers to advancing Education for Sustainable Development during the DESD.

The Kosovo Education for Sustainable Development's Role in Promoting the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development in Kosovo

The Republic of Kosovo declared its independence in 2008 following almost a decade of administration by the United Nations Mission in Kosovo. During the United Nations administration the first initiatives towards Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) were taken, particularly with the Millennium Development Goals agenda. Following the idea of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) in Kosovo, the Kosovo Education for Sustainable Development (KESD) was started as a local non-governmental organization. KESD has worked hard in promoting the DESD in Kosovo at different institutions dealing with education, environment, sustainability, and so forth, so that ESD principles might be considered and included in their work and activities. KESD has also increased citizens’ awareness about ESD, active citizenship, and volunteering throughout Kosovo. In this article, I will present the current progress of the DESD in Kosovo; its achievements, challenges and obstacles; and KESD's contribution to developing ESD in Kosovo.

The UN Decade of ESD: What Was Achieved in Scotland 2005–2014

This article explores the policy changes and actions that have taken place in Scotland between 2005 and 2014 in response to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). This article examines the development and content of policy documents relating to schools, Further and Higher Education and Community Learning and Development, and how these were developed and implemented through a series of collaborative partnerships between non-governmental organizations, government ministers, civil servants, education bodies, and other educational stakeholders. This article also explores the impact these policy developments have had on Scotland's contribution to achieving the DESD goal “to integrate the principles, values, and practices of sustainable development into all aspects of education and learning” (UNESCO, 2014).