Sustainable Development

Sustainable development is the overarching paradigm of the United Nations. The concept of
sustainable development was described by the 1987 Bruntland Commission Report as
development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future
generations to meet their own needs. Sustainability is a paradigm for thinking about a future
in which environmental, social and economic considerations are balanced in the pursuit of
development and an improved quality of life. These three spheres society, environment and
economy are intertwined. For example, a prosperous society relies on a healthy environment
to provide food and resources, safe drinking water, and clean air for its citizens.

The sustainability paradigm is a major change from the previous paradigm of economic
development with its damaging social and environmental consequences. Until recently these
consequences have been seen as inevitable and acceptable. However, we now realize that
major damage or serious threats to the well-being of humans and the environment in pursuit
of economic development have no place within the sustainability paradigm.

Principles of Sustainable Development
All sustainable development programmes must consider the three spheres of sustainability
environment, society and economy as well as an underlying dimension of culture.


Concepts of Sustainable Develpoment
(Hans, 21 July 2011, http://ncrenegade.com)

Since sustainable development addresses the local contexts of these three spheres, it will take
many forms around the world. The ideals and principles that underlie sustainability include
broad concepts such as equity among generations, gender equity, peace, tolerance, poverty
reduction, environmental preservation and restoration, natural resource conservation, and
social justice. The Rio Declaration1 contains 27 principles,
including:

People are entitled to a healthy and productive life in harmony with nature;
The right to development must be fulfilled so as to meet developmental and
environmental needs of present and future generations in an equitable way;
Eradicating poverty and reducing disparities in living standards in different parts of
the world are essential to sustainable development.
Environmental protection is an integral part of the development process and cannot be
considered in isolation from it.
International actions in the fields of environment and development should also address
the interests and needs of all countries.
To achieve sustainable development and a higher quality of life for all people,
countries should reduce and eliminate unsustainable patterns of production and
consumption and promote appropriate demographic policies.
Women play a vital role in environmental management and development. Their full
participation is therefore essential to achieving sustainable development.
Warfare is inherently destructive to sustainable development. Peace, development and
environmental protection are interdependent and indivisible.

These principles can guide the efforts of governments, communities and organizations to
define sustainability goals and create programmes to help achieve those goals.

The History of Sustainable Development

1972
In 1972, the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm
brought the industrialized and developing nations together to delineate the rights of the
human family to a healthy and productive environment. A series of such meetings followed,
e.g. on the rights of people to adequate food, to sound housing, to safe water, to access to
means of family planning. The recognition to revitalize humanitys connection with Nature,
led to the creation of global institutions within the UN system.

1980
In 1980, the International Union for the Conservation of Natural Resources (IUCN) published
the World Conservation Strategy (WCS) which provided a precursor to the concept of
sustainable development. The Strategy asserted that conservation of nature cannot be
achieved without development to alleviate poverty and misery of hundreds of million of
people and stressed the interdependence of conservation and development in which
development depends on caring for the Earth. Unless the fertility and productivity of the
planet are safeguarded, the human future is at risk.

1982
Ten years later, at the 48th plenary of the General Assembly in 1982, the WCS initiative
culminated with the approval of the World Charter for Nature. The Charter stated that
"mankind is a part of nature and life depends on the uninterrupted functioning of natural
systems".

1983
In 1983, the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED) was created and,
by 1984, it was constituted as an independent body by the United Nations General Assembly.
WCED was asked to formulate A global agenda for change. In 1987, in its report Our
Common Future, the WCED advanced the understanding of global interdependence and the
relationship between economics and the environment previously introduced by the WCS. The
report wove together social, economic, cultural and environmental issues and global solutions.
It reaffirmed that "the environment does not exist as a sphere separate from human actions,
ambitions, and needs, and therefore it should not be considered in isolation from human
concerns. The environment is where we all live; and development is what we all do in
attempting to improve our lot within that abode. The two are inseparable."

1992
In June 1992, the first UN Conference on Environment and Development
(UNCED) was held in Rio de Janeiro and adopted an agenda for
environment and development in the 21st Century. Agenda 21: A
Programme of Action for Sustainable Development contains the Rio
Declaration on Environment and Development, which recognizes each
nations right to pursue social and economic progress and assigned to States
the responsibility of adopting a model of sustainable development; and, the
Statement of Forest Principles. Agreements were also reached on the
Convention on Biological Diversity and the Framework Convention on Climate Change.
UNCED for the first time mobilized the Major Groups and legitimized their participation in
the sustainable development process. This participation has remained a constant until today.
For the first time also, the lifestyle of the current civilization was addressed in Principle 8 of
the Rio Declaration. The urgency of a deep change in consumption and production patterns
was expressly and broadly acknowledged by State leaders. Agenda 21 further reaffirmed that
sustainable development was delimited by the integration of the economic, social and
environmental pillars. The spirit of the conference was captured by the expression "Harmony
with Nature", brought into the fore with the first principle of the Rio Declaration: "Human
beings are at the centre of concerns for sustainable development. They are entitled to a
healthy and productive life in harmony with nature".

1993
In 1993, UNCED instituted the Commission on Sustainable Development (CSD) to follow-up
on the implementation of Agenda 21.

1997
In June 1997, the General Assembly dedicated its 19th Special Session (UNGASS-19) to
design a "Programme for the Further Implementation of Agenda 21".

2002
In 2002, ten years after the Rio Declaration, a follow-up conference, the World Summit on
Sustainable Development (WSSD) was convened in Johannesburg to renew the global
commitment to sustainable development. The conference agreed on the Johannesburg Plan of
Implementation (JPOI) and further tasked the CSD to follow-up on the implementation of
sustainable development.

2009
On 24th December 2009 the UN General Assembly adopted a Resolution agreeing to hold the
United Nations Conference on Sustainable Development (UNCSD) in 2012 - also referred to
as 'Rio+20' or 'Rio 20'. The Conference seeks three objectives: securing renewed political
commitment to sustainable development, assessing the progress and implementation gaps in
meeting already agreed commitments, and addressing new and emerging challenges. The
Member States have agreed on the following two themes for the Conference: green economy
within the context of sustainable development and poverty eradication, and institutional
framework for sustainable development. Since UNCED, sustainable development has become
part of the international lexicon. The concept has been incorporated in many UN declarations
and its implementation, while complex has been at the forefront of worlds institutions and
organizations working in the economic, social and environmental sectors. However, they all
recognize how difficult it has proven to grant the environmental pillar the same recognition
enjoyed by the other two pillars despite the many calls by scientists and civil society
signalling the vulnerability and precariousness of the Earth since the 1960s.

Education for Sustainable Development

Education is essential to sustainable development. The education of today is crucial to
enhancing the ability of the leaders and citizens of tomorrow to create solutions and find new
paths to a better, more sustainable future. Unfortunately, our current collective pool of human
knowledge, skills, and experience does not contain the solutions to all the contemporary
global environmental, societal, and economic problems. Although humanity has faced crises
in the past and successfully navigated them, the scale of current problems is greater and the
size of the world population larger than ever before. While we can draw upon experiences of
the past to solve the problems of today and tomorrow, the reality is that citizens of the world
will have the task of learning their way towards sustainability.

Education is therefore central to learning and to a more sustainable future. The responsibility
for a more sustainable future is borne by governments and civil society as well as individuals.
All must contribute in their own way. The 40 chapters of Agenda 211 describe ways forward
in many areas, from agriculture to waste disposal. Education is a cross-cutting theme and is
mentioned in each of the 40 chapters. This demonstrates how the education community has a
special role to perform. It is through education that the next generation of citizens, voters,
workers, professionals, and leaders will be prepared for life-long learning about sustainability.
The United Nations uses sustainability as an over-arching paradigm to address numerous
interrelated challenges (e.g. poverty reduction, environmental protection, social justice, and
education for all). As part of this approach, the United Nations declared 2005 2014 as the
Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). Education for sustainable
development (ESD), also called education for sustainability (EfS) in some parts of the world,
is a key concept for education in the new millennium. ESD is a broad concept bringing a
distinctive orientation to many important aspects of education on the whole, including access,
relevance, equity and inclusivity.

Thus, ESD is far more than teaching knowledge and principles related to sustainability. ESD,
in its broadest sense, is education for social transformation with the goal of creating more
sustainable societies. ESD touches every aspect of education including planning, policy
development, programme implementation, finance, curricula, teaching, learning, assessment,
administration. ESD aims to provide a coherent interaction between education, public
awareness, and training with a view to creating a more sustainable future.

Four Thrusts of ESD

ESD has four thrusts or areas of emphasis:

(i) Improving access and retention in quality basic education
Enrolling and retaining both boys and girls in quality basic education is important to their
well-being throughout their lives and to the society in which they live. Basic education
focuses on helping pupils gain knowledge, skills, values and perspectives that encourage
sustainable livelihoods and on supporting citizens to live sustainable lives.

(ii) Reorienting existing educational programmes to address sustainability
Reorienting education requires revising education from early childhood care and up through
higher education. It requires rethinking what is taught, how it is taught, and what is assessed,
with sustainability as the central theme. This process is future-oriented because the pupils of
today will need to be able to address the challenges of tomorrow, which will require creativity
as well as analytical and problemsolving skills.

(iii) Increasing public understanding and awareness of sustainability
Achieving the goals of sustainable development requires citizens who are knowledgeable
about sustainability and about daily actions necessary to help achieve community and national
sustainability goals. These citizens will require a widespread community education and
responsible media that are committed to encouraging an informed and active populace to learn
throughout life.

(iv) Providing training to all sectors of the workforce
All sectors of the workforce can contribute to local, regional and national sustainability. Both
public sector and private sector employees should receive ongoing vocational and
professional training infused with the practices and principles of sustainability, so that all the
members of the labour force can access the knowledge and skills necessary to make decisions
and work in a sustainable manner.

Thrusts one and two primarily involve formal education. Thrusts three and four are mainly
concerned with non-formal and informal education. Addressing all four thrusts of ESD
requires actions by the formal, non-formal and informal sectors of the education community.

Characteristics of ESD

ESD has essential characteristics that can be implemented in many culturally appropriate
forms. ESD:

is based on the principles and values that underlie sustainable development;
includes all three spheres of sustainability environment, society, and economy with
an underlying dimension of culture;
uses a variety of pedagogical techniques that promote participatory learning and
higher-order thinking skills;
promotes life-long learning;
is locally relevant and culturally appropriate;
is based on local needs, perceptions and conditions, but acknowledges that fulfilling
local needs often has international effects and consequences;
engages formal, non-formal and informal education;
accommodates the evolving nature of the concept of sustainability;
addresses content, taking into account context, global issues and local priorities;
builds civil capacity for community-based decisionmaking, tolerance, environmental
stewardship, workforce adaptability and quality of life;
is interdisciplinary: no single discipline can claim ESD for itself alone, but all
disciplines can contribute to ESD.
(UNESCO 2005)

These essential characteristics of ESD can be implemented in diverse ways, so that the unique
environmental, social and economic conditions of each locality are reflected in teaching and
learning processes in local schools.

ESD and the Five Pillars of Education

Education has many purposes, including enabling people to fulfil their individual potential as
well as contributing to social transformation. Each generation has the challenge of deciding
what to teach the next generation; naturally, education changes across time and space. For
example, an appropriate and quality education in rural and mountainous Asia will differ from
that of urbanized Europe. In spite of their differences, all educational programmes should be
based on the five pillars of education, which are foundational to providing a quality education
and fostering human development. Four pillars are from the Delors Report, Learning: The
Treasure Within: learning to know, learning to do, learning to live together, and learning to
be. A fifth pillar was added by UNESCO to address the special challenge of sustainability:
learning to transform oneself and society.

1. Learning to know
Knowledge, values and skills for respecting and searching for knowledge and wisdom
learn to learn
acquire a taste for learning throughout life
develop critical thinking
acquire tools for understanding the world
understand sustainability concepts and issues

Education for Sustainable Development:
recognizes the evolving nature of the concept of sustainability.
reflects the ever growing needs of societies.
acknowledges that fulfilling local needs often has international effects and consequences.
addresses content, context, global issues and local priorities.

2. Learning to be
Knowledge, values and skills for personal and family well-being
see oneself as the main actor in defining positive outcomes for the future
encourage discovery and experimentation
acquire universally shared values
develop ones personality, self-identity, self-knowledge and self-fulfilment
be able to act with greater autonomy, judgment and personal responsibility

Education for Sustainable Development:
builds on the principles and values that underlie sustainable development.
deals with the well-being of all three realms of sustainability environment, society, and
economy.
contributes to a persons complete development: mind and body, intelligence, sensitivity,
aesthetic appreciation and spirituality.

3. Learning to live together
Knowledge, values and skills for international, intercultural and community cooperation and
peace
participate and co-operate with others in increasingly pluralistic, multi-cultural societies
develop an understanding of other people and their histories, traditions, beliefs, values and
cultures
tolerate, respect, welcome, embrace, and even celebrate difference and diversity in people
respond constructively to the cultural diversity and economic disparity found around the
world
be able to cope with situations of tension, exclusion, conflict, violence, and terrorism

Education for Sustainable Development:
is interdisciplinary. No one discipline can claim ESD for its own, but all disciplines can
contribute to it.
builds civil capacity for community-based decision-making, social tolerance, environmental
stewardship, adaptable workforce and quality of life.

4. Learning to do
Knowledge, values and skills for active engagement in productive employment and recreation
be an actor as well as a thinker
understand and act on global and local sustainable development issues
acquire technical and professional training
apply learned knowledge in daily life
be able to act creatively and responsibly in ones environment

Education for Sustainable Development:
is locally relevant and culturally appropriate.
must become a concrete reality for all our daily decisions and actions.
is about helping build a sustainable and safe world for everyone.

5. Learning to transform one self and society
Knowledge, values and skills for transforming attitudes and lifestyles
work toward a gender neutral, non-discriminatory society
develop the ability and will to integrate sustainable lifestyles for ourselves and others
promote behaviours and practices that minimise our ecological footprint on the world
around us
be respectful of the Earth and life in all its diversity
act to achieve social solidarity
promote democracy in a society where peace prevails

Education for Sustainable Development:
integrates the values inherent in sustainable development into all aspects of learning
encourages changes in behaviour to create a more viable and fairer society for everyone
teaches people to reflect critically on their own communities
empowers people to assume responsibility for creating and enjoying a sustainable future

The four thrusts of ESD and the five pillars of education bring together two compatible
educational paradigms and efforts. Both require that school systems and teachers move
towards teaching all five pillars. This is a challenge because many formal education systems
currently focus primarily on learning to know and only secondarily on learning to do.
Nevertheless, all five pillars are necessary to help people from all walks of life to create a
more sustainable future.

Education is the most powerful weapon you can use to change the world Nelson Mandela