Forum 6: Exploring Perspectives on Education for Sustainable Development

Activity

The concept Education for Sustainable Development, ESD, has for long been promoted as a new vision to empower people by reorienting education so that it can integrate the values that lead to a sustainable world. At its core, ESD strives to allow all learners to acquire the knowledge, skills, attitude and value required to shape a sustainable future.

The question of how to engage learners with sustainability issues/challenges and how to equip them with the required competence so that they can respond to the challenges has been discussed in various field of studies. Over the course of time, the concept and practice of ESD has evolved which led to the emergence of different perspectives. There has also been criticism on the notion of ESD per se. Its normativity as well as its subsumed agenda of change and improvement has been questioned and challenged by scholars.

This forum is aimed at offering participants the opportunity to engage with various perspectives and approaches to ESD and pertinent critique around the concept. To this end, research activities from the University of Gothenburg and Chalmers will be presented followed by group discussion among participants.

Forum Schedule

09:00-09:10
Welcome and Introduction, Kassahun Weldemariam

09:10-09:35
Exploring education for sustainable development biopolitically: Populations, inequality and lifestyle production, Beniamin Knuttson

09:35-10-00
Engineering Education for Sustainable Development, Magdalena Svanstrom

10:00-10:25
Being with "plantness": A reflection on art-based approaches, Dawn Sanders

10:25-10:45 FIKA

10:45-11:10
Statistics as a powerful tool for ESD, Hanan Innabi

11:10-11:35
Indigenous knowledges for a sustainable future, Sally Windsor

11:35-11:40 Grabbing wraps/lunch
11:40-12:10 Group Discussion
12:10-12:30 Group Reflection
12:30-12:40 Quick evaluation of the day

Register here