Perspectives on higher education for sustainabledevelopment: transformation for sustainabilityZinaida Fadeeva, United Nations University Institute of Advanced StudiesRapid changes at all levels and pressing local andglobal sustainability issues require rethinking of howknowledge is generated, transmitted and utilized andhow future decision makers and professionals are trained toaddress the compound challenges of sustainable development.As intellectual leaders and major contributors to thecapacity development required for global transition to sustainability,institutions of higher education are expected to respondstrongly and holistically to societal challenges. In order to do so,they must embark on the daunting task of transforming themselvesand bringing about desired changes to society at large.The United Nations University (UNU) has responded to the UNDecade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) bylaunching international networks designed to strengthen therole of institutions of higher education in sustainable developmentand education for sustainable development (ESD), as wellas developing postgraduate programmes in these subjects andother related fields.Creating higher education for sustainable development(HESD) networksThe ESD Programme of the UNU Institute of Advanced Studies(UNU-IAS) fosters the involvement of academia globally in appliedresearch, education and continued learning to resolve the pressingglobal problems that are the concern of the UnitedNations and its Member States.This work is carried out by:• The network for Promotion of Sustainability inPostgraduate Education and Research (ProSPER.Net) 1• The Regional Centres of Expertise on Education forSustainable Development (RCEs). 2ProSPER.Net is an academic consortium for ESD thatwas launched in 2008 to reorient postgraduate educationand research in the universities of Asia-Pacific towardsmore sustainable development. Currently 21 membersstrong and growing, the network brings together leadinguniversities from the Asia-Pacific region that have significanteducation and research programmes in sustainabledevelopment and related fields.Working closely with a number of important partners– the Ministry of the Environment of Japan, UNEPRegional Resource Centre for Asia and the Pacific,UNESCO Bangkok (Asia-Pacific Regional Office) andthe Institute for Global Environment Strategies (IGES)– ProSPER.Net serves as a platform for collaborationamong its members and other ESD actors, regionallyand globally.Image: UNU-IASLaunching Ceremony of ProSPER.Net under the auspices of UNU-IAS, Hokkaido University, Japan, 21 June 2008[ 133 ]
Over the last two years, member universities have carried outseveral projects critical for the transformation of higher educationpractices in the region, including:• Reorientation of business school curricula towards sustainability• Development of faculty training modules on sustainability• Design and delivery of an e-learning programme on sustainabledevelopment practice in public policy• Innovative pedagogies applied in regional poverty reductionprogrammes• Alternative university appraisal for assessment of universities,based on their sustainability practices in research, teaching,outreach activities and campus operations.The RCEs are networks of existing local institutions and stakeholdersfor ESD, mobilized to promote all types and levels of learningfor a sustainable future. Institutions of higher education are encouragedto take the lead in developing RCEs as providers of guidanceand leadership in education. As of August <strong>2010</strong>, 77 local networksare officially acknowledged by UNU as RCEs in Asia, Africa, theAmericas and Europe, and the global network of RCEs is expanding.In addition to working with a broad portfolio of ESD projects intheir own regions, RCEs collaborate on operational and substantiveissues across continents.There is also a role for RCEs in the enhancement of inter-agency cooperationfor HESD. Many UNESCO chairs in ESD play important roles inRCEs. For example, Okayama University of RCE Okayama is UNESCOChair in Education and Research for Sustainable Development; theUNESCO Chair in ICT for ESD at the University of Crete took the leadin developing RCE Crete; and the UNESCO Chair in Higher Educationfor Sustainable Development, housed in the Institute for Environmentaland Sustainability Communication at the Leuphana University ofLüneburg, is an active partner of RCE Hamburg.Transforming organizational practices towards sustainabilityReorienting the education of future leaders and professionalsHigher education transformation requires changes in curriculumand teaching (educational content and pedagogy), research andadministrative practices, and this can happen only inclose collaboration with teaching and research faculties.Selected ProSPER.Net members have embarked on aseries of projects for the reorientation of business schoolsthrough strategies such as development of case studieson social business and social entrepreneurship, surveysof ESD practices in business schools in the Asia-Pacificregion, and developing courses and launching new graduateprogrammes, focusing on more sustainable businessoperations. A ProSPER.Net joint business school projectfacilitated by the Asian Institute of Technology led to theidea of reorienting engineering and architectural education– a project that is currently under development.Faculty training on ESD and sustainable developmentTransformation of universities requires changes to theways in which faculty members teach, conduct researchand interact with the broader society. Universiti SainsMalaysia coordinates a ProSPER.Net joint project ondevelopment of faculty training modules and resourcematerials for sustainability. The project aims at enhancinguniversity faculty members’ understanding of theconcept and practice of sustainability by providingexamples of how it can be integrated into educationaland research practices in higher education settings.Engaging young researchers and studentsIn addition to the responsibility of the faculty, ProSPER.Net partners also recognize the important role studentscan play in transforming higher education with theirenergy, concern for the future and commitment to amore just society and a cleaner environment. Withthe leadership of RMIT University, ProSPER.Net partnersdeveloped the Young Researchers’ School – aprogramme that will enable graduate students andyoung post-doctoral researchers to engage with avariety of complex societal challenges in specific loca-Image: © RCE Graz-StyriaYouth Workshop, RCE Graz-Styria[ 134 ]
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TOMORROW TODAYUnited NationsEducati
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THE HONOURABLE DIANE MCGIFFORD, CHA
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ANNA TIBAIJUKA, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR,
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KONRAD OSTERWALDER, RECTOR, UNITED
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Sustainable school feedingNancy Wal
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