The Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Toolkit

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Sustainability has become a buzzword in lives of many Americans. The challenge with creating programs that promote and educate on the topic sustainability is that there does not appear to be a consistent definition for the term ‘sustainable’. In the Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Toolkit, the authors suggest that “sustainable development is generally thought to have three components: environment, society, and economy. The well-being of these three areas is intertwined, not separate” (McKeown, 2002, p. 8). Furthermore, McKeown contends that sustainability should be considered “to be a paradigm for thinking about a future in which environmental, societal, and economic considerations are balanced in the pursuit of development and improved quality of life” (2002, p. 8).

The ESD Toolkit outlines the four basic priorities of ESD, which include: improving basic education, reorienting existing education, public understanding and awareness as well as training (McKeown, 2002, p. 13). At the heart of ESD programs is the “inherent idea of implementing programs that are locally relevant and culturally appropriate” (McKeown, 2002, p. 13). The toolkit itself is structured to provide an introduction into the theoretical concepts about sustainability, implementing the four priorities of ESD and practical skills that can be applied locally to address global issues. As a health educator, what would be particularly useful are the group activities found in the toolkit designed to explain the concepts of sustainability. The activities are essentially a roadmap for introducing the overarching principles of ESD and activities to develop a program plan.

The assignment was how to customize the toolkit to make it specific for teaching su...

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...and Eastern Europe (REC). (February 2000). “Introduction: What is a Local Environmental Action Program?” In: Guide to Implementing Local Environmental Action Programs. LEAP – Local Environmental Action Programs in Central and Eastern Europe. Retrieved from: http://archive.rec.org/REC/Publications/LEAP_Guide/LEAPIntro.pdf.

Facing the future. (2012). Retrieved from: http://www.facingthefuture.org/.

Fleming, M et al. (2009). Ecological Sustainability: What Role for Public Health Education? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 6, 2028-2040.

McKeown, Rosalyn. (July 2002). Education from sustainable development toolkit. Version 2. Retrieved from: http://www.esdtoolkit.org/default.htm.

U.S. Partnership for Education for Sustainable Development. (2012). Retrieved from: http://www.uspartnership.org/main/view_archive/1.

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