Sustainable Development Education Panel
Sustainable Development Education Panel
Second Annual Report 1999
Introduction
1. The Sustainable Development Education Panel advises the Government on education for sustainable development, which is about 'the learning needed to maintain and improve our quality of life and the quality of life for generations to come. It is about equipping individuals, communities, groups, businesses and government to live and act sustainably; as well as giving them an understanding of the environmental, social and economic issues involved. It is about preparing for the world in which we will live in the next century, and making sure that we are not found wanting.'[1]
2. This is our second annual report.
The Response to our First Annual Report
3. Our first annual report:
- set our agenda;
- was very wide-ranging, and made recommendations for a large number and diverse range of groups;
- was circulated widely and invited responses; and
- engaged a very mixed group of bodies, many of whom are very interested in what we are doing.
4. We listened to all those who responded. We took their views into account in deciding what we did in 1999 and how we did it.
Our Achievements
5. In 1999:
- We made sure education for sustainable development was included in
the new National Curriculum.
'The National Curriculum "should develop [children's] awareness, understanding, and respect for the environments in which they live, and secure their commitment to sustainable development at a personal, local, national and global level".'[2]
- We investigated developing a language for sustainable development that is relevant and accessible.
- We looked at what is already going on in the workplace.
'Sustainable development education needs to be part of the business mainstream if it is truly to take off. Where it is tacked on to "business as usual" it withers. Where it is seen as an additional tool to reduce cost, motivate staff, assure quality standards or to advance any other core business agenda, then sustainable development education is seized on and flourishes.'[4]
- We held a successful conference on green learning in the workplace.
'Education for sustainable development is about much more than environmental issues. In the workplace it needs to engage employers and employees in a range of related social and ethical issues.'[5]
- We conducted a benchmark study of awareness in schools and amongst
school-leavers.
'Almost all schools reported teaching their pupils about environmental issues. The less well covered topics tended to be related to the social and economic elements of sustainable development.'[6]
- We looked at the youth sector, and how sustainable development is
integrated there.
'Apart from learning "about" [sustainable development], some of the projects generated the kind of involvement which transformed the image and place of young people in their communities. There was an encouraging number of instances of young people's views being taken seriously, of them gaining confidence and taking part in local democratic decision-making.'[7]
- We produced a guide, Towards Sustainability, for further education
institutions, to encourage and help them manage what they do sustainably.
'Sustainable development is now recognised as a mainstream issue for FE and the response called for from the sector is not simply one of damage limitation. The FE sector has a major role to play in building the capacity of its staff, students and local communities to fully and effectively participate in translating the rhetoric of sustainable development into reality. Of particular significance is the sector's role in facilitating social inclusion, sustainable regional development and responsible global citizenship.'[8]
- We provided the Government's Green Ministers Committee with a checklist
to help them raise awareness of sustainable development across Government.
'Departments' strategies to raise awareness should not only include action directed at the individual, but also action to integrate the concept of sustainable development further into policy, operations and the work of the department.'[9]
- We conducted four national surveys and produced four sustainability
learning specifications relating business, design, engineering and teacher
education.
'The findings of the [business] survey show that business educators can do more to prepare the business leaders of the future to meet the challenge of sustainable development. Future success will depend increasingly on how well companies meet this challenge. This government has put sustainability and education at the heart of our agenda and I hope that all involved in the education of today's business students will act on the survey's findings to develop and implement sustainable development education strategies.'[10]
'The best way to educate people about sustainable development is to help them discover what the term encompasses, what it means, and how it should affect the ways they live their lives.'[3]
Our Future Plans
6. We have reflected on our role. We have decided:
- that the Panel's task is to provide strategic leadership in an area and then pass the baton on to others who can deliver;
- to bring greater focus to our work;
- to concentrate on consolidating the work we have already done over the year and build on those areas where we have already made progress; and
- to identify a limited number of completely new challenges.
7. In 2000 we will:
- work with the Teacher Training Agency and OFSTED to ensure teachers and schools receive the training and support they need to deliver the sustainable development parts of the National Curriculum;
- develop our work in the field of lifelong learning and engage a much wider range of organisations;
- work to help key professionals acquire and regularly update the skills that they need;
- take forward 'Investors in Sustainable Development' in the workplace;
- help the Government to realise its commitment to sustainable development education in all of its departments and agencies;
- work with local and regional government to build on the work that they are already doing to promote education for sustainable development in their communities;
- work with the Further and Higher Education Funding Councils and Learning and Skills Council on initiatives to promote greater sustainability responsibility in Further and Higher Education;
- begin to explore new agendas:
- social exclusion;
- economic regeneration;
- health;
- culture, media and sport;
- museums, libraries and galleries; and
- financial institutions and the sustainability criteria surrounding lending and investment decisions; and - explore how we disseminate information. There are a lot of good stories to tell, and many people who are interested in those stories.
What You Can Do
8. You:
- are crucial to this process. If a sustainable future is to be delivered
everyone needs to do their bit;
- can contact the Panel via the Secretariat
- can tell us what you think of what we say;
- can tell us if you know of good things that are happening, particularly things that could be included in the leaflets to help others do their bit;
- can tell us what needs doing.
We are:
Chair
Sir Geoffrey Holland
Vice Chancellor, Exeter University
Professor Shirley Ali Khan
Professor Graham Ashworth, Chief Executive, Going for Green
Mr Roy Atkinson
Ms Heather Barrett-Mold, Vice Principal and Chief Executive, Southgate College
Mr Douglas Bourn, Director, Development Education Association
Dr Neil Chalmers, Director, Natural History Museum
Mr Peter Downes
Ms Olivia Grant, Chief Executive, Tyneside Training and Enterprise Council
Ms Rosemary Gray, Principal and Chief Executive, Walsall College of Arts and Technology
Ms Libby Grundy, Director, Council for Environmental Education
Ms Anne Harley, Head of Education, Royal Society for the Protection of Birds
Mr Michael Knapp, Corporate Marketing Director, Edexcel and Joint Awarding Bodies Council
1 Sustainable Development Education Panel. First Annual Report, DETR, 1999.
2 Statement of Aims, The National Curriculum, DfEE, 1999.
3 Quadrangle Consulting. Towards a Language for Sustainable Development, DETR/DfEE, 2000.
4 Impacct Limited. Review of Sustainable Development in the Workplace, DETR/DfEE, 2000.
5 Chris Baines, Broadcaster and Environmentalist, Speech to Green Learning in the Workplace Conference, London, 8 July 1999.
6 BMRB International. Sustainable Development Education Surveys, DETR/DfEE, 2000.
7 De Montford University. Youth Work and Learning for Sustainable Development, DfEE/DETR, 2000.
8 Further Education Development Agency/Association of Colleges. Towards Sustainability - A Guide for Colleges, FEDA, 1999.
9 Increasing awareness of sustainable development across Government: A strategy for action, DETR, 2000.
10 David Blunkett, Secretary of State for Education and Employment, 1999.
Page published 26 June
1999;
Page last modified
6 February 2006