The provision of environmental education towards sustainability with reference to the Inner City Enviro Centre in Tshwane is a comprehensive research project that describes the establishment and development of the Inner City Environmental Centre over a six-year period. This research focuses on the informal education sector and the methods used by centres, both locally and internationally to provide environmental education and / or education for sustainability. The Inner City Enviro Centre is used as a case study. The development of the ICEC is investigated in terms of the objectives it was to fulfil. The achievements and difficulties that the ICEC experienced are examined. This was done using document analysis and by interviewing those involved. This information was then assimilated and helped the researcher to make informed, objective judgements concerning the ICEC. Educators working on a project with the ICEC were given questionnaires which asked questions relating to environmental education and excursions. The data collected from findings is used to provide guidelines for future development of the ICEC and for others who might want to embark on similar projects. / Further Teacher Education / M.Ed. (Environmental Education)

Lärande för hållbar utveckling syftar till att förändra världen. Men det tycks finnas olika tyngdpunkter i vad hållbar utveckling är. En fråga om natur och miljö eller en fråga om tre samverkande områden: miljö, ekonomi och sociala aspekter. Syftet med denna studie är att utforska vad lärande för hållbar utveckling potentiellt kan bli i mötet mellan förskolepolicy och posthumanistisk teori. Resultatet visar att lärande för hållbar utveckling kan bli något som rör och består av alla i en vid bemärkelse, såväl människor som mer-än-människor. Slutsatserna är att det redan finns en koppling mellan förskolepolicy och posthumanistisk teori. Genom begrepp som naturkultur vidgas definitionen av hållbar utveckling. Att lyfta den politiska dimensionen av lärande för hållbar utveckling, vilket sker när policy möter teori, gör att demokratibegreppet vitaliseras.

abstract: Universities and colleges in the United States (U.S.) are in a period of rapid transformation. Driven by the need for an educated workforce, higher education institutions are responding to rapid innovation, globalization, economic realities, and sociodemographic shifts. Simultaneously, extensive educational online networks connect millions of people worldwide enable learning and knowledge sharing beyond what society has experienced to date. In light of technological advancements, the preservation and presentation of certain ideals that undergird academia and the communication and application of knowledge are undergoing dramatic change. Within higher education, this is both a challenge and an opportunity to re-envision the commitment to educate the public. This research discusses potential forms of this redesign and how it can build upon and depart from previous iterations of higher education. How colleges and universities will adapt to become more relevant, engaging, and accessible is a pressing question that must be addressed. Using case studies focused on creating sustainability education materials, this dissertation develops knowledge related to three interconnected areas of study that will contribute to redesigning higher education through participatory action research methodology. First, higher education has a civic responsibility to provide new ways of thinking, being, and doing globally and providing more access to education to broader society, especially through public research institutions. Second, with a vast array of available learning materials, higher education should invest in elegantly-designed experiences consisting of well-reasoned, meticulously-curated, and high-quality content that is aesthetically appealing, engaging, and accessible to a broad audience. Third, as universities transition from the gatekeepers of knowledge to the connectors of knowledge, they also need to ensure that a coherent mission is articulated and invested in by stakeholders to create an intentionally beneficial transformational effort. The transformation of higher education toward a more inclusive learning environment through new ways of thinking and elegantly-designed learning experiences will serve to improve our learning institutions. As part of the necessary core for an educated democracy, higher education institutions must strive to create a more equitable, inclusive, and diverse society. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Human and Social Dimensions of Science and Technology 2020

[pt] O atual contexto mundial de profundas mudanças ambientais globais, e impactos dos humanos sobre o meio ambiente cada vez mais complexos, requer uma mudança de comportamento e educação para conter tais impactos e seus efeitos. A sustentabilidade como conceito, representando as diversas visões e formas de conhecimento e de sustentabilidades existentes no mundo, ganha cada vez mais destaque neste contexto, como forma de enfrentamento a estes problemas. Nesse sentido, uma educação para sustentabilidade torna-se cada vez mais necessária para lidar com as questões da sociedade moderna. Contudo, para se propor a isso, a própria educação precisa de uma renovação estrutural, tendo em vista a construção de uma educação participativa, não apenas para alunos e professores em sala de aula, mas também trazendo para dentro do ambiente acadêmico atores, experiências e vivências da sociedade civil, de grupos tradicionais e de grupos marginalizados, historicamente não incluídos nestas construções. Portanto, a construção da educação para sustentabilidade, e da própria sustentabilidade em si, de forma participativa, passa por uma desconstrução e reconstrução do formato de educação majoritariamente presente no ambiente universitário brasileiro, e para isso é importante entender quais são os preceitos, pilares e competências fundamentais que devem servir como base para construção de uma educação para sustentabilidade. / [en] The current global context of profound environmental changes, and increasingly complex human impacts on the environment, requires a change in behavior and education to contain such impacts and their effects. Sustainability as a concept, representing the various visions and forms of knowledge and sustainability existing in the world, is increasingly highlighted in this context, as a way to deal with these problems. In this sense, an education for sustainability becomes increasingly necessary to deal with the issues of modern society. However, in order to propose this, education itself needs a structural renovation, aiming at the construction of participatory processes, not only for students and teachers in the classroom, but also by bringing into the academic environment actors, and experiences from civil society, indigenous and other traditional and marginalized groups, historically not included in these constructions. Therefore, the development of education for sustainability, and of sustainability itself, in a participatory way, goes through the deconstruction and reconstruction of the education format mostly present in the Brazilian university environment, and for this it is important to understand which are the precepts, pillars, and fundamental competencies that should serve as a basis for the construction of an education for sustainability.

Institutions of higher educations (IHE), particularly universities, have a significant role to play in the global transformation to socio-ecological sustainability. This study focuses on the strategic planning efforts of one university, the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, New Zealand where The Natural Step Framework (TNSF) is being used to develop a pan-University Sustainability Plan. Drawing upon the triple helix model of university-government-industry interactions for knowledge creation, and integrating principles of education for sustainable development into strategic organizational learning and change processes within higher education, this study suggests that advocates for sustainability within IHE can use the TNSF to assess institutional barriers and communicate specific opportunities in order to institutionalize strategic sustainable development and promote socio-ecological innovation. / <p>100 Eheart Street SE Blacksburg, VA 24060</p>

Education for Sustainability is seen as a powerful change and social transformation tool aimed at greater equity in relations between society and the environment. Thus, this dissertation aims to analyze the scenario of Education for Sustainability in cur¬sos Graduate Sensu stricto in Rio Grande do Sul State Administration - Brazil. For this, the nine master's programs in existing Administration in Rio Grande do Sul were searched. In terms of methodological procedures, a descriptive and exploratory research of qualitative nature was carried out to meet four distinct stages: i) analyze the pedagogical projects of the nine courses, covering characterization of the subjects and relations with sustainability in the curriculum; ii) the documentary analysis of all 1813 dissertations have been published in the gauchos masters, seeking to relate these documents to Sustainability; iii) analyzes of publications derived from dissertations to identify which "green" dissertations were published in books, events and journals and vi) interviews with coordinators of the programs to identify concepts of program management for Sustainability and teachers from different lines of research aimed at identify the concepts of Sustainability, teaching strategies and learning methodologies. In total, sixteen teachers and coordinators were interviewed. The results show that the pedagogical projects of the courses are committed to issues of regionalities and sustainable issues, but when that aspect is transferred to the subjects of the courses, this query can not be measured directly. In the item analysis of dissertations, it was observed that they do not have great representation, with only 126 of the total 1813 in academic master's degrees in Administration of Rio Grande do Sul. It was also observed that the Graduate programs do not have the incentive to sustainable management and conceptions of teachers are private and are related to the line of research in which they are linked not with the Graduate program. Thus, it analyzes the scenario is still capable of improvement, such as encouraging the publication of dissertations "green", the integration of sustainable curriculum and improvements in sustainable management. / A Educação para Sustentabilidade é vista como uma poderosa ferramenta de mudanças e transformações sociais visando uma maior equidade nas relações entre a sociedade e o ambiente. Assim, esta dissertação objetiva analisar o cenário da Educação para Sustentabilidade nos cursos de Pós-Graduação Stricto Sensu em Administração do estado do Rio Grande do Sul Brasil. Para isso, os nove programas de mestrado em Administração existentes no Rio Grande do Sul foram pesquisados. Em termos de procedimentos metodológicos, uma pesquisa descritiva e exploratória de natureza qualitativa foi realizada, visando atender quatro etapas distintas: i) analisar os projetos pedagógicos dos nove cursos, contemplando caracterização das disciplinas e relações com a Sustentabilidade no currículo; ii) Análise documental de todas as 1813 dissertações já publicadas nos mestrados gaúchos, buscando relacionar esses documentos com a Sustentabilidade; iii) análises das publicações oriundas das dissertações visando identificar quais as dissertações verdes foram publicadas em livros, eventos e periódicos e vi) Entrevistas com coordenadores dos programas visando identificar concepções sobre gestão dos programas para a Sustentabilidade e professores de diferentes linhas de pesquisa visando identificar as concepções sobre Sustentabilidade, estratégias de ensino e metodologias de aprendizagem. No total, dezesseis professores e coordenadores foram entrevistados. Os resultados apontam que os projetos pedagógicos dos cursos estão comprometidos com temáticas de regionalidades e com questões sustentáveis, porém quando este aspecto é transferido para as disciplinas dos cursos, este quesito não pode ser mensurado de forma direta. No quesito análise das dissertações, observou-se que estas não possuem grande representatividade, sendo apenas 126 do total de 1813 nos mestrados acadêmicos em Administração do Rio Grande do Sul. Observou-se também que os programas de Pós-Graduação não possuem o incentivo para a gestão sustentável e as concepções dos docentes são particulares e possuem relação com a linha de pesquisa na qual estão vinculados e não com o programa de Pós-Graduação. Desse modo, analisa-se que o cenário ainda é passível de melhorias, como o fomento a publicação de dissertações verdes , a integração de um currículo sustentável e melhorias na gestão sustentável.

The purpose of this study was to explore the attitudes, beliefs, and practices of community college professors regarding education for sustainable development (ESD). In-depth interviews with 14 professors from different disciplines were conducted. The participants taught at Miami Dade College, Florida, a Talloires Declaration signatory since 2006, and all had attended Green Studies professional development workshops. Written documents such as assignments and samples of student work were used for triangulation. The annual report of the college’s Earth Ethics Institute and its Web site served as additional sources. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for common themes. The Talloires Declaration’s 10-point action plan and the key characteristics of ESD (UN DESD, 2006) served as the conceptual framework. The study found that the professors considered ESD an essential issue. The majority discussed the economic and social aspects of ESD; however, the environmental aspect was mentioned most frequently. The professors’ conceptualizations of ESD were influenced by their experiences and evidenced by the metaphors they used. Although their engagement with ESD differed, the professors expressed optimism toward ESD related teaching and learning. They regarded ESD as compatible with their subjects, and most had already been infusing sustainability into their courses or planned to do so. Additionally, the participants’ teaching practices reflected many of the characteristics of ESD. Even though the professors considered ESD challenging, they believed that they could make contributions to the college’s effort. The metaphor of “Planting a Seed” was frequently used to describe this holistic approach. The study also found that many professors regarded interpersonal relationships and communication significant factors for the advancement of ESD. The participants described several challenges to integrating ESD at their college. These related to time constraints, density of curriculum, institutional size and fragmentation, dearth of administrative support and incentives, students’ lack of academic preparation and sustainability awareness, students’ inability to focus on ESD because of personal, social, or economic circumstances, and professors’ frustration about a divisive atmosphere as a result of their engagement with sustainability. Despite these obstacles, the professors believed that ESD could be successfully woven into the community college experience.

Sport, as a human activity, contributes to the changes happening in the natural environment, making the sport sector a responsible actor for sustainable development. Experiences in nature can raise awareness about our natural environment and possibly influence pro-environmental behaviour and our identities. Such nature experiences can be reached in schools with teachers as implementers and role models. Swedish schools for example, have a concept called friluftsliv, which introduces children to outdoor experiences as part of Physical Education (PE). In Switzerland, a similar country to Sweden in many aspects, such a concept is non-existent. Thus, this study aims to observe possible differences and similarities between environmental identities of PE teachers in Sweden and Switzerland, how those developed and manifest today.  Primary and secondary school PE teachers from Switzerland and Sweden were asked to draw nature and were interviewed individually as well as in separate group discussions. The model of Education for Sustainability, Transformative Learning Theory, and Identity Theory serve as the theoretical framework of this work. The results show that there are many individual differences in how the PE teachers’ environmental identities manifest. Some see nature as a platform for activities, some deeply care for it, some seek interactions with it or even perceive themselves as a part of the natural world. When it comes to Swiss participants, main influences on their environmental identity were identified before Physical Education teacher education (PETE) through sport-related activities with their family, in associations or their leisure time, whereas the Swedish experiences were more sport-unrelated, connected to family experiences and as part of PETE. I conclude, according to the model of Education for Sustainability, that there were less transformative learning effects and therefore less behavioural change achieved in Swiss PETE than in Swedish PETE. The main difference was the amount of reflection about said nature experiences, which was more present in the Swedish context. Incorporating this reflective aspect into PE curricula could be an approach to increase this reflective aspect, in Switzerland as well as in Sweden.

Environmental education is a response to the environmental crisis. Due to the diversity of the environment, environmental education processes face a challenge, locally and globally, because it should respond to the diversity of local environmental issues, and contribute towards the addressing of local environmental issues. It is therefore important that environmental education programs focus on local environmental issues, and in the analysis there of accommodates investigative, problem solving and environmental action skills, because such programs proof to be more successful. The introduction of environmental education into formal education can only be successful within a structure that is conducive to a holistic integrated approach and accommodates investigative, problem solving and environmental action skills. Research however proves that within the school context, environmental education processes, as well as the addressing of local environmental issues, is fragmented. The development of a school environmental policy and management plan can provide a valuable framework for a holistic approach to the organization of environmental education processes in schools, that is integrated with the curriculum, resulting in the effective management of resources and the addressing of local environmental issues. Through this research, the implementation of school environmental policies and management plans in Mpumalanga was evaluated, in terms of the integration of environmental education processes in the curriculum, the organization of environmental education processes in schools, the effective management of resources in schools, and the addressing of local environmental issues. The conclusion was drawn that the implementation of school environmental policies and management plans contributes towards curriculum integration of environmental education, the organization of environmental education processes, the management of resources and the addressing of environmental issues in schools. The more exposure a school gets in terms of implementation of school environmental policies and management plans the higher the achievement in the mentioned areas. It can therefore be deducted that exposure to the implementation of school environmental policies and management plans will lead to the integration of the environment in the curriculum, the organization of environmental education processes in schools, the management of resources and the addressing of environmental issues in schools. / Educational Studies / D.Ed (Didactics)

La tesi s'estructura al voltant de dues grans finalitats: la primera és identificar les destreses i capacitats professionals, basades en l'educació per a la sostenibilitat, necessàries per als educadors no formals que treballen en ciutats històriques. La segona consisteix en aportar un procés avaluatiu -dirigit a la finalitat anterior- d'un programa educatiu en funcionament: el Programa d'educació ambiental i coneixement de la ciutat de l'Ajuntament de Girona. S'aporten uns resultats per al cas d'estudi -punts forts, punts febles i propostes de millora- que poden induir als canvis i a la transformació del Programa. Quant a la formació d'educadors en ciutats històriques, s'identifiquen dotze àmbits formatius i seixanta-cinc destreses i capacitats professionals per a la seva formació. Els àmbits formatius són els següents: comunicació; dinamització de grups; pensament crític; visió holística de la realitat; compromís amb l'entorn; valors per a la sostenibilitat; visió històrica i patrimonial del medi; visió de futur del medi; metodologies i habilitats docents; avaluació i investigació; teories i pràctiques de l'educació per a la sostenibilitat; coneixements disciplinaris. Els àmbits i les destreses i capacitats professionals són justificats a partir dels resultats del cas d'estudi i dels marcs teòrics utilitzats en el desenvolupament de la investigació. / This dissertation is structured around two purposes: the first one is to identify the skills and professional capacities, based on education for sustainability, that the non formal educators which work in historical cities must possess. The second one, consists of contributing an evaluation process - addressed to the first purpose - of an educational running program: the Environmental Education and Knowledge of the City Program, belonging to the council of Girona.The results for the case study are contributed - strong points, weak points and proposals to improve -, and they can induce to change and transformation of the Program. Related to educators training in historical cities, twelve formative fields and sixty-five skills and professional capacities are identified. The formative fields are the following: communication; groups invigorating; critical thinking; holistic vision of reality; commitment with environment; values for sustainability; holistic and patrimonial sight of environment; future view of environment; methodologies and abilities for teaching; evaluation and research; theories and practices of education for sustainability; disciplinary knowledge. The formative fields, skills and professional capacities, are justified starting from the results of the case study and the theoretical framework used in the research development.