Tag: SDGs

The world needs a better understanding of the key role of education in sustainable development

“Different political, cultural and economic contexts across the world inevitably suggest that humanity may not share the same understanding of what  formal education should entail”

The Sustainable Development Goals were created by the United Nations to mobilise the world’s community in tackling a range of global problems.

‘Quality Education’ is the focus of Goal 4, but the remaining 16 SDGs also have links with education as an essential foundation of some of their targets.

However, there are apparent gaps in our knowledge around the definition and role of education in sustainable development; the links between the education goal and other goals; and the operationalisation of those links to help SDGs achieve their mission in sustainable development globally.

My recent research explores these gaps, highlighting the vague aspects of the definition of education and inconsistencies in the links between the education goal and other goals of the UN, their targets and indicators, which means that aspects of the process of utilising education to achieve sustainable development remain too vague.

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How higher education is driving sustainable development

“None of the SDGs can be achieved in isolation: to truly deliver lasting change, collaboration between universities and partners around the world will be critical”

In an opening address to the Conference of Commonwealth Education Ministers late last month, Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta sounded a clarion call to government education ministers around the world.

They should, he said ‘be alarmed to note that, by 2050, Korea and Japan will be enrolling 80% or more of their high school graduates to higher education, while countries such as the Central African Republic and Niger will be struggling to reach 5%.’ This gap, he said, was a critical issue for the Commonwealth, whose 54 member states are home to one in three of the world’s young people.

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Climate change and the role of international educators

“”As educators, it is our responsibility to help inform students of the implications of their choices and the ways they can offset them”

As concerns around climate change dominate the headlines, John Pearson, VP Operations at non-profit educational organisation FIE explores how educators can help to offset some of the environmentally damaging practices that occur throughout the study abroad experience.

The transformative power of travel and the value of international education is undeniable. Study abroad providers, such as we at Foundation for International Education pride ourselves on offering this opportunity to young adults so that they might become better-rounded, worldly people upon graduating and entering a global economy.

However, with the concerns around climate change dominating the headlines and elections around the world, the question of how to sustainably administer education abroad to the growing number of international students begins to glare us all in the face.

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