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<\/a>Why educate for sustainability?<\/strong><\/p>\n The unique challenges that define our era \u2014 developing sustainable food systems, revitalizing the health of our oceans, improving the health and well-being of people, protecting biodiversity, regenerating the integrity of ecosystems, and accelerating the shift toward a green economy and clean, renewable energy (for example)\u2014require fundamentally new ways of thinking and acting (Capra, 2007; Rockstr\u00f6m, 2009; AAAS, 2001; Barstow & Geary, 2002; Larson, 2011; NRC, 2012; NOAA, 2005 and 2009). Our species\u2019 endeavor to achieve a sustainable human future invites reflection on the fundamental question: Education for what purpose? (Orr, 1991 and 2004; Sterling 2001). If humanity is to successfully transition from an unsustainable way of life to a regenerative one, the field of Education for Sustainability (EfS) has a central role to play (Wheeler and Byrne, 2004; DOE, 2011; Assadourian and Renner, 2012; Sterling, 2001; Senge, et al., 2008 and 2012).<\/p>\n Education for Sustainability (EfS) functions as a powerful rationale for teaching and\u00a0<\/span>learning in the 21st Century (Sterling, 2001; Wheeler and Byrne, 2004; Cloud, 2010)\u00a0<\/span>EfS is a \u201cwhole system of inquiry\u201d that combines current best practices of teaching\u00a0<\/span>and learning with the content, core competencies, and habits of mind required for\u00a0<\/span>students to actively participate in creating a sustainable future (Bergstrom, 2009;\u00a0<\/span>Cloud, 2010; ESA, 2012). EfS can be defined as a transformative learning process that\u00a0<\/span>equips students, teachers, schools, and informal educators with the knowledge and\u00a0<\/span>ways of thinking that society needs to achieve economic prosperity and responsible\u00a0<\/span>citizenship while restoring the health of the living systems upon which our lives\u00a0<\/span>depend (Cloud, 2004 and 2010).<\/span><\/p>\n Education for Sustainability explicitly recognizes the role of teaching and learning in\u00a0<\/span>shaping the future we want. In this context, sustainability is viewed as a preferred\u00a0<\/span>condition: \u201cA society that is far-seeing enough, flexible enough, and wise enough not\u00a0<\/span>to undermine either its physical or its social systems of support\u201d (Meadows, 1992), \u201ca\u00a0<\/span>quality of life for all within the means of nature\u201d (Wackernagel, 1995), \u201cthe long-term\u00a0<\/span>integrity of the biosphere and human well-being\u201d (Chapin et al, 2011), and \u201cThe\u00a0<\/span>possibility that human and other life will flourish on Earth forever\u201d (Ehrenfeld, 2008).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n From a theoretical standpoint, Education for Sustainability draws on multiple research\u00a0<\/span>based teaching and learning methodologies. These include backwards design (starting\u00a0<\/span>the curriculum planning process with the learning outcomes and forms of evidence in\u00a0<\/span>mind), best known as \u201cUnderstanding by Design\u201d (McTighe and Wiggins, 2004),\u00a0<\/span>curriculum mapping tools (Jacobs, 2004), learner centered\/assessment driven\u00a0<\/span>instruction (Martin-Kniep, 2009), Project-Based Learning (Buck Institute, 2003),\u00a0<\/span>Community Based Learning (CBL) (Farnsworth), inquiry-based learning (Bruner,\u00a0<\/span>1996), constructivist learning (Von Glasersfeld, 1995), Place-Based Learning (Smith\u00a0<\/span>and Sobel) and Professional Learning Communities (DeFore and Eaker, 1998). EfS\u00a0<\/span>provides teachers and learners with an inspiring mission\u2014to participate in creating a\u00a0<\/span>sustainable future\u2014and pedagogical and content pathways that support whole\u00a0<\/span>systems thinking and design. This truly represents one of the \u201cgrand challenges\u201d of\u00a0<\/span>our time.<\/span><\/p>\n Key research informing popular EfS theories of change includes Organizational\u00a0<\/span>Learning and Change (Senge), System Dynamics and Systems Thinking (Von\u00a0<\/span>Bertallanffy, Ackoff, Capra, Forrester), the Innovation Diffusion Theory (Rogers),\u00a0<\/span>Critical Theory (Horkheimer) and Otto Scharmer\u2019s Theory U (Scharmer).\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>Many EfS scholars recognize the essential role that interdisciplinary and cross-sector\u00a0<\/span>collaboration play in fostering innovation (Beinhocker, 2006). Education for\u00a0<\/span>sustainability is inherently transdisciplinary (NSF SEES, 2012). Comprehensive,\u00a0<\/span>anticipatory design solutions (Gabel, 2012) are vital to systemic change. Robert Kates,\u00a0<\/span>author of <\/span>What Kind of Science is Sustainability Science?<\/span><\/i>, writes that \u201csustainability\u00a0<\/span>science is a different kind of science . . . with significant fundamental and applied\u00a0<\/span>knowledge components, and a commitment to moving such knowledge into societal action (Kates, 2011).\u00a0<\/span>Among the many disciplines and fields that inform EfS are:<\/p>\n Science:<\/b>\u00a0Adaptive systems, biology, Earth system science, ecology, environmental science, game theory, global environmental change, green chemistry, neuroscience, oceanography, physics, resilience science.<\/span><\/p>\n Engineering & Design:<\/b>\u00a0Biomimicry, cradle-to-cradle design and manufacturing, ecological design and architecture, life cycle analysis with full cost accounting, and sustainable communities design.<\/span><\/p>\n Education<\/b>: Climate literacy, ecological literacy, environmental education, design thinking, futures studies, holistic education, gaming to learn, geospatial literacy, global education, holistic education, mindfulness education, oceans literacy, place-based education, social emotional learning, systems thinking, and win-win conflict resolution education.<\/span><\/p>\n Social Science & Humanities<\/b>: Creativity and the arts, ecological psychology, ethics, history and environmental history, philosophy, positive psychology, and the science of happiness.<\/span><\/p>\n Currently, there is a large gap between society\u2019s aspirations for a healthy and\u00a0<\/span>sustainable future, and the knowledge, skills, and attitudes being taught and acquired\u00a0<\/span>in the majority of Pre-K-18 schools and universities. Especially troubling is the speed at which all but a handful of Colleges of Education have embraced Education for Sustainability. Pre-Service Education for teachers has the potential to be a leverage point for systemic change. A long-term goal of the field of Education for Sustainability is to demonstrate the unique value of sustainability as a context for the whole school and curriculum (Stone, 2009), and for the larger community (Sobel, 2004; OFSTED, 2009; Journal of Sustainability Education, 2011). <\/span><\/p>\n Research designed to measure the impact of EfS on students, schools and communities should, among other important outcomes, demonstrate that there is a correlation between the practice of EfS (sustained, comprehensive EfS in day-to-day actions of community members and explicit instruction), and the achievement of communities as measured by sustainable community indicators. Research analyzing the effect of EfS programs on students, faculty members, and communities shows multiple, positive and long-term benefits. Examples include: Becker-Klein et al, 2008; Duffin, 2006; AED\/Cloud, 2007; Sobel, 2008; Gayford, 2009; Barrat Hacking et al, 2010; PEER Associates, 2010.\u00a0<\/span>These particular studies indicate:<\/span><\/p>\n EfS Effect on Students:<\/b><\/p>\n EfS Effect on Faculty Members<\/b>:<\/span><\/p>\n EfS Effect on Schools, Communities & Ecosystems:<\/b><\/p>\n As the Education for a Sustainable and Secure Future Report (NCSE, 2003) states:\u00a0<\/span>\u201cHuman and global security, economic opportunity, and the quality of life for humans\u00a0<\/span>and all species depends upon the continued availability of a life-sustaining\u00a0<\/span>environment.\u201d Pre-K-18 Education for Sustainability is uniquely positioned to help\u00a0<\/span>address the challenges of environmental, social, and economic sustainability through\u00a0<\/span>sustained innovation in teaching and learning.<\/span><\/p>\n State by state, locale by locale, we can catalyze, energize, and advance the field of EfS from a few communities of interest to a robust collection of communities of practice (Wenger, 2006). <\/span>A community of interest<\/span><\/i>\u00a0is characterized by pockets of innovation; a need for shared meanings and understandings; limited opportunities for coordinated research and exchange; and a need for more formal structures to grow the field. <\/span>A community of inquiry<\/span><\/i>\u00a0is characterized by connecting pockets of research and innovation; promoting interdisciplinary and cross-sector collaboration; defining strategic opportunities, and documenting success stories. <\/span>\u00a0<\/b>A community of practice<\/span><\/i>\u00a0is characterized by regular opportunities for people to share research and practice; a body of research and literature; formal and informal structures for communications and meetings; and connecting to related networks for the dissemination of knowledge.<\/span><\/p>\n Within a community of practice, members make \u201ca commitment to be available to each other, to offer support to share learning, to consciously develop new knowledge. They are there not only for their own needs, but for the needs of others\u201d (Wheatley, 2005). The focus of a community of practice also extends beyond its membership to advance its field and share discoveries with others engaged in similar work (Barlow and Stone, 2011).<\/span><\/p>\n Why develop <\/span>Educating for a Sustainable Future: Benchmarks for Individual and Social Learning<\/span><\/a>? Eighteen years into the 21st Century, students, educators, and decision makers on the ground need to be able to trust that what they are learning and doing, and what they are receiving in the way of assistance, meets the standards for EfS. In order for that to happen, we need to have <\/span>agreed upon <\/span><\/i>standards of excellence for EfS. \u00a0Every legitimate field of inquiry has to define and re-define itself over time. If it doesn\u2019t, others will define it, it will disappear, or it will become distorted. A field of inquiry has to establish boundaries for the system of interconnected elements with which it is concerned, and it has to set and re-set the bars of excellence so that those who want to study it, deliver it and assess for it can aspire to the highest degrees of readiness and quality. <\/span><\/p>\n For years, many countries from around the world have been examining the attributes of EfS\/ESD (Education for Sustainable Development as it is often called around the world) through their federal-level education systems, in Colleges and Universities in general, and Schools of Education in particular. In the U.S. a handful of dedicated thought leaders and scholars, in both NGOs and universities, have studied the historical antecedents\u2014( ex. Leopold (1949) Fuller (1969), Bateson (1972), Armstrong (1970) Meadows (1972), Brundtland (1987), Agenda 21, Chapter 36 (1992), Cajete (1994), The Earth Charter (2000), Orr (2004) to name just a very few) from around the country and the globe, studied the needs for a sustainable future, and created multiple EfS frameworks articulated from our own perspectives. This has made the work rich, robust and relevant for our context. <\/span><\/p>\n In response to the call to accelerate, scale and measure the impact of Education for Sustainability across our formal education systems, <\/span>we asked thought leaders and scholars who have created and continue to study EfS to address the following questions: \u00a0What is Education for Sustainability (EfS)?\u00a0 What are the \u201cessential ingredients\u201d of EfS that distinguish it from other educational frameworks? What paradigms, knowledge, skills and attitudes characterize EfS?\u00a0 What instructional and engagement practices are congruent? What are the favorable organizational conditions that will make it possible?\u00a0 What types of school\/community partnerships are key?<\/span><\/p>\n Using grounded theory methodology, forty-two thought leaders, authors and scholars in the U.S. and around the world, made their contributions to \u201cThe Essential Elements of Education for Sustainability\u201d Matrix in the 2014 issue of the Journal of Sustainability Education\u2019s series entitled, The State of the Field.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>Subsequently, a core group of the authors, thought leaders and scholars joined a group of emerging scholars in the field to conduct an analysis of our collective body of work with the goal of developing Benchmarks for EfS. We came together to share, for the first time, our collected works in one place and to synthesize \u201cthe State of the Field\u201d and determine what we all agree is essential to educating for a healthy, sustainable and regenerative future. <\/span>The one thing all the participants had in common was the recognition that all people have to\u00a0<\/span>learn<\/span><\/i>\u00a0how to live well within the means of nature on \u201cSpaceship Earth\u201d.<\/span><\/p>\n“If humanity is to successfully transition from an unsustainable way of life to a regenerative one, the field of Education for Sustainability (EfS) has a central role to play”<\/h3>\n
“EfS\u00a0provides teachers and learners with an inspiring mission\u2014to participate in creating a\u00a0sustainable future\u2014and pedagogical and content pathways that support whole\u00a0systems thinking and design.”<\/h3>\n
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