Education as we know is one of the important aspects of humans' life. It not only contributes to the economic growth and development of an individual but also it contributes to improving his quality of social well being as it helps in broadening the mindset of the students. A quality education system is the backbone of sustainable development. Sustainable development refers to the development process that meets the needs of people in present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The concept of sustainable development is related to the environment but its meaning is broader and wider than we think. It helps the individual to improve his quality of life socially and economically by keeping harmony with the environment. That is the development activities must happen without depleting the natural resources available at the present.
At the social ripples, which is an initiative towards sustainable development they promote and support the realization of the United Nations sustainable development goal number 4 which aims at providing quality education for every individual. Quality education is a tool that develops a sense of sustainability in society. The United Nations emphasizes the reorientation of the education system so that sustainable development is achieved.
Education for sustainable development
Education for sustainable development promotes knowledge, skills, values, and actions required for sustainable development. Education for sustainable development also ensures that environmental protection and enhancement. Also, it promotes social equity and encourages environmental stability. The education system should promote education for sustainable development as it enables and encourages individuals to make decisions and carry out actions related to development that do not affect the planet. Education helps to integrate the values inherent in sustainable development into all levels of the learning process.
Sustainable development is the outcome of the three pillars of development that needs to be balanced. The three pillars of sustainable development are
• Social equity
• Economic sustainability
• Environment protection
Education helps in balancing the three pillars of sustainable development by addressing themes such as poverty eradication, citizenship, peace, ethics, and harmony in society. It also helps in promoting the feeling of responsibility towards the world locally and globally.
At the social ripples, their focus is to generate awareness about the inclusion of education for sustainable development in the education system. They advocate the following characteristics of education that helps in achieving sustainable development,
• Share values and actions that are aligned to sustainable development
• Train the students in such a way that they develop skills such as critical thinking and come up with problem-solving solutions in a sustainable way.
• Include various educational methods such as, art, literature, drama, debates, and discussions that illustrate the process.
• Encourage students and allow them to participate in the decision-making process. of designing and content of the educational programs
• Always keep students aware of the local and global issues by addressing them from time to time
• The education system should include project topics such as installing water dispensers in school, water recycling. Also, they should encourage students to use recyclable and reusable water bottles to reduce plastic pollution.
Thus, education for sustainable development can help the students to bring a better future for them. it also promotes the idea and needs for social equity. For achieving education for sustainable development it is important to have continued support from the authorities and educators, and the social ripples, is aiming at taking measures to attain that support. But they also believe that parents should also be educated and trained so that they can support their children to gain quality education as they are an important part of the education system.
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