Hans van Ginkel
UN Under- Secretary- General, Rector of UNU |
The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) together with its partners, drawing on experience gained from previous programmes of working with universities in Africa , and with universities worldwide, is supporting a partnership programme to mainstream environment and sustainability concerns into the teaching, research, community engagement and management of universities in Africa .
The MESA (Mainstreaming Environment & Sustainability into African Universities) Partnership includes the following:
• An Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) Innovations short course developed and implemented by partners (to strengthen capacity to establish ESD innovations in universities);
• Seminars for university leaders ;
• A biennial conference providing an opportunity for universities to report on ESD innovations associated with the university's triple mission of research, teaching and community engagement, and to engage in North-South dialogue; and
• Pilot programmes linking universities, communities and business and industry in sustainable development partnerships.
The MESA Universities Partnership strengthens UNEP's special focus on Africa and is constituted as a major contribution to the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD). The MESA Universities Partnership also supports the New Partnership for Africa 's Development (NEPAD) environmental action plan and the objectives of the African Ministerial Conference on the Environment. The NEPAD Environmental Action Plan (UNEP, 2003) indicates that the state of the environment is a major determinant of the growth and development objectives of any nation and has a pervasive effect on the safety and standard of living of the populace. One of the strategic actions in the NEPAD Environmental Action Plan is the ‘ development of capacity in all aspects of environmental issues in Africa ' (UNEP 2003). Universities will have a key role to play in strengthening capacity for sustainable development through ESD initiatives.
UNESCO, in its role as task manager for the UNDESD, explains ESD as follows:
ESD prepares people of all walks of life to plan for, cope with and find solutions for issues that threaten the sustainability of our planet … Understanding and addressing these global issues of sustainability that affect individual nations and communities are at the heart of ESD. These issues come from the three spheres of sustainable development – environment, society and economy. Environmental issues like water and waste affect every nation, as do social issues like employment, human rights, gender equity, peace and human security. Every country also has to address economic issues such as poverty reduction and corporate responsibility and accountability. Major issues that have grabbed global attention such as HIV/AIDS, migration, climate change and urbanisation involve more than one sphere of sustainability. Such issues are highly complex and will require broad and sophisticated educational strategies for this and the next generation of leaders and citizens to find solutions. Educating to deal with complex issues that threaten planetary sustainability is the challenge of ESD. Education reform alone will not accomplish this. It will take a broad and deep effort from many sectors of society (UNESCO, 2005:3).
The overall goal of the UNDESD is:
To integrate the principles, values and practices of sustainable development into all aspects of education and learning. This education effort will encourage change in behaviour that will create a more sustainable future in terms of environmental integrity, economic viability, and a just society for present and future generations (UNESCO, 2005) .
The goals of the UNDESD are to: 1) facilitate networking, linkages, exchange and interaction amongst stakeholders in ESD; 2) to foster an increased quality of teaching and learning in education for sustainable development; 3) help countries make progress towards, and attain the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) through ESD efforts; and to 4) provide countries with new opportunities to incorporate ESD into education reform efforts (UNESCO, 2005).
One of the major thrusts of ESD, which is underscored by the UN Implementation Scheme for the UNDESD is re-orientation of education at all levels (including universities). This involves the strengthening of institutional and operational capacity for a consistent and systematic mainstreaming of ESD into policies, programmes and learning activities. It is these broader objectives for ESD that are directly addressed by the MESA Universities Partnership.
For more information on the MESA programme, please contact:
Environmental Education and Training
Division of Environmental Policy Development and Law
UNEP, P.O. Box 30552 ,
00100 Nairobi, Kenya
Tel: +254-20-7624027;
Fax: +254-20-7623917
E-mail: env.edu@unep.org
|
