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ESD for 2030 (2023-2026) - English

Project lead: Prof. Dr. Gerhard de Haan

Project coordination: Dr. Antje Brock

Monitoring team:
Dr. Antje Brock, Julius Grund, Jorrit Holst, Ann-Kathrin Schlieszus, Marcus Schneider, Christoph Schönherr, Susanne Waldow-Meier, Dr. Sarah Widany

Duration: 2023-2026

Office of the Scientific Advisor to the UNESCO program “ESD for 2030”

The National Monitoring on "Education for Sustainable Development" (ESD) at the Institut Futur of the Freie Universität Berlin examines the extent to which education enables people to face the challenge of sustainable development and to contribute to a more sustainable world. In this context, the empowerment of each member of society is of interest – in line with lifelong learning, starting with early childhood and school education through higher education and vocational training all the way to educational and learning activities in adulthood. To this end, the national ESD monitoring programme uses a wide range of methods to investigate a variety of questions. These include, among others: 

  • the incorporation of ESD in key documents of the German education system
  • the assessment by experts of future skills required with regard to sustainability
  • the organisational transformation of educational institutions in the context of a whole institution approach
  • the landscape of non-formal education providers
  • knowledge about sustainable development, attitudes and emotions, as well as competences for action. 


ESD for 2030 - main chart


Monitoring is crucial for the institutionalisation of ESD

Linking sustainability with a wide range of individual and social learning processes and giving everyone access to these learning opportunities is a major task. A lot depends on its success: ESD is a key to empowering people to think and act sustainably. Since 2015, we have, within ESD monitoring, been analysing how well ESD is already established and where more effort is needed. This makes it possible to plan and implement measures to strengthen ESD in a more systematic way.


Areas of education from early childhood to adult education

Over the course of their lives, people come into contact with many different educational institutions: from early childhood education to school and vocational training and/or university. Many people also learn outside such institutions, for example in educational programmes offered by non-profit organisations or by passing on knowledge among family and friends and via mainstream and/or social media. The monitoring looks at all these areas of education.


Three central levels of analysis: Input, processes, outcome

ESD should enable people and organisations to think and act sustainably. The national monitoring analyses how well this is achieved at three different levels:

  • Input: Here the monitoring analyses the extent to which ESD is anchored in the specifications and framework conditions of the education system. This includes analysing laws, curricula, exams and other documents, for example.
  • Processes: At this level, the focus is on concrete implementation: in which areas and in what way is ESD already established in formal and non-formal educational organisations, where is action needed?
  • Outcome: Here we look at how well the population is already able to act sustainably. This includes not only individual behaviour, but also the extent to which the relevant structures can be changed.


Which approach do we take?

In order to do justice to the very different areas of education and levels of analysis, we employ a wide range of methods. This includes the analysis of documents — more than 11,000 to date — as well as quantitative and qualitative studies. Examples are a representative population survey, mixed-method surveys at educational institutions, a Delphi study with decision-makers and a survey of stakeholders in the non-formal and informal education sectors.

These diverse methodological approaches are used to analyse both the framework conditions and the concrete implementation of ESD. The actual empowerment for sustainability, for example the knowledge and attitudes of the stakeholders towards ESD, are also taken into account. Ultimately, sustainability in education can only be truly realised if all those involved in the educational processes are committed to it.


Advice for policy-makers and educational practitioners

As the Office of the Scientific Advisor to the UNESCO program ESD for 2030 (Prof. Dr. Gerhard de Haan), the globally unique and independent monitoring unit operates at the interface between science and education policy. In addition to research, the nine-member monitoring team also advises stakeholders from politics and education practice on how ESD can be better anchored and implemented. In this way, the results of the research inform future policy and practice.

funded by the BMBF


Recent publications:

 

European Journal of Futures Research bei SpringerOpen
iF-Schriftenreihe
ESD for 2030 (2023-2026)