How can education for sustainable development serve as a means of peacebuilding in post-conflict societies? : a comparative case study of ESD and THRED

Abstract

I am interested in exploring ways climate change can be prevented and measures that can be taken in order to rebuild societies that experienced violence as a result of climate change. There are many avenues in which to explore such an interest, but I am very passionate about education. Conflict and education are inextricably linked. According to the World Bank, education “reproduces the skills, values, attitudes and societal relations of dominant groups in society; accordingly, they are usually a contributory factor in conflict.” Further, within conflict prevalent areas education serves as “a means of socialization and identity development,” that can transcend generations and further entrench deeply rooted conflicts. Education is not neutral. It has real impacts on the ways in which one thinks, acts, and knows the world. Education can be a powerful means of building peace and a powerful tool to divide and dehumanize populations as “the other.” There is always an expected outcome of the pupils. Whether this is to act morally or immorally is dependent upon the content and the agenda of its creator. Karina Korostelina has written extensively on the power of history education, for example, in building incomplete narratives of past events in order to push the narrative of the state and divide populations. This of course, might lead one to question why certain topics are left out, and what the impact of such an absence is. Education is an effective channel through which competitive and conflictual attitudes can be shifted to cooperative behavior. It is fundamental in the prevention and resolution of conflicts. More specifically, I am interested in the topic of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and whether or not it is incorporated as a component of education in conflict and post conflict societies as a means of peacebuilding. Several scholars have shared this interest and have asked whether or not sustainability and climate change are taught alongside other peacebuilding efforts. Leading them to conclude that there were several forms of peacebuilding that had the environment as a topic, but ESD has yet to be adequately applied to educational settings that exist within post-conflict societies. Further, this lack of awareness breeds further insecurity and potentially disrupts peacebuilding efforts. “A failure to consider and address climate change and risks will undermine peacebuilding programs and projects, and thereafter their long-term sustainability.” As I will elaborate in the proceeding chapters, there are many components that HRE and ESD models share, namely, that they have the mission to transform societies. They aim to teach students the ability to critically reflect on issues and all systems that might impact such a problem. Further, they both seek to provide students with the tools to advocate for change and demand justice at the legal, economic, and social levels, from the local to international scale. They seek to transform society in order to achieve positive peace.