As the world confronts increasingly complex challenges like climate change, biodiversity collapse, and increasing inequality, the need to transform institutions in more sustainable directions is both increasingly evident and ever more urgent. The UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and the European Union’s Green Deal emerged in response to this impulse, but much remains to be done to put the values of such frameworks into practice.
To this end, Maltese researchers Prof. Paul Pace and Dr Jane Spiteri are participating in a European research project on integrating sustainability in education institutions, called Sustainability in Education Institutions, or SUSEDI.
The project uses what is known as a Whole Institution Approach to Sustainability, which involves looking at everything from the institution’s curriculum to the way it is managed and governed, to how the institution is embedded in the wider community. It is thus a holistic framework which emphasises both community engagement and continuous learning, and empowers all students and staff to take on the responsibility and commitment to create a sustainable future.
As part of the SUSEDI project, an e-learning platform has been created for educators. The platform includes audio lectures, quizzes and exercises, a Moodle with online resources, learning outcomes, and a space to interact with a broader community of practice. It is designed to provide comprehensive support and resources for educators and institutions aiming to become sustainable institutions.
The e-learning platform offers an organised and easy-to-use structure for the navigation and administration of educational activities. You can visit the platform online.
The project also involves the creation of a certification scheme. The certification scheme will be based on a list of sample activities aligned with the systemic framework. In keeping with the WIA to Sustainability, the activities span organisational, social and pedagogical areas, targeting various sustainability goals (e.g. policy formulation, curriculum integration, sustainability workshops and systemic SDG adoption).
