Education and sustainable development

  Education for sustainable development Education for sustainable development (ESD) is UNESCO’s education sector response to the urgent and dramatic challenges the planet faces. The collective activities of human beings have altered the earth’s ecosystems so that our very survival seems in danger because of changes more difficult to reverse every day. To contain global warming before it reaches catastrophic levels means addressing environmental, social and economic issues in a holistic way. UNESCO’s ESD for 2030 education programme aims to bring about the personal and societal transformation that is necessary to change course.  Acting as a global advocate and aiming to strengthen capacities of governments to provide quality Climate Change Education (CCE), UNESCO produces and shares knowledge, provides policy guidance and technical support to its Member States and implements projects on the ground. UNESCO encourages innovative approaches and enhances non-formal education progra...

  More than 12 million people around the world die every year because they live or work in unhealthy environments. 1  Healthy People 2030 focuses on reducing people’s exposure to harmful pollutants in air, water, soil, food, and materials in homes and workplaces.  Environmental pollutants can cause health problems like respiratory diseases, heart disease, and some types of cancer. 2  People with low incomes are more likely to live in polluted areas and have unsafe drinking water. And children and pregnant women are at higher risk of health problems related to pollution. 3 , 4   Tracking environmental pollutants is key to figuring out where and how people are exposed. Laws and policies to reduce different types of pollution can also help prevent many seriou...

It is possible to  power the world with affordable clean energy , so we are helping to digitize smart grids and smart buildings.​ It is possible to  design out waste , so we are re-building products from used ones.​ It is possible to  strengthen nature with technology , so we are using the Internet of Things (IoT) to protect the world’s biodiversity.​ This is  The Plan for Possible , Cisco’s next generation environmental sustainability strategy. The progress we make in this decade will be critical for future generations. We’re aligning our environmental strategy to rise to this challenge. Priority 1: Transition to clean energy ​ To power the world with renewables, the grid requires updated digital infrastructure to connect diverse, decentralized sources of clean energy. But even as the world electrifies, we must simultaneously reduce the amount of energy used by a connected economy. As a part of this priority, we’ve also s...

  Four simple ways to teach children to be sustainable include: 1 . Read storybooks with environmental themes Reading storybooks with your child is both an opportunity to bond with them, and an excellent way to introduce difficult topics such as climate change in a child-friendly way.  ABC Kids  recommends some well-known classics such as  Where the Wild Things Are  and  Charlotte’s Web  to start the conversation about the importance of living sustainably. 2 . Discuss sustainability at home Engage your child in discussions about being sustainable at home, such as noticing how the rubbish bin is full, or how many food scraps are left over after dinner, or when the tap hasn’t been turned off correctly. Discuss what can be done to reduce waste, such as recycling rubbish or composting food scraps. You may even like to start a worm farm or compost bin at home or involve your child in sorting through rubbish together to see what can be recycled or re-purpose...