Rudsberg, K. and Ohman, J. (2010). Pluralism in practice - experiences from Swedish evaluation, school development and research.

Rudsberg, K. and Ohman, J. (2010).  Pluralism in practice - experiences from Swedish evaluation, school development and research.  Environmental Education Research, 16(1), pp. 95 - 111.  Retrieved September 18, 2010 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/135046209035040763

Introduction

Rudsberg and Ohman state that alternative methods of education practice are fast becoming the norm and caution against indoctrination.  Education, they state, should be about diverse interests; promote and nurture individual opinions; actively encourage cognitive analysis; enhance competence and performance; and, be an holistic attribute of sustainable development.

This perspective forms the understanding Sweden has of environmental education and education for sustainable development.  This study reviews national strategy of evaluative research and development from the perspective of schools, government agencies and researchers in other universities.  Rudsberg and Ohman state that while research on participation, and group participation in detail is available, there are much fewer papers on how these methods translate in classrooms.  In light of this, the authors have explored inclusion (pluralism in practice) in sustainable development based on observations of teaching practice and the capacity for individual sense-making in students.  Rudsberg and Ohman based their argument on "an analytical concept called epistemological moves" (pg. 3).

National evaluation of environmental and sustainability education in Swedish schools

In 2000, the Swedish National Agency for Education was responsible for logging demographics on available environmental and sustainable development with a view to evaluate the potential for development.  The report was based on the study of twenty four schools (i.e. range pre-school to upper secondary and adult) and included interviews from faculty members.  The evaluation identified three traditions linked with environmental and sustainability:

1. fact based;
2. normative; and
3. pluralistic.

They varied in implementation and practice, and in their interpretation of a democratic education.

Environmental issues are accepted as the gap between knowledge and action in fact based tradition.  Science is regarded as the definitive argument for sense-making, and it is in these models that students find reliable sources of information.  Therefore opinion is based in fact, and provides the democratic basis for education.

Normative traditions support friendly transitions.  Discourse is based on question and answer forums with civil servants and other experts to establish scientific transactive knowledge that result in artefacts (e.g. policy documents, curricula).  Teaching consists of leading by example to instill values and behaviours that support fluctuating moods to maintain positive direction.

Pluralism is the metatheoretical incorporation of multi-level and transdimensional views, values and perspectives when responding to issues or questions on sustainability.  The manner in which knowledge is acquired relies on deliberate discourse that is essential to continued balance and democracy is embedded in positive action.  The primary function of education is seen to develop and enhance individual democratic skill.

Rudsberg and Ohman state that all three traditions are well represented in the country, with normative tradition at a popular 52% and fact based at 14%.  Faculty who were interviewed stated that normative tradition is unable to reach today's children, and both faculty and students are doing less in environmental education than ever before.  Core to this issue was the need to develop holistic teaching practice in order to remove obstacles (e.g. the time to consider a new strategy and its initiation.

The HUS project

The objective of the project was to design and develop models (i.e. best practice guidelines) that support the practice of ESD.  Special task force groups were organised to represent geographical location, type, and subject matter.  Leading the project were two project managers, four supervisors from teacher training, and two PhD students.  Care was taken to ensure a flattened hierarchy that could be adapted to fit teaching practice.  Teachers were assigned the task of documenting individual methods of ESD practice while receiving the support that was declared missing in the evaluation.  Direct supervision facilitated collaboration (e.g. working hours reduced, seminars and lectures by experts were mandatory, communication networks established to discuss experience).

As conceptual understanding on sustainable development differs, the consequences are made visible through practice.  Jabareen identifies seven hidden concepts that are ambiguous, contradictory and fraught with tension.  Furthermore, Fergus and Rowney propose that the meaning has changed to represent the success of education as it correlates with economic worth rather than the integrated learning about values and diversity.  Sumner suggests this is the basis for alternative methodology as it can be understood to mean academic imperialism as elitist, or education that makes collaboration about human commonwealth and cooperative practice.  In conclusion he states that education can be seen as a top-down practice in order to sustain ideologies proscribing specific end objectives, the flip side of which is education through the democracy of sharing and critically evaluating opinions.

Rudsberg and Ohman conclude that if eduction could answer specifically, it would be detrimental to the development of democracy and suggest instead that education be the platform for diversity and conflict to reliably and critically examine the argument.  The authors propose that sustainable development with allied with holistic pluralism.  It is unreasonable to suggest that ESD is merely about environmental education as it relates to society and economic value as it provides an alternative perspective into the dimension of environmental development.

It was as the project developed that a specific interest in creating ways to enhance student capacity for analytical resolution emerged.  Teaching practice was adapted to include active participation through student-centred learning and collaboration in addressing problems.  Scientific investigation was needed to support empirical evidence (i.e. understanding why/how phenomena occurs).  Rudsberg and Ohman recorded teacher understandings of stimulating inclusive meaning-making in students on ESD for analysis.

Epistemological moves

Rudsberg and Ohman base their analysis on John Dewey's pragmatism and Ludwig Wittgenstein's view on language.  A similar study was undertaken by Ostman at the turn of the century.  Epistemological moves clarifies the means by which a teacher understands how students acquire knowledge, or "the procedures of meaning-making" (pg. 6).

In order to investigate actions, it was thought necessary to be aware of intention.  Framed by the concept is a hidden agenda presenting the notion that mind and reality are different.  Researchers involved in detailed interviews requires teachers to think rationally and plan the sequence of events.  Behaviour, and subsequently practice, is modified when conscious activity (i.e. strategy) is adapted to fit environment.

Dewey and Wittgenstein view the distinction of inner world and outer reality as the image individuals have of themselves from a third party perspective.  To replace this picture, both scholars impress upon the need for accurate recall to remember how meaning, thoughts and emotions (i.e. inner mind) were integrated with language and action (i.e. outer reality) to build meaningful insight as to our feelings, desires and thoughts expressed in first person perspective.

Wittegenstein associates meaning from the term 'language game' to represent the flexibility of words as they are used from context to context or setting to setting.  He proposes that thought or intention does not lie behind speech, but should be thought of as integrated or embedded in customs or rituals, and in context and situation.

From a first person perspective, intention can be interpreted as action.  Action that facilitates sense making is termed 'epistemological moves' (e.g. giving instruction, giving and receiving constructive feedback) and are seen as guidelines for directed thought in students.  Rudsberg and Ohman clearly categorise the use of the word function as it applies to activity and profession, and state that each action has a function as it relates to student sense-making.

Research design

Once the recordings of classroom activity had been captured, repeated analytical examination generated associations with context and relativity that stimulated specific focus or interest.  Transcripts were detailed, and included written forms of gestures and facial expressions significant in tracing changes in conversation and how teacher utterances were significantly linked.  Comparisons, coding and description identified modifications in behaviour and thus enabled the identification of epistemological moves.  Evaluative criteria were judged on internal homogeneity and external heterogeneity.

Results

Generalising and specifying are two such epistemological moves that involves the teacher building a focus point for students to engage with (e.g. starts an open-ended discussion on sustainable development).  Skillful maneuvering allow the teacher to retain control of the conversation by interjecting questions designed to give students direction to stay on topic.  Generalising raises the discussion from personal experience to another level through the use of more general terms.  Specifying requires the student to elaborate on opinions that were uttered at the beginning of the discussion.   In talking through concepts, students find coherence in knowledge.

Actions derived from evaluative function create new perspectives that generate an opportunity to think of alternative solutions.  Teachers encourage students to actively think by posing reflective questions.  Rudsberg and Ohman's analysis establishes two categories of moves that have evaluative functions.  Comparative and testing.  Comparative moves are the addition of reflective questions posed by the teacher resulting in 'compare and evaluate' processes. Opposing opinion may emerge from the same source.  Testing allows the teacher to depersonalise experience from student statements to fit a new situation.  Inquiry exchanges test the conclusion in its new circumstance to verify validity.

Conclusions

Rudsberg and Ohman have facilitated in the study of individual teaching styles, and in individual teaching styles related to student sense-making.  The authors  were able to categorise four epistemological moves - generalising, specifying, comparative and testing, that make up the attributes and function of interaction in classrooms.

Rudsberg and Ohman state that the terms generalising and specifying are not specifically viewed as pluralist practice.  However, by allowing students to revisit topics and explore opinion further, internal philosophy is developed providing a clearer idea of public shared view.

Pluralism is accounted for when generalising and specifying moves are combined with comparative and testing moves that serve as evaluative functions.  Student contribution can be nurtured and developed.  Diversity of opinion creates an awareness in the student that there is more than one perspective.  Internal evaluations occur.  Munby and Roberts identify this form of pedagogy as socialisation towards intellectual independence.  Stimulation comes from divergent standpoints where none is supreme.  Rudsberg and Ohman states that discussions are open-ended "even though it follows specific rules for the correct way of creating meaning, or, in other words, how to participate in a pluralistic act of communication about value-related sustainable issues" (pg. 13).  They reason that how we learn is also what we learn where process is part of content.  The authors proposed that educational practice has the potential for modelling a democratic way of living.

Ideologies of democracy are supported in communication and attitude through influence rather than through defensiveness of preconceived ideas.  Situations where new meanings emerge encourage pluralist practice and sustain democratic communication.  Delivery of education is important to sense-making as a constant restructuring of knowledge forms the context of democracy.  Communication is used as a tool to pull on deeper cognitive capacity that requires active participation.

Final remarks

Rudsberg and Ohman present their paper as an example of pragmatism that has been developed within Swedish research to highlight the pragmatic approach and methodology for epistemological moves.  The system of analysis portrays a future vision of pluralism in ESD as pluralist practice not only supports the principle policy, it is embedded within the tools used in teaching practice to stimulate specific focus sense-making.  Democracy is embedded in curricula as a means to adopt a wider view of environmental education, and build a more meaningful perspective of life without indoctrination.

Rudsberg and Ohman remind us that pluralism is also connected to enlightenment and the development of liberalism and the humanities.  ESD has developed in so many ways that are peculiar to the host through either cultural or historical events, that it would be unwise to suggest a specific form of pluralist practice.

Nomura, K. and Abe, O. (2009). The education for sustainable development movement in Japan: a political perspective

Nomura, K. and Abe, O. (2009).  The education for sustainable development movement in Japan: a political perspective.  Environmental Education Research, 15(4), pp. 483 - 496.  Retrieved September 18, 2010 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13504620903056355


Introduction
This article is sourced from the Japanese governments strategy to open up political opportunities for non-governmental bodies and individuals to contribute to a policy on ESD prepared for the World Summit on Sustainable Development, Johannesburg 2002.  These political platforms were the beginning of the Japanese ESD movement, and alignment with UNESCO Decade of ESD (2005 - 2014).


Nomura and Abe recognise global trends driven by national governments to promote ESD, EfSF, EfS and DESD (origins in Japanese initiative) across education goals and subsequent methodology.  Economic growth and sustainable development are an integrated aspect of national government and industry.  The study is based on interviews conducted by the authors on key players in the ESD movement who reveal the sequence of events designed to build the Japanese DESD proposal.


Social movements, political opportunities and a corporatist approach
The pragmatic approach to implementing ESD in Japan was to overlay the breadth and depth of sustainable development with government policies.  Access to political inclusion is structured by membership to commerce, and government support culture and heritage by introducing formats that are in keeping with naturally occurring behaviour.  Nomura and Abe agree that Japan can be said to incorporate ecological modernisation through corporate systems.  National peak associations assume responsibilities for processing policies.  It represents a monopoly in respective categories.  Interest groups sustain activity and continuing effective implementation.  Subsequently, expert practitioners are free to exercise their knowledge and influence under government directives.  It is these nationwide networks that represent the majority of the ESD movement.


Nomura and Abe construct their argument using Political Opportunities Theory to understand how social movements develop.  Fundamentals of the system lie in:

1. the relative openness or closure of the institutionalised political system;
2. the presence or absence of elite allies;
3. the stability or instability of the broad set of elite alignments that typically undergird a policy; and
4. the state's capacity and propensity for repression.

The authors propose:

1. the formal institutional arrangements, or an increase in meaningful access points to decision-making; and
2. the changes in the informal structure of power relations, such as the appearance of influential government allies for collective action, in relation to the ESD movement in Japan.

1. Between the first and the second Prep-Coms
The establishment of the 'Japan Forum for Johannesburg' (JFJ)
Post summit, the Japanese government set up the groundwork to coordinate their NGOs.


The Ministry of Environment's Environmental Partnership Office (EPO) started opinion exchange forums (e.g. meetings) about the Summit in August 2001, facilitated by the director of EPO.  Enhancement of civic activity introduced participation at grass roots, leading to effective solutions for policy updates.


JFJ was established after three meetings, and a representative from OISCA (The Organisation for Industrial, Spiritual and Cultural Advancement - International) was appointed secretary.  However, it did not achieve its full potential as difficulty in recruiting rational environmental activists capable of compromise resulted in a network of like-minded people.  Critics suggest that intervention came from the Ministry of Environments control over groups known for aggressive behaviour.  Others were suspicious of the close ties between OISCA and the government, and actively avoided the forums as was the case with bigger NGOs whose absence at the Summit was noted.


From Phnom Penh to Prep-Com 2
JFJ was registered with the UN to establish credentials.  Shortly after inception, a regional summit meeting in Phnom Penh revealed areas that required attention when the only document put forward was a recompilation of member views which was not lobbied.  It was seen as an ineffective measure of approaching high-level meetings.


Nomura and Abe draw attention to the contents of the document.  Emphasis was placed on environmental education and topics related to poverty, consumption patterns, and water, and "this document mentioned a Decade of Education for Environment and Development" (pg. 6).  The concept of the Decade was the brainchild of an established religious group that concurred with OISCA view.  Criticisms of the document were made personal to the Forum Secretary, who clearly stated that failure to include other parties was due a lack of time to prepare between inauguration and meeting.  Furthermore, OISCA had just celebrated 40 years by promoting EfSF and had nothing new to add.  Integration and cohesion between JFJ and OISCA in steering policy was still not apparent at the second Prep-Com held in New York, January 2002 as Japanese government policies only promoted environmental education.


2. The third and the fourth Prep-Coms
Towards the third prep-Com
Government involvement was more apparent during the third Prep-Com when it was proposed that JFJ would present the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development.  The chair's final draft on proposed outcomes of the Summit as it correlated with Japanese policy, was open to public for one week.  It may not have been entirely coincidental that a suggestion to propose DESD was applauded at the next meeting.


However, the Forum Secretary recalled the EPO director proposing DESD came from JFJ prior to the document being released to the public.  The director, seconded to the UN from the Japanese Ministry of Environment, was often in contact with many kinds of UN decades initiated during that time recognising that efforts made would be sustained for at least ten years.  As education is of utmost significance internationally, it was deemed an appropriate topic to highlight.


The term ESD was adopted by a renowned professor who was brought in to JFJ by the EPO director.  He was known for his active participation with sub-committee members owing to the conflict that was generated by his tenacious use of the term ESD.  He was recruited for the post as his experience had been as "a high-ranking official at the UN, adept at international negotiation, and had fluent English, although he did not have nay expertise in environmental or sustainability education" (pg. 8).  His connections made him an influential and powerful man to have in steering policy.  The politics surrounding the term stemmed from the professor and the director wanting to use the same words that would be used to promote the World Summit on Sustainable Development.  They proposed that sustainable development as a title would be more attractive to developing countries, and more likely to garner support because their expectation was for Japan to increase its international aid.


The Ministry of Foreign Affairs were agreeable as it represented their position and the significance of assisting developing countries and relative to their proposals on poverty and involvement in Millennium Development Goals.  Thus marks the entry for a UN Decade for Sustainable Development in Japans proposal for the third Prep-Com.  It is suggested that the chair of the third Prep-Com may have found favour with the proposal after accepting an invitation to OISCAs 40th where the concept was discussed.


From the fourth Prep-Com to the Summit
The concept of the Decade was shared with high-ranking government officials, and spread through the network that supported the idea and received full backing from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.  Both Councillor and a senior official from the Ministry, the professor and the director of EPO approached the Cabinet Office where they successfully proposed the inclusion of DESD in the Prime Ministers speech for the Summit.


While it was suggested that the JFJ did not have a major role in lobbying, it can be said that the professor, who was not qualified for the post, did his best to include JFJ in policy making.  However, it was noted that the professor attended the Summit as a special advisor to the government rather than as a JFJ representative.  NGOs recognised the opportunity to gain political support for their cause irrespective of top-down or bottom-up instigations.  It was proposed that the JFJ concentrate on effecting implementation of the Decade through its education sub-committee, without initiating further policy change.


Local and national governments funded a series of meetings held prior to and post Summit, hosted by JFJ and senior public officials to promote the Decade.  The government was also responsible for funding the attendance of their NGO representatives at the fourth Prep-Com through the Japan Fund for Global Environment.  This opportunity allowed the NGOs to prepare a subsidiary event on environmental education for the Summit.  Nomura and Abe wonder if the financial dependency of the NGOs influenced policy, but continue on to say it is clear that the JFJ was not completely controlled by government as they muse over voluntary efforts and financial contributions.  The majority of the JFJ were viewed as supportive of government initiatives, and looked upon their posting as a platform to further their cause.


3. After the Johannesburg Summit: the establishment of ESD-J
The government, in collaboration with JFJ, proposed DESD at the Summit 2002 and again at the fourth Prep-Com, and was included in the Summit's implementation plan which resulted in the UN General Assembly implementing the Decade at its 57th session later that year.  The EPO held open meetings to start discourse into promoting ESD in Japan and resulted in the Japan Council on the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, otherwise known as ESD-J.  Establishing ESD-J rightfully terminated JFJ.


ESD-J and government ties remained strong through using JFJs corporate approach.  There is government involvement in how groups are organised, and in the selection of representatives to aid in policy-making.  As part of the governments' charter was to address the holistic integration of sustainable development into national policy, it was vital to establish ESD-J as its' counterpart.


That ESD-J is financially dependent on the government is obvious, Nomura and Abe state and continue on to say that while fewer than half of the applications to the Japan Fund for Global Environment are approved,  ESD-J are a consistent recipient of funds.  Recruitment for novices in ESD come from The Ministry of Environments financial support in recognition of advanced ESD domains.  Though government were seen to encourage active ESD models, conflict erupted when it appeared that labeling any model ESD would result in government funding.  Nomura and Abe reconcile this paradox by stating that although government influence sustains ESD, it is also the primary influence in developing ESD throughout Japan with a potential to regroup or restructure existing models.


Conclusion
A political opportunity perspective has offered clarity into the process and sequence of the emergence and development of ESD in Japan.  An open political system and the start up of the EPO became the platform for communication between NGOs and the government.  Elite allies were used during development, and one such key player was the director for EPO.  Under his guidance JFJ and ESD-J were founded, and DESD was proposed as a concept stemming from NGOs who received funds to attend the fourth Prep-Com and Summit.


Significantly, political opportunities were presented through corporate membership that emphasised political entry points for NGOs.  Strategic planning allowed the government to present a proposal for policy at the Summit, and to portray themselves as having collaborative relationships with NGOs.  Control was exerted when selecting representatives for policy-making, and care was taken when considering the breadth and depth of potential causes to back (e.g. to use the term ESD).  As the proposal was a joint collaboration and considered a civil society movement, government mobilisation of NGOs was the beginning of the movement for initiating the Decade in Japan.


A tight network of high-ranking officials, each with powerful network connections of their own, were able to drive the strategy to its objective.  Nomura and Abe indicate that these individuals may not have questioned the politics of the process while so heavily involved with supporting sustainable education.


After the UN took agency of the Decade, The Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology has initiated efforts to make sustainability in formal education mainstream.  The Ministry of Environment, instigators in proposing the Decade focus on ESD in the non-formal sector and in particular on community development.


NGOs are tasked with developing and implementing ESD activities to ratify civil society movement.  Nomura and Abe propose that they strengthen opportunity structure by increasing their elite allies which would be more to do with interaction than as a reaction to change.  What is required is an effective means of interpreting ESD in order to mobilise support, and the authors propose examining the issue through a framing perspective that places emphasis on the development of social movements.


Nomura and Abe state that substantiating civil society movement is significant to the development of ESD in Japan and the term ESD is more recently linked to discourse on the UN Decade for ESD.  The authors suggest political and historical investigation and analysis of international ESD movements as they compare with other social phenomena to explore the stability of policies and initiatives, and the capacity for constraint.

Jickling, B. and Wals, A. E. J. (2008). Globalisation and environmental education: looking beyond sustainable development

Jickling, B. and Wals, A. E. J. (2008).  Globalisation and environmental education: looking beyond sustainable development.  Journal of Curriculum Studies, 40(1), pp. 1 - 21.  Retrieved on September 18, 2010 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00220270701684667


Globalisation and neo-liberalism
Development in the corporate world has instigated changes that have had a ripple effect around the world.  Government and corporate strategy are inextricably integrated meaning that a rise in ideologies which are embedded in commerce supports our networks of communication.  It is these corporate-centred ideologies that heavily influence and significantly correlate to the reforms required in education.  Jickling and Wals identify corporations that sponsor institutions of education by donating teaching aids designed to embed product awareness.


Gough inspires all by seeking means to sustain local culture in favour of mass homogeneity.  The World Bank are known for introducing educational formats that produce knowledge workers who sustain local markets.  It can be said that education and corporations are looking for a sustainable partnership.


Organisations are adapting to environmental demand by developing and sustaining social awareness of ESD.  Entities that are governed by people, planet and profit (i.e. Triple-P bottom line).  Organisations are developing customised programs for human resource in order to achieve this objective, and have created an external examining body to ensure standards are maintained or surpassed (e.g. ISO14001).  Education for environmental support systems relies on subsidies to fund research and serves as an example for institutions that have value, a presence and benefit society.


Jickling and Wals investigate how ESD as captured by UNESCO indicates their rise in power to be successor of environmental education.  Concerns lie in the integration of globalisation and neo-liberalism that transcends mainstream education.


Converting environmental education to education for sustainable development
Waks proposes that globalisation has steered a way forward for transformation in subject matter, pedagogy, technology, COP, and delivery.  While there are difficulties and challenges, supporters keep faith that good change comes from the stimulation of tension and uncertainty.  UNESCO programs (e.g. Education for All, MDG, ESD) are regarded as opportunities for sustainable change.


Much has happened since ESD was introduced in 1987 culminating in sustained effort to transform an educational system that educates for sustainable development.  Jickling and Wals observe that critics have been waylaid by the lack of buzzwords in Resolution 57/254 that have been a source of comfort to many.  As with many researchers, the authors note that a lack of discourse has led to incomplete definitive descriptions that reveal the broadness of concept. Without widespread acceptance of legitimate interpretations, rejection of proposals is to be expected.  A lack of clarity in direction leads to confusion and hostile activity.  Instead sustainable reform should be regarded as new packaging for environmental education at national level.


The dysfunction and potential source of resistance to the development of sustainable policy stems from the considerable amount of pressure on people who teach to restructure professional practice in order to contribute towards ESD.


Jickling and Wals have identified anomalies associated with UNESCO and IUCN and their agenda for sustainable development.  In establishing their understanding of the problem, the authors present heuristic practice that evolved as part of their learning process.


Anomalies
Jickling and Wals understand diversity through policy that either follows, or is followed, by innovation.  Policies on lifelong learning and aptitude are sourced from national level debate and are thought of as policy that leads innovation.  Similarly, ESD is nationally driven thus the authors propose this as the reason for resistance to change.  Workshops and seminars facilitate thought provoking exchanges that are discursively additive.


Leading questions were asked of participants of the ESDebate (e.g. should ESD be abolished?).  More than half the respondents affirmed that ESD should be abandoned.  Jickling and Wals' analysis of this reaction suggests there may be confusion about the purpose of ESD as it relates to environmental education.  Critics view ESD as a form of bullying that educates and redirects behaviour towards a single objective.  Their locus of reasoning lies in individuality and diversity that directs output towards self-reflection and determination to create an established individualistic path towards better living.


Furthermore, Jickling and Wals state that there is no global heuristic that will serve as a model for the planet, for ESD represents a multi-level and trans-dimensional concept that is interpreted and re-interpreted through national and international holism.  "Democracy depends on differences, dissonance, conflict, and antagonism, so that deliberation is radically indeterminate" (pg. 6).  Conflicts reveal mounting pressure in the exploration of ESD as individuals place different levels of significance upon the Triple P and 3E (i.e. efficiency, environment, equity).  Tension is a prerequisite to learning.


Jickling and Wals track the events of the 2002 World Summit where little to nothing was said about ESD and the focus remained on how to prepare education for sustainable development, how to set benchmarks and standards, and how to build control mechanisms that assess progress.  The Summit necessitated participants to start implementing, instead of using the time ineffectively talking.  Critics propose failure in this approach as educators may only be capable of creating an illusion.  Instead, educators should be seen as agents moving towards a globally driven economy.  Jickling and Wals acknowledge the discomfort surrounding the ESD agenda.  They draw attention to other transitions occurring as a result of global agendas.


Education and sustainable development: suitable alliances?
While some see ESD as an opportunity to infuse individuality through personal sense-making, with the potential to highlight areas under-represented in curriculum, others maintain an anxiety stemming from chronic analysis of ESD ideology.  Sauve has interjected a soothing analysis of the patterns in environmental education and concludes that ESD is only one agenda out of the fifteen that environmental education is nurturing.  Agenda 21 is a pragmatic approach to adapting to the "global political agenda" (pg. 7).


Multiple entry points in ESD allow self-reflection to discern ambiguity through individual perspective.  Reflection points include the way in which education is perceived, and how it is portrayed; the definition of an educated society; and the role the individual expects to play.


Conceptions of education
The aims for ESD cannot be discursively debated until the concept of education has been explored.  Tension emerged when scholars analysed 20th century theory and its dominant tendencies, and noted that new perspectives were developing towards the close of the century.  Tension was caused by opposing views concerning the nature of education.  Jickling and Wals suggest we think of education as "transmissive" (pg. 8), meaning that skills, knowledge and values are transmitted to students.  Participants are steered towards a committed objective via a closed learning process that affords bi-directional communication between master and apprentice.  From a transmissive perspective, education is a tool through which to deliver messages to open minds and examples can be found in government, industry, and special interest groups.


Some research analysts prefer to view education as more transactive and transformative with a distinct sympathy for social constructivism and cognitivism.  Social networking shapes learning through translational learning and diversity of cultural perspectives.  Education that leads to transformation is open and self-directed.  Delivery of static knowledge is the platform used to integrate individual knowledge with group knowledge, making tacit knowledge explicit in the curriculum and in students.  Therefore, environmental education defines the perception from which individuals view the world.


Jickling and Wals state that education concerns not only social reproduction but about transcending social norms and behaviours without resorting to dictating alternative lifestyles.


There exists debate whether social reproduction or transformation is part of education and is reflected in the educators professional attitude.  By placing social reproduction in context, individuals maintain participation levels and arguably demonstrate a responsible and committed attitude born of obedience and deference.  Whereas social transformation is an expression of education that facilitates and requires active participation in community decision-making processes, displaying democratic processes that lead to more than electing governments.  The more varied and diverse an individuals' network is, the more stimulation there is to respond to.


Democracy should be regarded as the balance of an individual and her sense of belonging to the community, that instills the value of culture and autonomy.  Therefore, Jickling and Wals propose that integration of ESD and deterministic or exclusive cognition cannot be reconciled with international policy statements. Instead the authors envisage that educated citizens live democratic practice within a nurturing society which is similar to many others, but represents a unique local flavour.


The heuristic Jickling and Wals propose is based on a two-axes structure that frames and reframes perspectives on ESD.  While they acknowledge that a two-axis heuristic cannot capture a comprehensive view of the breadth and depth, it serves its purpose as an analytical tool.


Big Brother sustainable development
Quadrant 1 of the two-axes structure represents the authoritarian and hierarchical element of ESD, and which Jickling and Wals state is achieved by control to eliminate deviants.  Consistent and unambiguous standards (e.g. ISO 14001, ISO2007, IFOAM, FSC) are adhered to implicitly to sustain direction.


Education is used for implementing a set strategy, the standards for which correlate to ideologies that represent a segment of society.  However, such arbitrary measures meet with resistance from environmental educators who interpret education altogether differently.  "While education can also be thought of as a process that can enable social transformation (as would, for example, be described in varying degress in Quadrant IV space), critics find it anathema that education should serve such pre-determined ends" (pg. 12).


Indoctrination brings its own issues.  Implanting ideology is counter-productive in education for personal development, as transformation is the result of holistically training minds to develop analytical skills and insight rather than narrowing focus to content.  Jickling and Wals argue that some educators supported by global standards (e.g. UNESCO, IUCN) who rationally propose adopting ESD as "it conforms to the aspirations of many non-educators who set policy agendas and control funding opportunities" (pg. 13).  As Agenda 21 has inter-government approval, educators have implented the agenda as support for their own cause to address ESD.  From this perspective Jickling and Wals argue the Fundamental Programme Principles of the newly developing University of the Arctic may also be regarded as authoritarian, and thus deterministic.  "While 'sustainable development' is a social construct that warrants study, it may not be so important that it should be elevated to the status of privileged doctrine" (pg. 13).  


With a view to transformation, deterministic doctrines are inclined to generate resistance to ESD.  Therefore allowing personal diversity as a means to sustain and maintain sense-making, identity, and developmental progress, creates naturally occurring overt personal behaviour supportive of ESD.  Reflexion is stimulated by a multitude of perspectives.  Transmission is more readily accepted as a result of preparation and clear, bi-directional understanding of objectives.


Dobson's research in 1996 revealed more than 300 definitions to the term sustainable development.  Jickling and Wals state that after a decade of combining research there are more meanings with more divergence than was previously recognised by transdimensional organisations (e.g. global organisations, non-governmental organisations, national governments) suggesting that it may be neither desireable, nor possible to create one single understanding.


Furthermore, Jickling and Wals state that this perspective can only be realised if goverments and their affiliations provide environmental leadership.  In addition, epistemic values that underlie the notion of governments projecting visionary direction generate skepticism that may be the result of prior incompetence and miscommunication.


While it may be easy to  denounce transmissive and deterministic goals, much of the literature available is written by people who have themselves been educated in this manner and is viewed as the foundation of experience for those committed to transformation and reformation in pedagogy.  Individuals who were challenged by the structure of a system.


Limited freedom - freedom bounded by sustainable development
Quadrants II and III create the space for new meaning and active citizenry.  Freedom has a framework that encompasses the language of ESD that some may agree with, yet Jickling and Wals suggest it may be a false freedom.


Very often educators are persuaded to work from these quadrants for pragmatic reasons.  Governmental support funds the educational objective, and the sustainable development agenda lacks coherent definition leading to questionable and/or unstable characteristics that may be ignored.  It is the characteristics that go ignored that become the most problematic, Jickling and Wals argue, as a false consensus meant for global readership creates divergence and obfuscates contextual differences.  When characteristics are revealed, orientation towards ESD may lead to transformative learning specifically through existentialism.


Discourse represents the reflexion and care that bonds segments of society who look for common terminology with which to debate environmental issues compassionately.  Different or parallel views causes dissonance which stimulates learning.  Jickling and Wals view the dispute as an exercise in observation.  Emerging knowledge is not restricted to high socio-economic regions and the potential for anyone to present sound arguments is at hand.  Failure to do so may result in Orwellian conditions.


To understand the paradox of sustainable development, it is necessary to know that range of thought must be diminished and this is accomplished by measuring the positive and negative of meanings and creating personal balance adjusted and reflected in overt behaviour (e.g. war=peace).  Hence diversity can be viewed as a measure slightly off balance from personal standard.  The significance of knowing diversity reveals the substance of personal good and wrong, therefore it may become impossible to counteract what is socially and temporally unacceptable.


The following examples serve to highlight the authors' concerns.  In Northern Canada there is ongoing controversy between two groups in the community.  One task force protects the ecological balance of natural wildlife, and the other developed to uphold the right to mine to address unemployment and related issues.  While the cause for both groups lay in sustainable development for the community, public backing created two different and opposing representations of the meaning.


Similarly, ESKOM, South Africa's electricity supply board seek projections for the future that take account of supply an demand, however Price proposes that organisational focus is on energy production rather than on Earth.  Ideology is contradicted and the premise of dominion is subjugated.


Research in developing terminology to cover current awareness of sustainable development has been almost exclusively undertaken by the private sector.  Jickling and Wals wonder how influential the economic sector has been in guiding ecological perspective for a sustainable future; and why governments and leaders of industry support sustainable development despite confusion in meaning?


Chomsky, author of Manufacturing Consent, reveals the diversionary tactics (e.g. FIFA World Cup, Wimbledon, Tour de France) governments use to distract the public from issues.  With critical public scrutiny averted, government generates breathing space required for analysis and problem solving.  It is proposed that sustainable development is a similar diversion.


Research on structuring ESD by Smyth proposed the need for educators to come together to discuss the action that sustains the concept, without the need for labeling, unanimously agreed upon that best captures the commitment and imagination of a potential future for education.  Smyth was interested in developing communication skills that represent the depth of maturity conveyed in respectful dissensus between warring factions (e.g. environmental educators vs. advocates of ESD).


Scott states that choice within ESD is free of government policy so that educators and educating bodies have the freedom to structure their work within the framework of their own conceptions, trials and successes.  It is not an option to do nothing he states, and shows concern for schools who ignore ESD.  His top four responsibilities undertaken by educators are:

1. To facilitate learner development in order to make sustainable development have personal meaning;
2. To understand that diversity at microcosmic dysfunction is also felt at macro level;
3. To sustain interest and demonstrate effective learning principles through bi-directional communication; and 
4. To encourage learners to maintain situation awareness, individually and socially, and to keep options open.

Enabling thought and action: beyond sustainable development
Quadrant IV projects a future based on active citizenry and suggests possibilities that extend beyond sustainable development which should be seen as part of human evolutionary processes.  Concepts that form part of current discourse are all stepping stones for guiding future direction.


Smyths' interest in language reveals the need to incorporate a sense of inclusivity when communicating, and for environmental learning to accept sustainability so that we can acknowledge it as a social construct and not as the objective or end-play for education.

Hopkinson, P., Hughes, P. and Layer, G. (2008). Sustainable graduates: linking formal, informal and campus curricula to embed education for sustainable development in the student learning experience

Hopkinson, P., Hughes, P. and Layer, G. (2008).  Sustainable graduates: linking formal, informal and campus curricula to embed education for sustainable development in the student learning experience.  Environmental Education Research, 14(4), pp. 435 - 454.  Retrieved on September 18, 2010 from http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/13504620802283100

Institutions of higher education have encouraged debate on issues of sustainable development (ESD), or the greening of curricula, as the foci of formal curriculum is the experience of learning.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer state that there is further potential in exploring sustainable development within an higher education setting.  An integrated approach, that of combining formal, non-formal and campus curriculum (where campus curriculum is the study of environmental management used as a teaching aid) reinforces sustainable development.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer use the University of Bradford to model their approach to embedding education for sustainable development.  The authors reflect on the strategy and development of curricula   that involves the entire institution.


Part 1: sustainable development within UK HE - the context
Recognised bodies for education (e.g. The Higher Education Academy, the Scottish Higher Education Funding Council) have implemented strategies for ESD by creating Regional Centres of Excellence.  Hopkinson, et al. state that at the time of publication, two such centres had been approved.


As sustainable development can be categorised under several headings, Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer propose three - formal, non-formal and campus curriculum.  They are interdependent, yet the potential to explore knowledge and practice has not been systematically or comprehensively introduced.  The headings provide a perspective on the areas that make up university life to link strategy and implementation.


Formal curriculum
The intent of the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) is to have the UK play a major role in sustainable development by 2015.  Supporting research demonstrates the creative ways in which sustainable development can be integrated with any discipline if the community are willing to engage.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer indicate that the challenge lies in engaging the community.


In addition to debating the existing levels of engagement, is the research and application of sustainable literacy and skills.  Contributions range across the scale of divergence and convergence indicate a lack of common description for sustainability.  Some believe that it may be the move from scientific to sustainable literacy that require reforms in the dynamics of the teaching-learning experience to develop a generation of graduates who emerge with an environmental sensitivity.  Other definitions maintain that sustainability literacy is delivered through knowledge-based curricula.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer view sustainability literacy as moving from education being about sustainable development to education that is for sustainable development.  Definitions clearly link sustainability literacy positively with employment opportunities and allegiance to country.  The exact nature of sustainability literacy defines the presentation and delivery of learning, requiring forethought and clarity.  Promoting sustainable development is challenging as the following are some of the barriers that impede engagement with ESD:

• Overcrowded curriculum;
• Perceived irrelevance by academic staff;
• Limited staff awareness and expertise; and
• Limited institutional drive and commitment.

The alleged lack of interest in students for sustainable literacy may be due to the morality clause that disrupts academic freedom.  In spite of these barriers, there appears to be a significant amount of evidence indicating that sustainable development is being taught, but goes under different titles and is individual-led rather than being part of the institution's curriculum.


Informal curriculum
A typical list on informal activity could consist of the following:

• Volunteering;
• Internships;
• Clubs and societies;
• Events.

Many of the activities could be regarded as service-learning, a culture highly developed in US-based institutions of higher education.  The UK has fewer such instances, although the authors highlight Liverpool Hope University, known for its long-standing program in service-learning.  Research from the University of Leicester conclude that such programs affect student outlook which is instrumental in generating creativity, and the development of a group concept that enhances positive cultural awareness.


Informal curriculum is generally speaking a voluntary and unrestricted (e.g. open to all) student-led activity.  Attendance is regulated through open-door policies, and the level of involvement required if assessed for credits.


Analysis of the integration of informal curricula and student learning may not be widely recognised as those involved in teaching may not be professional academics. Unrestricted freedom from traditional curricula has generated improvisation that is effective.


Campus curriculum
Students are often portrayed as living in an unconnected or idealistic environment that reveals limited analysis of values upheld by society at large and is a reflection of epistemic beliefs.  The Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) suggests that higher education concentrate on practicing sustainability on campus as a way to structure an holistic framework with a long-term view of the future.  In doing so, the occupants align architecture with natural systems creating news ways and tools to further integrate the university holistically with sustainable systems.  Although the instances of such practice is still a rarity, methods for directing or using estate management for ESD may include:

1. Demonstration of and communication about sustainability principles and technologies in design and operation;
2. Embodying participative and inclusive design processes around sustainability; and
3. Development of spaces that support well-being; mixing students from different cultures and backgrounds; and, different forms of inquiry and learning.

Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer refer to Temple's research when stating that well-kept grounds positively affect student psyche enhancing self-worth and commitment, and should be a matter of concern for any institution.


Part 2: The Bradford Ecoversity ESD programme
The university implemented an ecoversity approach, due in part to stimulation from the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE) and from environmental apathy.  A corporate strategy developed through an awareness campaign to increase enrollment, included two key features that embedded sustainable development:

1. across the operations and culture of the university; and
2. in the learning and living experience of all students.

Developing the latter is neither a straightforward nor linear process.  A team was formed for the purpose of providing clarity of vision and devising a method of preparation and delivery.  A multi-strand approach included:

• top-down policy;
• locally-led bottom-up initiatives and developments; and
• side-on engagement with external groups and bodies.

A grant from the HEFCE supported the vision as this funding provided the impetus and awareness to employ requisite staff to bring the community together.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer state that the period from 2005 - 2007 should be viewed as the planning and process stage of sustainable development.  The second stage of progress includes delivery, implementing and evaluating the strategy.


Formal curriculum
In 2006 a panel of academics, the educational development unit and the Pro-Vice Chancellor was formed to discuss the implementation of sustainable education.  Priority considerations are:

• Definitions and interpretations of education for sustainable development are still being debated and contested amongst academics, which means that validation can only occur from working models; and
• Previous national attempts at greening the curricula have met with limited and short-lived success, the reasons for which are still contested.

Implementation of sustainable development required a structure to attract academic and student interest.  Flexibility to incorporate critical analysis that incorporated meaning at local and global dimensions were core values to enhance the living and learning experience at university.  UNESCOs framework provided benefits and shared strong similarities to the vision the university wanted to implement:

• Sustainable development in curricula is a lived experience, rather than an accumulation of theoretical knowledge, so both students and staff are well-versed in influencing and shaping the future (e.g. practice makes perfect);
• The practice of sustainable development is embedded in campus curricula, the day to day living that affects us all (e.g. what we see is what we are reminded of);
• While sustainable development has its roots in environmental and resource issues, socio-economic health and responsibility to community and local environment are significantly correlated with developmental well-being.  UNESCO challenges traditionally held concepts that ESD is an environmentalist undertaking;
• The goals and objectives of the university are met in order to develop values that promote justice, sustainability and diversity;
• Contextual experience can be gained from the university's multi-ethnic and diverse student body.

Bradford's Ecoversity project was formally introduced in 2007 to endorse:

• an institutional academic policy for ESD;
• implement ESD approaches in all curricula; and
• a program of activity for mass-scale student engagement around ESD.

The project director undertook one-to-one interviews with academics and staff to discuss prior or fixed sustainable development concepts.  Generally speaking, a very narrow conception of ESD was held.  As UNESCO briefs were explained, individuals came to understand the breadth of structure that allowed implementing sustainable development at their point of interest.  UNESCO statements were integrated with ecoversity policy were presented and agreed to post discussion.  Policies effectively stimulate and act as the benchmark for future developments.


Formal curriculum review and development
An internally funded pilot for ESD had been implemented to run concurrent to the policy document, that was used to identify tacit knowledge (e.g. defining the intangible) and refine options for delivery.  Program content was entwined with UNESCO framework, and then compared to statements on sustainable development by accrediting or professional bodies to effectively measure and evaluate coverage and strategies for evolution.  Content is explicit, and delivered as a means to connect sustainable development to the subject.


The pilot streamlined the focus of implementing sustainable development.  Key to achieving the concept was regulating the seven academic departments.  Curriculum pioneers were employed to head the schools whose primary function was to assess the corresponding degree programs that were implemented in the pilot.  Next, they were to prepare a three year plan to embed sustainable development in all curricula programs.  Thus ends the review process, culminating in a report with action plans to deliver embedded learning programs on sustainable development.  Delivery methods must also adhere to the standards of Course Approval and Review Process (CARP) who perform reviews annually.  Major amendments to CARP standards to include sustainable development efforts were introduced in 2008.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer state that academics at Bradford Ecoversity are largely contained with championing hidden curricula - that which is the underlying foundation of all programs.  These hidden aspects of curriculum planning form the basis for knowledgeable strategic planning and future action.


Informal curriculum
Informal curriculum develops student-led activities and initiatives and is the second strand in developing the formal curriculum.


(1) ESD ambassadors
Students are employed to create awareness campaigns (e.g. promoting learning).  The Harvard Green Campus initiative supports student leaders with training on leadership and sustainable development to ensure propriety and affect.  In truth, the ambassadorial role is practical pedagogy in action:

• Students are not assessed, and gain no qualification or academic credit.  Instead they are asked to develop learning blogs that sustain reflexive practice;
• As long as students remain within legal and health and safety requirements, they are encouraged to explore and manifest any area of sustainable development that holds particular interest; and
• The objective is to attract the majority of the student body.

The first phase of the pilot project determined the need for fine and detailed planning by the students to work around course assessment and employment.  The Harvard model was adapted to suit sustainable local practice.  Project implemented by the ambassadors are monitored and evaluated to assess longitudinal impact.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer note student observations that even the most simple project can be exhausting to implement.  Furthermore, the immediate returns to such projects may not always be evident.


(2) ESD volunteering and interns
The student volunteer program was initiated as a means to structure a networked connection from the university to environment to support community funded service learning.  These activities are related to external body qualifications.


(3) ESD-related events
Guest speakers, exhibitions, conferences and competitions are ways of introducing and promoting informal curricula.  Attendance and ensuing participation are excellent measures of successful planning.  Establishing grass-roots connections indicates an awareness of current and local interest.  A full evaluation and analysis of multi- and trans-dimensional methodology generates data on current levels of affect and stimulus.


Campus Curricula
Embedded learning incorporates physical structure and locality, and has influence on daily living.  Sustainable development is entrenched in learning opportunities to:

• support, advocate and challenge sustainability in concept, principle and technology by including architecture, refurbishment and operation;
• advocate open or transparent communication and participation in planning to sustain collaboration; and
• make campus operations visible and subject to professional observation to provide a practical, working model for the community to learn from.

Sustainable methodology is open to interpretation, so creative development is a process of evolutionary collaborative synergy.  Recent developments include:

1. Student village - Part of Ecoversity vision is to create an eco village that incorporates all and any external body criteria for sustainable design specification.  Intense collaboration between the Estates Department and a private developer is ongoing.  Interviews and consultation of the student body, for whom housing is reserved, are precise and detailed.  Each round of interviews conducted generates detailing for component parts of sustainable living (e.g. recycling, effluent); and
2. Ecoversity Action Group and task groups - Monitoring budget performance is necessary for effective and valuable collaboration.  Ignorance about actual or potential activity limits the ability of staff and students to engage and influence (e.g. help drive the objective to completion).  Bradford Ecoversity's intention is to adopt reflexive practice as a strategy for decision-making.  A task force of seven individuals from across the ecoversity participated in a residential program to structure a more transparent, bottom-up model.  Leaders were instructed to develop a theme outside their comfort zone, allowing recognised prior learning (RPL) to generate new perspectives.  Each leader set up task groups that were attended by 100 committed individuals from staff and student body.  Subsequent seminars and meetings generated a wish list and draft strategies for implementation.  Performance indicators and targets are identified during more formal planning to document progress and performance.

Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer model their recycling system which had been a source of anxiety for both staff and student body.  An experimental task force was created to devise and implement a sensible economic plan to develop a sustainable recycling infrastructure.  A blueprint of features and necessary additions emerged after reflective consultation.  A budget of £50,000 was deemed necessary to initiate recycling facilities at every level of each building.  Other actions such as maintaining links to community through free shuttle service, natural fuel management, food and drink consumption are projects that are observed, monitored and documented, and which significantly affect lifestyles for a majority of students.


Discussion and conclusion
Bradford Ecoversity was the conceptual approach to develop a sustainable way to retain prominence in a community and as a measure of their level of integrated participation with the local environment.  The initial approach to sustainable development was acknowledged as seemingly top-heavy.  However Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer state that senior level acceptance led to communicating epistemic belief and practical knowledge.  Whilst devising the strategy for implementation, the community were clearly supported in order to live the implications of the concept and gain further clarity in sustainable development.  There was a window of opportunity to make a bold statement on ESD that contributed to the ongoing success of Bradford and its Ecoversity. They have brought to life the conceptual and discipline-based study of sustainable development for learning communities.


Part 3: achievements, problems and learning points
Achievements and key successes

Factors seen to have directly contributed to transformation are:

• The initial decision to adopt a guiding framework with emphasis on social, economical and ethical considerations of sustainable development;
• An academic bottom-up focus that integrates curriculum with sustainable development strategies;
• Senior level backing to champion the curricula project; and
• External funding.

An approval of policy and implementation methods took place over eighteen months, with intense collaboration and consultation.  CARP supplemented their guidelines and criteria with ESD.  Decisions were made to take into account the views of staff, to remain consistent by adding to the work of pioneers and earlier policy, to align with other curricula to review and evaluate specifications, thereby ensuring a true fit with sustainable activity.


As the Ecoversity has only been operating eco-friendly initiatives recently, more time is needed for students to accept knowledge, observe practice and reflect on activity before it becomes an unconscious process.  Senior management had prior indication from exit surveys that trickle down processes are gentle engagements with students to prepare for experience in sustainable development.  Holistic acceptance is negotiated, and correlates with increasing participation of the student body.


Role models, or co-ordinators, are dedicated positions that engage student groups and act as gatekeepers between the top and the bottom.  The first year of delivery has revealed substantial lead-in time is a key component that must be factored into the strategy when devising curricula.


Involving the student body in decision-making that ostensibly affects their learning experience has proven to be effective in raising awareness and the practice of sustainable development.  Creating task groups has increased the participation levels of the student body.  Students from other institutions have been attracted by the sustainable practices popular at the Ecoversity, and frequently ask for information to relay to their own institute.


Ecoversity - problems and issues
Despite widespread interest and acceptance to change, resistance was encountered.  Specifically, the diverse entry points to sustainable development  became the focus of many individuals who reacted negatively to higher authority.  The majority of the population were unable to grasp the complex vision or the time it would take to achieve the planning stage.  It was felt that the Ecoversity were unable to accurately communicate aims and objectives, and that bureaucracy had a stranglehold.


Learning points
While not deliberate, the Ecoversity has combined an historical tradition with sustainable modes of practice based on theoretical conjecture and domain-specific experience.  Hopkinson, Hughes and Layer state that negotiating between the two identities has been challenging.  The art of communication becomes a priority and develops through experience.  In navigating integrating sustainable development and curricula, effective engagement between the student body and staff was achieved.  The Ecoversity has not had much time to develop the culture of sustainable development as a casual practice (e.g. third year students only benefited in their last year, etc.).  Holistic acceptance occurs naturally as role models gain experience.


Wider communication to attract a uni-directional engagement was established through newsletters, which transformed into a seasonal newspaper.  Canvassing student opinion facilitated discovery of concerns, and enhanced the momentum to provide an informal delivery of sustainable development to stimulate and inspire debate.