UNESCO ESD Roadmap (2020)

The detailed roadmap is aimed at all actors involved in Education for Sustainable Development – from governments and intergovernmental institutions to civil society organizations, educators and trainers, and ultimately all learners.

Objectives

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is increasingly recognized internationally as an essential component of quality education and a key factor for sustainable development. Building on the results of the UN Decade and the Global Action Programme, ESD 2030 aims at the development and intensification of concrete measures.

The central objectives of the ESD 2030 Action Framework include the full integration of ESD and the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into policies, learning and teaching environments, the competence development of educators and multipliers, the empowerment and mobilization of youth, as well as the promotion of sustainable development at the local level. SDG Target 4.7 is one of the core SDG goals addressing the purpose and quality of education. By 2030, it is essential to ensure that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship, and an appreciation of cultural diversity and the contribution of culture to sustainable development.

Priority Action Areas

Unlike the UN Decade of ESD, which aimed to establish Education for Sustainable Development in its full breadth, ESD 2030 continues the Global Action Programme (2015–2019) by focusing on five targeted action areas for the years up to 2030:

• Action Area 1: Emphasizes that to secure political support, ESD must be integrated into global, regional, national, and local education policies, as well as into political measures and strategies for sustainable development.
• Action Area 2: Refers to learning and teaching environments. Special attention should be given to promoting the Whole Institution Approach (WIA) to ensure that we learn how to live and live what we learn.
• Action Area 3: Underlines that for the competence development of educators and multipliers, the focus is on equipping them with the knowledge, skills, values, and attitudes required for the transformation towards sustainability.
• Action Area 4: Highlights the need to recognize young people as key actors in addressing sustainability challenges and the related decision-making processes.
• Action Area 5: Places emphasis on promoting the local level and stresses the importance of actions in municipalities and local communities, where meaningful transformative actions are most likely to take place.