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Primary education for sustainable development

Primary education for sustainable development. John Huckle Angela Walker lecture to Values Week at Nottingham Trent University, December 14 th 2005. My talk this morning. Christmas: charity vs consumerism The challenge of sustainable development

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Primary education for sustainable development

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  1. Primary education for sustainable development John Huckle Angela Walker lecture to Values Week at Nottingham Trent University, December 14th 2005

  2. My talk this morning • Christmas: charity vs consumerism • The challenge of sustainable development • Education for sustainable development (ESD) • Sustainability as policy vs. sustainability as a frame of mind • Sustainability values and consumerism • Children as consumers – teaching about toys • Christmas at Upton primary school

  3. Dickens describes the holidays as "a good time: a kind, forgiving, charitable, pleasant time: the only time I know of in the long calendar of the year, when men and women seem by one consent to open their shut-up hearts freely, and to think of other people below them as if they really were fellow-passengers to the grave, and not another race of creatures bound on other journeys". Christmas – a time of charity and joy?

  4. Christmas – a time of greed and waste? • one billion cards and 83 square km of wrapping paper; • 24 million jars of mincemeat, pickle and cranberry sauce; • 125,000 tonnes of plastic packaging and 4,200 tonnes of foil; • six million Christmas trees; • In all enough rubbish to fill 400,000 double-decker buses

  5. Modern development:turning nature into money • Between 1960 and 2000, gross world product increased from $4trn to $10trn • World energy use has increased by nearly 70% since 1971 • In the richest countries it takes 300 kilograms of natural resources to generate $100 of income • By the time a baby born in the US in the 1990s reaches the age of 75, s/he will have consumed 43 million gallons of water, produced 52 tons of waste and used 3,375 barrels of oil. • 12% of bird species, 25% of mammals, and 34% of fish species face extinction. • humans have destroyed more than 30 per cent of the world’s natural wealth since 1970. Between 1960 and 2000 marine fish consumption more than doubled; wood and paper consumption increased by two thirds; and carbon dioxide emissions doubled

  6. Modern inequality • The 225 richest people in the world have a combined wealth of more than $1 trillion – equal to the annual income of the poorest 47 per cent of the earth’s population, some 2.5 billion people. • Among the 4.4 billion people in developing countries, almost three-fifths lack basic sanitation, one third have no safe drinking water, one quarter have inadequate housing, while one fifth are undernourished. • 2.8 billion of these people live on less than $2 a day • 4.3 million children in Britain live in poverty (below half average income after housing costs) – a third of all children, up from 1.4 million in 1979. • 20% of children rely on income support, double the proportion in 1979.

  7. Footprinting assesses the Earth’s available resource, or annual interest, made up of productive land and sea, and quantifies it as a single measurable unit, or currency, known as the “area unit”. An area unit corresponds to one hectare of world average bioproductive space. At present there are around two area units available per person on the planet. This is an individual’s “earthshare”. Ecological footprinting

  8. More generally . . . The average UK citizen’s annual footprint, for example, amounts to around 6.8 units, exceeding available earthshare by more than three times. On a global scale, humanity is currently eating into the Earth’s capital, annually consuming around one third more resource than the Earth produces. These are unsustainable situations.

  9. A crisis of sustainability? • Accumulation of economic capital • Neglect of human capital • Neglect of ecological capital • Neglect of social capital • Lack of trust in liberal democracy (cynicism, apathy . . .

  10. Sustainable development Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. The Brundtland Report, Our Common Future, 1987 The duty of care towards other human beings, future generations, and the rest of nature • ecological sustainability • economic sustainability • social sustainability • cultural sustainability • personal sustainability

  11. 5 guiding principles living within environmental limits; ensuring a strong, healthy and just society; achieving a sustainable economy; promoting good governance using sound science responsibly 4 priorities for action Sustainable consumption and production Climate change and energy Natural resource protection and enhancement Sustainable communities The goal of sustainable development is to enable all people throughout the world to satisfy their basic needs and enjoy a better quality of life, without compromising the quality of life of future generations.Securing the Future, UK Sustainable Development Strategy 2005

  12. Education for sustainable development (ESD) Education for sustainable development enables people to develop the knowledge, values and skills to participate in decisions about the way we do things, individually and collectively, both locally and globally, that will improve the quality of life now without damaging the planet for the future. Seven key concepts for ESD: interdependence; citizenship and stewardship; needs and rights of future generations; diversity; quality of life and equity; development, carrying capacity and change; and uncertainty and precaution

  13. DfES SD action plan, 2003 • ESD: all learners will develop the skills, knowledge and value base to be active citizens in creating a more sustainable society. • The environmental impact of the Department and its partner bodies: we will pursue the highest standards of environmental management across all. properties owned and managed by the Department and its associated bodies. • The environmental impact of the educational estate: we will encourage and support all publicly-funded educational establishments to help them operate to the highest environmental standards. • Local and global partnership activity. we will make effective links between education and sustainable development to build capacity within local communities.

  14. Education for sustainable development has come to be seen as a process of learning how to make decisions that consider the long‑term future of the economy, ecology and equity of all communities. . . . . . . This represents a new vision of education, a vision that helps people of all ages better understand the world in which they live, addressing the complexity and interconnectedness of problems that threaten our future. This vision of education emphasises a holistic, interdisciplinary approach to developing the knowledge and skills needed for a sustainable future as well as changes in values, behaviour, and lifestyles. Draft framework for the Decade of ESD, UNESCO, 2003 Unesco’s decade of ESD

  15. www.suschools.org.uk

  16. Primary ESD: the curriculum • Overcoming nature and society dualism (science and ICT) • Basic ecology, ecological limits and ecological footprints (science, numeracy, literacy) • Place of human beings in nature (humanities and RE) • Global citizenship (geography, citizenship) • Consumerism and identity (PSHE and citizenship) • Critical pedagogy (thinking skills)

  17. Primary ESD; greening the school • Eco Schools • School travel and food plans • School grounds • School council – participation • Local and global community links • CPD

  18. Sustainability as policy Education serves policy by delivering knowledge, skills and values, and enabling attitude and behaviour change. Sustainability as a frame of mind Education develops a frame of mind or an awareness that being content is the result of creating the right relationships with nature (oneself, other people, other cultures, other living things, the Earth). Education and sustainability: a choice

  19. Michael Bonnett on ESD Teaching that attempts to impose a view of a relationship with nature and the good life on pupils is simply self-defeating in terms of the development of sustainability as a frame of mind. P. 145 In sum, the development of sustainability as a frame of mind is essentially a matter of coming to apprehend that which lies always beyond our authorship, analysis and management and yet is closet to us – a reciprocator in all our perception and interaction. It is the recognition of this reality that liberates us from stultification and that spiritually sustains us, and it is thus this reality that we have a special personal and cultural responsibility to reveal. P. 148 Retrieving Nature: Education for a Post-Humanist Age, 2004

  20. ESD as socially critical education If we are to enable pupils to address the issues raised by sustainable development . . . . we must engage them in those kinds of enquiry which reveal the underlying dominant motives that are in play in society; motives which are inherent in our most fundamental ways of thinking about ourselves and the world. That such a metaphysical investigation will be discomforting for many seems unavoidable, but it promises to be more productive in the long term than proceeding on the basis of easy assumptions about the goals of sustainable development as though it were a policy whose chief problems are of implementation rather than meaning. Bonnett, 2002, p. 19

  21. respect and care for the community of life; ecological integrity; social and economic justice; and democracy, non-violence and peace Recognize that all beings are interdependent and every form of life has value regardless of its worth to human beings. Protect and restore the integrity of Earth’s ecological systems, with special concern for biological diversity and the natural processes that sustain life. Recognize that peace (contentment) is the wholeness created by right relationships with oneself, other people, other cultures, other life, Earth, and the larger whole of which all are a part. Values – moral principles or things we ought to doEarth Charter – a set of principles to guide humanity towards more sustainable ways of living

  22. The Earth Charter and consumerism Adopt patterns of production, consumption, and reproduction that safeguard Earth’s regenerative capacities, human rights, and community well-being (a principle under Ecological Integrity) Reduce, reuse and recycle the materials used in production and consumption systems ad ensure that residual waste can be assimilated by ecological systems; Internalise the full environmental and social costs of goods and services in the selling price, and enable consumers to identify products that meet the highest social and environmental standards; Adopt lifestyles that emphasize the quality of life and material sufficiency in a finite world.

  23. The consumer treadmill • Constant creation of new needs, products and services • Planned obsolescence • Increased profits for corporations • Increased taxes for governments • Increased welfare & living standards for citizens • Individualisation / privatisation of provision

  24. From modern to post-modern consumerism • Increasingly differentiated products • Shorter lifetime (more flexible production methods) • More attention to presentation and style > content • New ways of selling nature (eg ecotourism) • Intensified consumption offsets cleaner production

  25. Liquid moderns (Zygmunt Bauman) • Suspect civilisation is frail – fear collective disaster (terrorism, flu, tsunamis, climate change) and personal disaster (of being excluded from friends, relationships) • Have lost faith in the future – cannot commit to relationships, have few kinship ties • Constantly at work reinventing themselves so as not to appear obsolete at work, friendless, unloved (Traditional sources of security and identity (family, career, loving relationships) are less secure • Forever texting, chatting, phoning, messaging • Explains popularity of Big Brother, Weakest Link, etc

  26. The under 16s spend an estimated £30bn a year including £6bn on clothes and £2bn on toys. 8 in 10 kids have their own TV in their room, half have a DVD player or video 1 million children under 9 have a mobile phone Average pocket money for 9 – 11s is £6 a week Children as consumers

  27. Today’s average child is familiar with up to 400 brand names by the time they reach the age of 10. 69% of 3 year olds can identify the McDonald’s golden arches Brands enable children to announce who they are, display solidarity with others, differentiate themselves from others. Brands and identity

  28. Cartoon character Celebrity endorsement Big movie tie in Fun foods Conspiratorial relationship between the brand and the child Selling to children

  29. Children ‘market’ themselves to one another, schools ‘market’ themselves to parents, parents ‘market’ children to schools. Many children wish that they or their parents had more money to spend. Their vulnerabilities are sold back to them through magazines and marketing. Poorest most aware of branding Children as liquid moderns

  30. Today’s children unhappier than any generation of the postwar era Rising incidence of mental illness, anxiety and depression amongst the young Childhood obesity has tripled in the past 25 years 70% of 7 year olds girls say they want to be slimmer Are children content?

  31. Bratz Stylin Salon "n" Spa Pamper your Bratz in style! Includes hair salon, cosmetic counter, manicure and pedicure station, smoothie and cafe bar and real working beauty jacuzzi, plus tons of stylin' accessories! Comes with Bratz doll in spa outfit. Colours and styles may vary. For ages 6 years and over

  32. Toys of Misery: a report on the toy industry in China, National Labor Committee, 2002 More than half the toys sold in the US are made in China. This is not a boycott. It is a call for Mattel, Hasbro, Disney, McDonald’s, Toys ‘R’ Us and Wal-Mart to do the right thing. Do not cut and run from China. Rather, work with your contractors to clean up these factories and guarantee that China’s labour laws--including wage, hour, overtime compensation and health and safety laws--are strictly adhered to.

  33. ‘Typical’ toy factory in China Mandatory daily shifts of 15 to 16 ½ hours, 8:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. or 12:30 a.m. Some 20-hour, all-night shifts required, from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 a.m. Seven-day workweek Working 30 days a month At the factory 103 to 112 hours a week Workers fainting from the long hours and exhaustion Twelve-to-14-cent-an-hour wages $8.42 for a 72 ¼-hour workweek Workers cheated of $20.79 a week—70 percent--of the legal minimum wage owned them Handling toxic chemical glues, paints and solvents. Workers do not even know the names of the chemicals, let alone their health hazards Workers constantly dizzy, nauseous and on the verge of throwing up from the strong chemical paint odor which hangs thick in the factory air. 104-degree factory temperature Sick workers fired 16 workers share one small dorm room Workers have never heard of, let alone seen Mattel’s, Hasbro’s, Disney’s, McDonald’s, Toy’s ‘R’ Us or Wal-Mart’s so-called Codes of Conduct. Freedom of Association absolutely repressed.

  34. Toy worker 1 “I’ve worked for more than a year now. The highest wages I’ve gotten was 700 rmb ($84.57) a month. I make an average of 500 to 600 rmb ($60.41 to $72.49) and 300 rmb ($36.25) during slack season. My husband also works in Shenzhen. He’s a driver and earns 1500 rmb ($181.23) a month. My kids are left with my parents at home. My husband I come from a poor village where nothing grows on the land. We had to leave. We live separately because we can’t afford to rent a flat. We meet every Saturday. I can’t save much on my salary. In toy factories, you get a better income only during peak season. When the slack season comes, you can’t even survive with what you get, never mind saving anything.” -A worker in Company B

  35. www.ethicalconsumer.org

  36. Poor kids will stop wanting Nike trainers only when they have another way to prove their own worth, another way to show they are valued. In other words when society itself is changed. Greg Rowland . . . and the ultimate answer?

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