Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)

INTRODUCTION TO CONSULTATION FORM VERSION 1.5

This consultation on education for sustainable development (ESD) is sponsored by the PelicanWeb Journal of Sustainable Development (formerly the Journal of Solidarity, Sustainability, and Nonviolence). UNESCO has defined eight key areas that should be covered in education for sustainable development: gender equality, health care, environmental stewardship, rural development, cultural diversity, peace & security, sustainable urbanization, and sustainable consumption.

The objective of this consultation is to gather requirements for ESD. These requirements must be articulated as issues or problem areas that are to be considered and discussed in ESD programs. It should be made clear that the objective of this consultation is not to arrive at practical solutions (let alone "the" solution) to any of the complex issues related to sustainable development. However, a good inventory and taxonomy of relevant issues might be useful.

Needless to say, UNESCO is not responsible for any misconceptions that the questions might contain. Same applies to the answers to be entered, collected, and analyzed. Hopefully, this exercise will lead to some useful insights and perhaps even some recommendations about education for sustainable development, but there is no presumption that such results will be useful to UNESCO or any other institution.

You have been selected either because you are a member of the Solidarity & Sustainability Google Group, or a participant in one of several fora related to sustainable development, or by another individual who has given us your name because of your expertise in sustainable development and/or related global issues such as gender discrimination, the gap between the very rich and the very poor, and the deterioration of the human habitat.

The consultation form can be completed in one hour or so. Answer each of the questions to the best of your knowledge. All of your responses will remain anonymous. Complete the survey and press the submit button at the end. When you press submit, your answers are added to the survey spreadsheet. A summary of the findings will be made available to participants who provide contact information.

Version 1.5 is a major revision based on feedback received from Version 0 and Version 1. For more information:

PelicanWeb Journal of Sustainable Development, Volume 5, Number 6, June 2009
http://www.pelicanweb.org/solisustv05n06page1.html

Version 1.5 again includes 5 questions for each UNESCO key area, for a total of 40 questions. In each group of 5, the first question is a "relevance ranking" of the UNESCO key area, where "relevance" means "relevance for sustainable development." The second question requires selecting one root cause from a list but allows the participant to enter another root cause. The format of the third, fourth, and fifth questions is "select all the options that apply and/or enter an additional option."

Thank you for your patience and participation.

Luis T. Gutierrez, Ph.D.
Editor, E-Journal of Solidarity, Sustainability, and Nonviolence
http://pelicanweb.org/
This is a monthly, free subscription, open access e-journal.

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START OF CONSULTATION FORM VERSION 1.5

Note: Questions marked with an asterisk are required. Other questions are optional.

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Institutional Affiliation * Can be a company, agency, school, church, others

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QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR GENDER EQUITY This is Section 1 of the Survey

2. In your experience, what is the root cause of gender inequities? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] The ubiquity of religious images portraying God as masculine.
[B] The resilience of the patriarchal mindset in religious beliefs and teachings.
[C] The philosophical notion that men are superior to women physically and intellectually (Aristotle).
[D] The general acceptance of gender inequities as part of the "natural order of things."
[E] The fact that only women can have babies.
[F] The long history of taking for granted that patriarchy is normative (Bible, Quran).
[G] The religious notion that "woman is defective and misbegotten" (Thomas Aquinas).
[H] The resilience of the patriarchal mindset in cultural understandings and practices.
Other:

3. What can you do to help overcome gender inequities? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Practically nothing.
[B] Give my unqualified support to patriarchal institutions.
[C] Do research on the full sharing of human nature by men and women.
[D] Elucidate the difference between male human nature and female human nature.
[E] Start at home, showing that husband and wife are equal partners.
[F] Show the need to better recognize & understand the contributions of women as well as those of men.
[G] Show the need for new models of gender neutral family structure (e.g., partnership rather than patriarchy).
Other:

4. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to overcome gender inequities? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Legalization of prostitution with full equality for male and female prostitutes.
[B] Reformation of secular institutions to achieve full gender equity in positions of authority.
[C] Reformation of religious institutions to achieve full gender equity in roles of religious authority.
[D] Making mutual consent the only requirement for having sex at any age.
[E] Heavy taxation of institutions that do not practice gender equity.
[F] Cancel subsidies to institutions that do not practice gender equity.
Other:

5. What cultural adaptations are required to overcome gender inequities? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Letting go of the patriarchal mindset.
[B] Giving boys and girls the same opportunities for integral human development.
[C] Recognizing that men and women share the same human rights.
[D] Recognizing that God transcends gender.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR HEALTH PROMOTION This is Section 2 of the Survey

7. In your experience, what is the root cause of so many people suffering from poor health? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] In general, people are really not concerned about their health.
[B] Many people make individual choices that put short-term pleasure above long-term health implications.
[C] Irresponsible sex.
[D] Excessive eating and drinking.
[E] Seeking inner peace and fulfillment from the outside world.
[F] Poverty (inability to pay for high health care costs and lack of insurance).
[G] Extreme poverty (malnutrition, unsanitary living conditions, lack of access to free health care services).
[H] People have limited time and resources, and they have to make choices that may not be the healthiest.
Other:

8. What can you do to help in the promotion of human health? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Go to medical school and make a lot of money.
[B] Avoid polluting the environment.
[C] Become an advocate for safe and responsible sex.
[D] Do research on how to lower health care costs.
[E] Promote affordable access to health care services.
[F] Promote free access to health care services.
[G] Promote better education about taking health into account when making individual choices.
Other:

9. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to improve human health? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Reformation of health care systems so as to make health care more accessible and affordable.
[B] Work for social and environmental justice.
[C] Give a higher priority to better education on safe sex and healthy lifestyles.
[D] Give condoms and contraceptives to everyone (and, stop the nonsense about abstinence).
[E] Support projects that provide health care services to victims of HIV/AIDS and other pandemics.
Other:

10. What cultural adaptations are required to improve human health? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Rediscover the family as the basic unity of society.
[B] Recognition that a nuptial covenant is the best way to share the gift of love and the gift of life.
[C] Letting go of some religious taboos (e.g., "menstruation makes a woman dirty").
[D] Come to a mind that we all must fight in the "war on drugs."
[E] Recognition that psychological violence is at least as bad as physical violence in causing mental illness.
[F] Consensus that health care is a human right.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR ENVIRONMENTAL STEWARDSHIP This is Section 3 of the Survey

12. In your experience, what is the root cause of environmental deterioration? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] The limitations of the human condition.
[B] Indulging in extravagant consumerism, especially in the First World.
[C] Greed and the idolatry of money.
[D] The sexual drive that generates explosive population growth in the Third World.
[E] Lack of contact with nature.
Other:

13. What can you do to foster environmental stewardship? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Tell my family and friends about our need for the human habitat.
[B] Work for environmental justice.
[C] Work for both social justice and environmental justice.
[D] Reassure people that this is what God desires (Genesis 2:15).
[E] Take for granted the resilience of the biosphere.
Other:

14. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to improve environmental management? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Reform of educational systems to include the synergy between humanity and the human habitat.
[B] Reform of business and tax laws to foster use of the "triple bottom line."
[C] Reform of the international system to include some form of global governance with a "green" mandate.
[D] Reform of the international system to reverse "resources flowing from the poor to the rich and pollution flowing from the rich to the poor" (Vandana Shiva).
[E] Reform of institutional accounting practices that treat environmental costs as "externalities" (free services).
[F] Reform of tax codes to include environmental impact assessment of institutional activities and apply taxes accordingly.
[G] Provide incentives to stabilize consumption and stabilize the use of natural resources at sustainable rates.
Other:

15. What cultural adaptations are required for people to live in harmony with the human habitat? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Let go of idealistic transformational goals and focus instead on formulating economic and other incentives to "think green, act green."
[B] Let go of false hopes for technological breakthroughs that will allow exponential growth of population and consumption to continue without impacting the global ecosystem.
[C] Let go of idealistic transformational goals and focus instead on formulating economic disincentives and other effective disincentives to human activities that harm biodiversity and other natural resources.
[D] Let go of the addiction to cars and other devices that burn fossil fuels.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR RURAL DEVELOPMENT This is Section 4 of the Survey

17. In your experience, what is the root cause of rural underdevelopment? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] Lack of access to good schools
[B] Lack of access to heath care facilities
[C] Lack of opportunities for human development
[D] Lack of adequate compensation for farming work.
[E] Lack of appreciation for living in contact with nature.
[F] The perception that resources and opportunities are concentrated in the cities.
[G] Feelings of isolation and lack of motivation to work the land.
Other:

18. What can you do to help promote rural development? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] If you live in a rural area, request courses in agronomy and best agricultural practices.
[B] If you live in a rural area, form cooperatives to work the land in a more cost-effective manner.
[C] If you live in a city, promote the allocation of resources to rural areas.
[D] If you live in a city, promote the allocation of resources to research in agricultural and/or forestry best practices.
Other:

19. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to promote rural development? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] In government, checks and balances to ensure a fair distribution of resources between rural and urban areas.
[B] In education, ensure that rural children understand the positives and negatives of urban living.
[C] In education, ensure that children living in the cities learn about the positive and negatives of rural living.
[D] In the business world, provide incentives for location of agricultural industries in rural areas.
[E] In the business world, provide incentives to the relocation of environment-friendly industries to rural areas.
Other:

20. What cultural adaptations are required to foster rural development? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Rediscover the high value of agriculture and forestry for the good of society.
[B] More support to incentives for university graduates to serve in rural areas for at least three years.
[C] Same as B, but extended to both national and foreign rural areas.
[D] Same as B, but targeted to poor rural areas such as sub-Saharan Africa.
[E] General recognition of the need for heavy taxing of human activities that cause soil erosion and/or deforestation.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION ABOUT CULTURAL DIVERSITY This is Section 5 of the Survey

22. In your experience, what is the root cause of resistance to cultural diversity? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] Lack of experience in managing cultural diversity.
[B] Delusions about racial / ethnic / religious superiority.
[C] Ignorance that breeds intolerance.
[D] A false sense of patriotism.
[E] Lack of evidence-based education on the benefits of cultural diversity.
[F] Lack of experience in interacting with diverse ethnicities and cultures.
Other:

23. What can you do to help overcome resistance to cultural diversity? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Do research on the correlation between cultural diversity and human development.
[B] Promote acceptance of inter-racial marriage.
[C] Promote acceptance of non-exclusive institutions and neighborhoods.
[D] Promote diversity (including gender balance) in the workplace and other secular institutions.
[E] Promote diversity (including gender balance) in religious institutions and rituals.
Other:

24. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to overcome resistance to cultural diversity? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Increase the allocation of resources to research in human sexuality.
[B] Increase financial support for gender studies, ethnic studies, and other studies that help young people gain an appreciation for cultural diversity, the positive value of inclusiveness, and the negative value of exclusiveness.
[C] Zero tolerance for "ethnic cleansing," the massive abortion of baby girls, and other such practices.
[D] Heavy taxation of institutions (both secular and religious) that practice any form of discrimination.
[E] Withdrawal of subsidies to institutions (both secular and religious) that practice any form of discrimination.
Other:

25. What cultural adaptations are required to overcome resistance to cultural diversity? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Overcoming racism.
[B] Overcoming the "phallic syndrome" (preference for the masculine).
[C] Overcoming collective delusions about any form of superiority or supremacy.
[D] Increased appreciation for the notion of a "global village."
[E] Acceptance of the cultural benefits of globalization.
[F] Increased appreciation for the value of a diverse and multi-cultural community.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR PEACE AND SECURITY This is Section 6 of the Survey

27. In your experience, what is the root cause of violence and the resulting human insecurity? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] The desire for wealth.
[B] The desire for power.
[C] Not having experienced the power of nonviolence.
[D] The desire for honors.
[E] A, B, and D above (if one of these is the primary root, the other two become secondary roots).
Other:

28. What can you do to help mitigate violence and improve human security? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Teach and practice the power of nonviolence.
[B] Promote the "economy of enough."
[C] Work for social and environmental justice.
[D] Work to close the gap between the very rich and the very poor.
[E] Accept responsibility and avoid blaming others ("scapegoating").
[F] If you are a Christian, memorize and popularize the "prayer of St. Francis."
[G] If you are religious, do F with a peace prayer in your tradition (search Google).
[H] Establish peace academies on a par with military academies.
Other:

29. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to mitigate violence and improve human security? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Reformation of the United Nations with a democratic mandate to keep the peace and pursue the Millennium Development Goals.
[B] Democratic reforms with effective "checks and balances" at all levels (principle of subsidiarity).
[C] Create a multi-national force of "blue helmets" with adequate training and resources.
[D] Create incentives for nonviolence and disincentives for violence at all levels.
[E] Educate children on the Declaration of Human Rights, the Earth Charter, and the Hannover Principles.
Other:

30. What cultural adaptations are required to promote nonviolence and human security? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Make war and violence "collectively unacceptable."
[B] Make the rich-poor gap "collectively unacceptable."
[C] Choice A with especial emphasis on gender violence.
[D] Choice B with especial emphasis on gender violence.
[G] Concede that human civilization is beyond repair.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE URBANIZATION This is Section 7 of the Survey

32. In your experience, what is the root cause of unsustainable urbanization? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] Excessive congestion.
[B] Lack of experience in city management.
[C] The attraction of urban jobs, resources, and amenities.
[D] Uncontrolled growth.
[E] Crime, especially drug trafficking.
Other:

33. What can you do to enhance the sustainable development of urban areas? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Do research on incentives for mitigation of urban growth.
[B] Eat only food that can be produced within city limits.
[C] Support developing massive transit systems to avoid commuting.
[D] Try to get a job in a rural area.
[E] Do "ceteris paribus" research on the optimal population of cities.
Other:

34. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to foster sustainable urbanization? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Increase property taxes as a nonlinear (e.g., exponential) function of urban population.
[B] Reverse migration from rural to urban areas by making rural living more attractive -- economically and socially.
[C] Increase the cost of new business permits in cities, decrease such costs in rural areas.
[D] Define concentric circles and democratically put in place progressively greater disincentives to live / work / circulate in the inner circles (except for tourists with permits).
[E] Relocate airports to be at least 100 miles away from the outermost circle in choice D.
[F] Democratically set much heavier fines for littering, including jail terms for repeat offenders.
[G] Democratically establish effective disincentives to urban sprawl.
Other:

35. What cultural adaptations are required to make progress in sustainable urbanization? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Increased collective desire for more green spaces within cities.
[B] More general recognition of the human need to be in frequent contact with nature.
[C] Increased collective awareness about the negative health effects of congestion and pollution.
[D] Increased awareness of the need for sustainable consumption by those who live in cities.
[E] More toleration for people who start growing fruits and vegetables in their gardens
[F] More toleration for people who start having chickens, pigs, etc., in their backyards.
Other:

QUESTIONS ON EDUCATION FOR SUSTAINABLE CONSUMPTION This is Section 8 of the Survey

37. In your experience, what is the root cause of unsustainable consumption? * Select an answer or enter your own:

[A] Advertising.
[B] Gluttony.
[C] Everyone else enjoys shopping and having material things, so why not me?
[D] Lack of appreciation for a simple lifestyle.
[E] Consumerism is an escape from looking inside and undertaking the inner journey.
Other:

38. What can you do to help foster sustainable consumption? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Support and/or volunteer to work in social and environmental justice projects.
[B] Tell my boss that they are cutting corners in product quality, and lying to customers, for the sake of quick profits.
[C] Do what you can to help the poor and the oppressed.
[D] Be vocal in denouncing the widening gap between the very poor and the very rich, and be ready and willing to face the consequences.
[E] Start by moderating your own consumption habits.
Other:

39. What institutional (systemic) reformations are required to promote sustainable consumption? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Establish effective "checks and balances" to ensure compliance with the principle of subsidiarity ("decisions are to be made at the lowest possible level").
[B] Democratically establish heavier taxes for consumption of extravagant goods and services.
[C] Manage R&D resources so as to maximize human and social benefits (rather than just quick profits).
[D] Advertise the negative individual, social, and ecological impacts of various forms of excessive consumption.
[E] Undertake a radical rethinking of educational systems (starting with kindergarten) to stress "learning by doing" in addition to "learning by listening."
[F] Establish incentives to follow standards and best practices such as ISO 9000 (quality management), ISO 14000 (environmental management), and ISO 26000 (social responsibility, to be released in 2010).
[G] Establish incentives for shifting to renewable energy sources and disincentives for the consumption of fossil fuels.
[H] Formulate economic policies in light of economic and ecological growth limits.
Other:

40. What cultural adaptations are required for sustainable consumption to prevail over consumerism? * Select all that apply and/or add your own:

[A] Greater recognition of the value of knowing and practicing the principle of human solidarity.
[B] Greater recognition of the value of knowing and practicing the principle of environmental sustainability.
[C] Greater recognition of the principle of nonviolence as normative in human affairs.
[D] Greater recognition that what really matters is to be more human, not to have more things.
[E] Greater recognition of the value of knowing and practicing the principle of subsidiarity in governance.
[F] General awareness that there are sustainability limits to consumption rates.
Other:

PLEASE MAKE SURE YOU CLICK ON THE "SUBMIT" BUTTON BELOW. This is the end of the survey. Thanks for your participation!

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