Sustainable Development, Education and Learning

The UN’s Sustainable Development Goal #4 focuses on inclusive, quality education, galvanizing efforts for substantial educational reform around the globe. Progress is being made but are the initiatives being upscaled and mainstreamed rapidly enough? Has caring become an essential aspect of learning? Have cooperative learning and creativity been given enough attention? Are teachers receiving sufficient support? These are some of the questions raised by Victoria Thoresen as she considers the goals and challenges iterated in the SDG.

Thoresen argues that unless implementation of the new definitions of inclusive, quality education are prioritized everywhere, sustainable development will be severely hampered and, conceivably, misdirected. She examines the recent evolution of education in light of political and commercial ambitions, technological advancements, and knowledge creation and sharing. Key concerns relating to education for and learning about sustainable development are identified and major obstacles to achieving inclusive, quality education for all are discussed.