scholarly journals Could Education for Sustainable Development Benefit from a Systems Thinking Approach?

Systems ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 43 ◽  
Author(s):  
Maria Hofman-Bergholm
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Education For Sustainable Development ◽  
Educational Work ◽  
Sustainable Future ◽  
Novel Concept ◽  
Systems Thinking Approach ◽  
The Way

Sustainable development is not a novel concept. However, we continue with our unsustainable way of living. It is as though we cannot see our own part in the unsustainable system. Values, ethics and morals are connected to education and therefor education is in a key position to change the way we think and act for a sustainable future. Both education for sustainable development (ESD) and systems thinking are concepts connected to changes toward a sustainable future. However, they have proven to be conceptually problematic and are characterized by their complexity, making implementation more difficult. The purpose of this study is to discover whether it could be possible to interlace ESD and systems education to a strong and solid entirety in order to overcome the obstacles preventing the implementation of sustainability in education. This is done through a literature review in the fields of systems thinking and ESD. The literature review identifies two joint approaches that could be worth exploring more in order to develop an excellent instrument in the educational work toward sustainability.

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adib Rifqi Setiawan
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Education For Sustainable Development ◽  
Sustainable Future ◽  
The Way

Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) empowers people to change the way they think and work towards a sustainable future.

scholarly journals Can Education for Sustainable Development Change Entrepreneurship Education to Deliver a Sustainable Future?

2018 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
pp. 36-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Glenn Strachan
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Action Plan ◽  
Youth Unemployment ◽  
Entrepreneurship Education ◽  
Education For Sustainable Development ◽  
Economic Systems ◽  
Sustainable Entrepreneurship ◽  
Sustainable Future ◽  
Development Change ◽  
Sustainability Challenges

Abstract An objective of the European Union’s Entrepreneurship 2020 Action Plan is to address high levels of youth unemployment in Europe by promoting entrepreneurship. Implementing entrepreneurship education in schools, colleges and universities is one of three strategic interventions proposed by the Action Plan. Sustainable entrepreneurship is a recognised branch of the wider field of entrepreneurship and the literature on sustainable entrepreneurship sees it as a means of addressing some of the sustainability challenges of the 21st century. This article compares the pedagogical approaches and the competences of ESD (Education for Sustainable Development) with those of entrepreneurship education to identify how ESD might influence entrepreneurship education in order to develop entrepreneurs that contribute to a sustainable future. This comparison is placed in the context of the broader debate on the need to transform the dominant neo-liberal economic systems as part of the precondition for achieving a more sustainable future.

scholarly journals How We Understand “Complexity” Makes a Difference: Lessons from Critical Systems Thinking and the Covid-19 Pandemic in the UK

Systems ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 52
Author(s):  
Michael C. Jackson
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Cognitive Complexity ◽  
Critical Systems Thinking ◽  
Decision Makers ◽  
Critical Systems ◽  
The World ◽  
Key Features ◽  
The Uk ◽  
Systems Thinking Approach ◽  
The Way

Many authors have sought to summarize what they regard as the key features of “complexity”. Some concentrate on the complexity they see as existing in the world—on “ontological complexity”. Others highlight “cognitive complexity”—the complexity they see arising from the different interpretations of the world held by observers. Others recognize the added difficulties flowing from the interactions between “ontological” and “cognitive” complexity. Using the example of the Covid-19 pandemic in the UK, and the responses to it, the purpose of this paper is to show that the way we understand complexity makes a huge difference to how we respond to crises of this type. Inadequate conceptualizations of complexity lead to poor responses that can make matters worse. Different understandings of complexity are discussed and related to strategies proposed for combatting the pandemic. It is argued that a “critical systems thinking” approach to complexity provides the most appropriate understanding of the phenomenon and, at the same time, suggests which systems methodologies are best employed by decision makers in preparing for, and responding to, such crises.

A Long, Winding (and Rocky) Road to Environmental Education for Sustainability in 2006

2006 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 71-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
Annette Gough
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Environmental Education ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Education For Sustainable Development ◽  
Education For Sustainability ◽  
The Road ◽  
New Directions ◽  
History Of ◽  
The 1960S ◽  
The Way

AbstractThis article charts the history of environmental education over four decades - from the 1960s to 2006 - as a rocky road of determined chocolate with the possibilities of rocks (nuts) and easy passage (marshmallow). There were distractions such as suggestions of changing names and new directions (add fruit?) along the way but the road has continued to be well travelled. The article concludes that there is much in common with where we have come from (the 1975 Belgrade Charter) and where we stand now (in year 2 of the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development). Where next?

scholarly journals A systems thinking approach to understanding the challenges of achieving the circular economy

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eleni Iacovidou ◽  
John N. Hahladakis ◽  
Phil Purnell
Keyword(s):  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Value Chain ◽  
Circular Economy ◽  
Systems Approach ◽  
Transformational Change ◽  
Holistic Approach ◽  
Time Investment ◽  
Material Component ◽  
Systems Thinking Approach ◽  
The Way

AbstractCircular economy (CE) is extensively discussed around the globe. Presently, discussions are mostly concerned with the importance of achieving CE and the benefits associated therewith, with the various barriers surrounding its implementation being less debated. Understanding the context in which circularity can flourish is a prerequisite in building the capabilities to deal with the multi-faceted challenges that currently hamper progress in closing the material, component and product loops. In this study, we discuss the importance of systems thinking in understanding the way resource recovery systems operate, and in promoting deep transformational change. We suggest that transformational change needs to go beyond closing materials, components and products (MCPs) loops, and promote sustainability in the way resources are exploited, used and managed throughout the system. By adopting a system of systems approach, we postulate that there are five interconnected sub-systems that need to be considered for supporting transitions to CE, namely, resource flows and provisioning service; governance, regulatory framework and political landscape; business activities and the marker; infrastructure and innovation; and user practices. This holistic approach provides a useful means to cutting through systemic complexity, and focuses on the dynamics between processes, values and actors in the value chain, and their dependence on cultural, spatial and temporal characteristics. We conclude that a systems-based approach can build up the capabilities required to identify and understand persistent linear trends and, in turn, support forward-thinking and time investment in enabling sustainable transitions. This, in turn, can help to align priorities and transform our current practices, speeding up the process of closing the MCP loops in a sustainable manner.

A systems thinking approach to water trade: Finding leverage for sustainable development

2019 ◽  
Vol 82 ◽  
pp. 595-608 ◽  
Author(s):  
Thanh Mai ◽  
Shahbaz Mushtaq ◽  
Adam Loch ◽  
K. Reardon-Smith ◽  
Duc-Anh An-Vo
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Systems Thinking ◽  
Systems Thinking Approach
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