Sustainable development
Greece is planning to promote the principles of sustainable development, starting in schools. Andreas Karamanos, the general secretary of the Education Ministry, told Kathimerini about the ministry’s strategy. What is sustainable development? Development that will meet the needs of future generations. It includes not only protection of the environment by sustainable management of natural resources, but also economic robustness, justice and social cohesion. High rates of development entail greater use of natural, human and economic resources, making for less sustainability, yet it is possible to reach an ideal level of sustainability by keeping development rates moderate. How can education help achieve sustainable development? Given that values and lifestyle are learned young, education is an essential tool. Education for sustainable development must enable individuals to develop the capacity for critical thinking, exercise judgment and make decisions. Are environmental education and education for sustainable development the same thing? No. Sustainable development education (SDE) has broadened its scope. It no longer deals solely with the technical or scientific aspect of the environmental problem, but treats it as a social problem associated with conflicting interests and as a problem of personal behavior. It tackles issues like human rights and democracy, racial equality, multiculturalism, social tolerance, ensuring quality of health and life, dealing with poverty, collective responsibility and the market economy. It is an interdisciplinary approach and demands participation in all aspects of education by all social partners (state, private sector, NGOs and local government) at the national and international level. Greece has set up 31 of a planned 56 Environmental Education Centers which work in cooperation with local communities, offering informal training to school groups. Environmental subjects will soon be included in the school course known as «Olympic education,» with a new topic every year till 2014 – this year’s topic is water. A wide-ranging program trains teachers on sustainable development and adapting material for classes.
