September 30th, 2016: The University Educators for Sustainable Development project based on a partnership of higher education institutions for sustainable development across Europe is finishing at the end of September 2016. Over the last three years, UE4SD has achieved its aims through a range of activities and exchanges focused on the professional development of educators. The project has produced materials that provide a shared understanding of ESD within different cultural backgrounds, support professional development of educators’ competences, and stimulate relevant education policies at different levels, from institutional to European.

September 30th, 2016: The University Educators for Sustainable Development project based on a partnership of higher education institutions for sustainable development across Europe is finishing at the end of September 2016. Over the last three years, UE4SD has achieved its aims through a range of activities and exchanges focused on the professional development of educators. The project has produced materials that provide a shared understanding of ESD within different cultural backgrounds, support professional development of educators’ competences, and stimulate relevant education policies at different levels, from institutional to European.

The Online Platform created within the UE4SD project was launched during the final project conference in Gibraltar on June 27th, 2016 by Dr Alexander Leicht, Chief of Education for Sustainable Development department, UNESCO.

The focus of UE4SD is professional development of university educators in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). This web resource was created to share the UE4SD experiences, tools and examples of best practice.

The Conference “Universities as Beacons of Change: Education for Sustainability lighting up pathways for a new world” was held on 27 – 28 June 2016 in the University of Gibraltar. This conference was a contribution to the UNESCO Global Action Programme (GAP) on ESD and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) which have acknowledged that there is a need to improve support for university educators to re-orient teaching and learning for sustainable development. It was also a final meeting of the UE4SD project, funded by the European Commission, which has identified and documented a series of leading practices on professional development in ESD in Europe that can enlighten universities interested in rethinking the purpose of education and becoming beacons of social change. The Conference brought together over 100 delegates from across the world who discussed existing international and UN frameworks on ESD, the role of higher education institutions and specifically university educators in ESD processes, and on more practical level, possibilities of future networking and cooperation with each other. Topics such as professional development issues, possibilities for change, and pathways for quality and partnerships were discussed in three parallel sessions. 

The Leading Practice Publication (LPP) has been launched at the annual meeting of the European project University Educators for Sustainable Development (UE4SD) hosted by the Autonomous University of Madrid at the Cultural Centre “La Corrala” in Madrid, on November 23^rd, 2015. The publication is the result of the project’s second stage of “Developing resources”, building on the knowledge and experience of 53 partners from 33 countries active in the area of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) at European higher education (HE) institutions. Following the mapping stage of the field of ESD on HE level in all involved countries with special emphasis on UNECE competences, the publication provides an overview of 13 selected best practice examples of professional development opportunities for European university educators in the area of ESD. It also reviews possibilities of how to implement ESD professional development at the HE level throughout Europe, i.e. it provides information on the ways in which relevant professional development in ESD can be acquired, and what is needed at policy level to reach this transformation.

You can download the Press Release in national languages.

November 23^rd, 2015 at “La Corrala” - Autonomous University of Madrid, Madrid, Spain

The Leading Practice Publication (LPP) has been launched at the annual meeting of the European project University Educators for Sustainable Development (UE4SD) hosted by the Autonomous University of Madrid at the Cultural Centre “La Corrala” in Madrid, on November 23^rd, 2015. The publication is the result of the project’s second stage of “Developing resources”, building on the knowledge and experience of 53 partners from 33 countries active in the area of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) at European higher education (HE) institutions. Following the mapping stage of the field of ESD on HE level in all involved countries with special emphasis on UNECE competences, the publication provides an overview of 13 selected best practice examples of professional development opportunities for European university educators in the area of ESD. It also reviews possibilities of how to implement ESD professional development at the HE level throughout Europe, i.e. it provides information on the ways in which relevant professional development in ESD can be acquired, and what is needed at policy level to reach this transformation.

From February till May 2014 54 higher education institutions from 33 countries across Europe were engaged in mapping the state of the art of education for sustainable development (ESD) in higher education. The partners represent an area of more than 3,000 European higher education institutions with more than 24 million students. Besides identifying the status of ESD integration, the focus was on mapping existing ESD professional development opportunities for university educators as quality in higher education teaching is seen as vital for preparing students with the competences they need to address 21st century challenges.

You can download the Press Release in national languages.

New mapping report shows good practices and gaps across Europe.

From February till May 2014 were 54 higher education institutions from 33 countries across Europe engaged in mapping the state of the art of education for sustainable development (ESD) in higher education. The partners represent an area of more than 3,000 European higher education institutions with more than 24 million students. Besides identifying the status of ESD integration, the focus was on mapping existing ESD professional development opportunities for university educators as quality in higher education teaching is seen as vital for preparing students with the competences they need to address 21^st century challenges.

University Educators for Sustainable Development (UE4SD) is a project that brings together 55 partners
(mainly universities) from 33 countries across Europe and beyond to rethink the higher education curriculum
to address sustainable development. The 3 year-project, funded by the European Commission under the
Lifelong Learning Programme - Erasmus Academic Networks, will focus on linking Education for Sustainable
Development and the drive to improve quality in higher education generally.

You can download this First Press Release in national languages