What's new in the environmental education sector?

To find out about the latest international, national and statewide policy and strategy development within or that effects the Environmental Education sector please click on the relevant section -

International News
National policy, strategies and initiatives
Victorian policy, strategies and initiatives

International News

The Decade
The United Nations Education, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO), the lead agency for the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD) launched its DESD Implementation Plan on the 19th October. A copy of the Implementation Plan can be seen by CLICKING HERE

A national launch and symposium for the Decade will be held in Melbourne on the 7th July 2005. Opened by Professor Ken Wiltshire, Chair of the Australian National Commission for UNESCO, the full day event aims to promote awareness and understanding of the aims and opportunities of this special United Nations Decade and to explore potential partnerships and develop collaborative activities to promote the goals of the decade in Australia . Participants at the Symposium will be representatives of relevant national organisations , and will be encouraged to plan appropriate activities on education for sustainable development for their members during the decade. The Symposium is an initiative of the Australian National Commission for UNESCO and is being organised and hosted by RMIT University in partnership with the Victorian Catholic Education Office, International Young Professional Foundation, Future Leaders and Swinburne University of Technology. The Australian Government Department of the Environment and Heritage is the major sponsor.

With an initiative of this size and duration as well as its potential to really install sustainability education into communities and people across the globe, its really important to pull together on the strategic initiatives but also enthuse idependant activity at a more local grass roots level.

To this end, VAEE endeavours to keep you up to date with the international, national and state developments and what this means to you as an environmental educator. As well as distributing news to its members and here in its website, VAEE has held the first DESD forum for Victoria on the 31st January, which was a huge success. For information about the content and proceeding please CLICK HERE. Further events and developments will be announced. Watch this space.The National Environmental Education Council (NEEC) will be putting together a program of initiatives / activities for consideration by the Minister. While Australian Government may develop a program of initiatives that will be promoted under the banner of DESD, the Federal Government does not have plans to coordinate a response at a national level. The Department of Environment & Heritage may lead these initiatives / activities within Australia. Opportunities to link these with activities within other states will be facilitated. The Department of Environment and Heritage (DEH) has yet to receive direction or confirmation of the level of co-ordination required from the Australian National Commission for UNESCO so will provide further advice and brief us at the forum we are developing once the Minister has been briefed and the direction and opportunities clarified. Its anticipated that the DESD will provide an impetus to build on existing programs, initiatives and strategies under development.

However, what is clear is that these developments should not effect the DESD activities at the State or local community level. Although DEH will be looking to build partnerships as part of the planning process, activities at this level can embrace the decade in which ever way it wants. So get your thinking hats on. How can your community embrace the decade. If you have events that you want to promote please let VAEE know about them.

For further information about the decade visit the UNESCO DESD webpages, CLICK HERE


New UN publication - 'Engaging people in sustainability'
This new international publication by the IUCN Commission on Education and Communication was launched at the 3rd IUCN World Conservation Congress in Bangkok (17-25 Nov. 2004).  It was presented at an IUCN - UNESCO platform as a contribution to the UN Decade in Education for SustainableDevelopment.

'Engaging People in Sustainability' provides some compelling and exciting case studies of how others in the field have put the concepts of Education for Sustainability into action.  It is framed around five key themes essential to developing a successful  programs in this area.  With examples from all around the globe there is bound to be some great ideas that can inspire you in your future work.

The publication is available to download as a pdf version from the News & Events page of the ARIES website (www.aries.mq.edu.au) or you can order a hardcopy from the IUCN Publication Services Unit. Send an email to info@books.iucn.org quoting the following information, or visit www.iucn.org/bookstore

Tilbury, D. and Wortman, D. (2004) Engaging People in Sustainability. Commission on Education and Communication, IUCN, Gland, Switzerland and Cambridge, UK. ORDER No. B2171 ISBN No. 2-8317-0823-0, 2004


International review of whole school approaches to sustainability programs
The Australian Research Institute in Education for Sustainability (ARIES) has also recently completed an internation review of whole school approaches to sustainability programs. The review looks at several whole school sustainable initiatives across the world, including Green School Award in Sweden, Green School Project in China, EnviroSchools in New Zealand as well as other initiatives such as Learning through Landscape and Learnscapes. The research invovled reviewing the prgrams, documenting their experiences and achievement and identifying the lessons learnt from each in an attempt to find out what does a sustainable school look like and is there a formula for how to run affective and wide reaching whole school sustainability programs. The 50 page document is downloadable from the News and Events page of the Aries wedsite (www.aries.mq.edu.au) or as a hardcopy from the ARIES Coordinator at ariescoordinator@gse.mq.edu.au

Henderson, K and Tilbury, D. (2004) Whole-school Approaches to Sustainability: An international review of sustainable school programs . Report prepared by the Australian Research Institute in Education for Sustainability (ARIES) for the Department of the Environment and Heritage, Australian Government.


The Earth Charter
The Earth Charter is an international people's agreement for a compassionate, just and sustainable world that was written by thousands of folks in 78 countries over the course of 12 years and was launched at the Hague Peace Palace in June 2000. For copies of the Earth Charter please CLICK HERE.

Since then, educators around the world from a diversity of educational settings are using the Earth Charter as a resource for many elements of sustainability education. Secondary school teachers are using the charter as a way to incorporate themes such as ethics, environment, social justice, sustainable development, globalisation, and international relations into their education practice. Whilst, primary school teachers are finding the Charter an inspiring tool in engaging young learners to think positively and creatively when visioning their own future. The Earth Charter is also being used to raise peoples awareness of the global challenges we face, assisting them to evaluate their own position and identify positive actions. The Earth Charter has a set of principles for a sustainable way of life under four major headings -

• Respect and care for the community of life;
• Ecological Integrity;
• Social and Economic Justice;
• Democracy, non violence and peace;

• provide a nationally-agreed description of the nature and purpose of Environmental Education through all years of schooling;
• provide a description of the knowledge, skills, values and understandings that are an integral part of Environmental Education in schools;
• provide illustrations of the ways in which such a vision can be implemented in Australian curriculums and school programs;
• inform the development of professional learning programs for teachers who will implement the vision;
• guide the development of resources accompanied by teacher support materials for use in the classroom.

• reviews of curriculum documents that contain references or potential references to the environment in relevant learning areas and subjects in all the States and Territories of Australia;
• schools as they decide on their Environmental Education programs from K-12;
• stakeholders who want to promote the development of knowledge, skills, concepts, values and action programs in schools;
• developers of environmental education materials for schools.

Extensive consultation with the potential users of the national statement on environmental education has been under taken by the Curriculum Corporation, which was commissioned by DEH. Having consulted with a wide range of stakeholders including students, teachers, state and territory education authorities and a wide range of organisation in the environment, industry and science sectors. The next stage of the process involves further editorial work on the draft document prior to formal endorsement of the statement by states and territories and education systems during the course of this year. This will be undertaken through the Australian Education Systems Officials Committee (AESOC) and finally, through the Ministerial Council on Education, Employment, Training and Youth Affairs (MCEETYA).

For further information contact the project manager at Curriculum Solutions, Curriculum Corporation:
Curriculum Corporation
PO Box 177
Carlton South Victoria 3053
Ph:  +613 9207 9600
Web site: www.curriculum.edu.au

Victorian News

Victorian Essential Learning Standards (VELS)
The Victorian Essential Learning Standards describe what is essential for all students to achieve Prep to Year 10 in Victorian schools. Developed by th Victorian Curriculum and Assessment Authority (VCAA), it provides a framework for planning the whole school curriculum by setting out standards for students to achieve in core areas. Students need to develop a set of knowledge, skills and behaviours which will prepare them for success in a world which is complex, changing and full of information and influences.

To succeed in this world the VCAA has commented that students will need to develop an understanding of the interaction between social, economic and environmental systems and how to manage them to create a future which is sustainable. The standards can be seen on the VCAA website, a link to which is below.

So what does this mean for Environmental or Sustainable Education?
The standards do not explicitly indicate Environmental or Sustainability Education as a strand of learning, or as a set of skills knowledge and behaviours (domains), which is for us and our supporters very dissappointing. However, it has been identified as a key value in which learning should develop and reinforce. It has been emphasised that Environmental education is an ideal vehicle to deliver the majority of the division of the domains (dimensions). However we find it extremely hard to believe that in todays society the issue of sustainability is still seen as an option to consider rather than a real issue that we all need to understand, face and change our behaviour towards. But we have to work with what we have been given.The VAEE will therefore be undertaking a number of event during July 2004 to advertise the huge potential environmental and sustainability education can have in both delivering the 40 dimensions of the standards and bringing about real positive changes to the school as community.

Please check the website and VAEE publications for up to date information on these events.

For more information on the Essential Learning Standards please CLICK HERE

The Essential Learnings Standards are part of the Flagship Strategy 1 of the Blueprint for Government schools.
CLICK HERE for further information.


Victorian Sustainability Framework and the sustainable education and behaviour change strategy (Learning to Live Sustainably)
On the 22nd April, the Department of Sustainability and Environment (DSE) launched the Sustainability Framework for Victoria. The Framework provides direction for government, business and the community on building environmental considerations into the way we work and live and:

• outlines the key environmental challenges Victoria faces;
• explains what ' environmental sustainability ' is and why it is important;
• identifies the strategic directions we must pursue to become environmentally sustainable;
• sets out objectives to be achieved and interim targets for measuring progress towards the objectives; and
• identifies some important steps for putting the Framework into action. (Source DSE Website)

A key part of this Framework is the strategy for Sustainability Education and Behaviour Change "Learning to Live Sustainably" (L2LS). This strategy is currently being drafted and will be put out for consultation during August 2005. In the development of this strategy the DSE have adopted the following guiding points. The Strategy should:

• be for the whole community
• embrace all the different ways in which people learn and change
• address the need for community-wide re-thinking, innovation and change
• develop not only knowledge and awareness but also values, attitudes, skills and the involvement and empowerment of individuals and groups
• be for change toward environmental sustainability in the holistic sense

Sustainability Victoria
As part of the Sustainability Framework, the Environment Minister John Thwaites announced the Government's intention to form a new organisation - Sustainability Victoria - with a charter to deliver environmental sustainability programs to the Victorian community. Sustainability Victoria will enable the delivery of an integrated approach to environmental sustainability by the Victorian Government. This exciting new organisation will bring together the existing skills, experience, programs and networks of both the Sustainable Energy Authority and EcoRecycle Victoria. Sustainability Victoria will act as a catalyst for change by:

•  providing a vehicle to support the tangible delivery of the Government's Framework for Environmental Sustainability;
•  focusing on changing behaviour;
•  providing advice and assistance to inform decision-making by individuals, businesses, governments and communities to act in a more environmentally sustainable way; and
•  acting as an incubator and innovator: supporting the development of technologies and processes that will produce change that may not otherwise garner support.

The Government is aiming to launch the new organisation on 1 st October 2005. The Minister has appointed an Interim Advisory Board (IAB) to oversee and drive the change process. The six members of the IAB will come from the current Boards of the Sustainable Energy Authority and EcoRecycle Victoria. The Members are Cheryl Batagol (Chair), Francesca Lee, John Marshall, Mike Hill, Rob Jolly and Russell Peel.


Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability
Victoria's first Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability was appointed in October 2003. The Minister for the Environment, John Thwaites, announced Dr Ian McPhail as the Commissioner. Through the Commissioner for Environmental Sustainability ACT 2003, the Commissioner is required to:

• prepare state of the environment reports for Victoria to enhance the knowledge and understanding of the condition of Victorias environment and issues relating to ecological sustainable development.
• under take annual audits of government departments implementation of environmental management systems to encourage the adoption of environmenally sustainable practices by both the state and local government
• and carry out an audit in public environmental education programs that promote ecologically sustainable practices.