Education for sustainable development: local and non-governmental organizations in Gauteng - practices

Abstract

There is much debate about the concepts of environmental education (EE) and education for sustainable development (ESD) amongst practitioners, researchers and organizations. This study examines the diverse notions of environmental education and education for sustainable development by drawing on findings from semi-structured interviews. The aim of this study is, to explore the interpretation and practice of environmental education and education for sustainable development. The United Nations declared the years 2005-2015 as the Decade for Education for Sustainable Development (DESD). In the midst of the United Nation’s Decade of Education for Sustainable Development, this research will be able to gauge whether organisations in Gauteng have embraced education for sustainable development and the implications this has had on their environmental programmes. Interviews were conducted with two non-governmental organisations and two local government organisations that are implementing environmental education. Thematic content analysis was used to analyse interview data. The findings in this study correspond to the findings in the literature that when environmental education is implemented there is very little focus on environmental action. The concepts of environmental education and education for sustainable development are not clearly understood by participants in this study. This finding concurs with the findings of the UNESCO (2009) review of the Decade of Education for Sustainable Development.