Overview
This Handbook emerges as a pivotal resource in underscoring the important role of sustainability education in catalysing a global shift toward sustainable development. It articulates the need for a profound transformation within institutional leadership and educational frameworks to support the critical global sustainability transition. This Handbook explores sustainability thinking as a critical paradigm shift in confronting the multifaceted challenges of sustainable development. It presents an urgent case for a systemic overhaul in our approach to education in the 21st century, advocating for holistic, interdisciplinary education and holistic systems thinking in order to more successfully navigate the complexities of sustainable development. The text discusses the foundational elements of modern sustainability thought and management, including the significance of values, ethics, governance, and the pressing issues of environmental degradation and climate change. It offers an extensive trans-disciplinary overview of sustainability discourse, spanning a broad array of perspectives on sustainability management and education. It provides a comprehensive introduction to the language of sustainability and a detailed examination of sustainability issues, highlighting their implications for education, training, and management development. It addresses urgent global issues such as decarbonisation, resource scarcity, population dynamics, pollution, and land degradation, emphasising the crucial role of educational initiatives in helping to mitigate these challenges. This seminal work has been developed for a diverse audience, including academics, policymakers, students, and educators, serving as a valuable tool for those wanting to comprehend complex global sustainability challenges and the paramount importance of education in supporting global sustainability in the 21st century.
Full Product Details
Author: Michele John (Curtin University)
Publisher: Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint: Routledge India
ISBN: 9780367760656
ISBN 10: 0367760657
Pages: 946
Publication Date: 29 November 2024
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Professional and scholarly
,
Tertiary & Higher Education
,
Professional & Vocational
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Forthcoming
Availability: Not yet available
This item is yet to be released. You can pre-order this item and we will dispatch it to you upon its release.
Reviews
"“As a resource for those seeking to foster a culture of humility, and an ethic of restraint and creativity to match our fraught moment in history, this Handbook may prove invaluable.” Tim Winton, OA, Australian Author “Sustainability education has come of age - precisely when our troubled age makes sustainability education imperative. The urgency of our times requires agency – to ensure decisively that globally and locally we make and take a pathway of safety and wellbeing, rather than descend into the chaotic scenario that is currently in prospect. The difference between these futures pivots on deep and widespread individual and societal learning. This is where higher education must now aspire to a higher purpose, something this timely and comprehensive book calls ‘noble education’. This invaluable collection of essays and exemplars is here to make a difference: to challenge, inspire and motivate the flourishing of education for the regenerative transformation that expert opinion underscores - and that the public senses is necessary to build a positive future. “ Stephen Sterling, Emeritus Professor of Sustainability Education, University of Plymouth, Author: ‘Learning and sustainability in dangerous times’ (2023) “Education is the single most important investment that any society makes—and this timely collection of essays underscores the fact that sustainability education must now be our #1 priority if we are to make sense of the emerging market and political dynamics of the Anthropocene epoch in which we now find ourselves.” John Elkington, co-founder of Environmental Data Services (ENDS), SustainAbility and Volans, Author: ’Green Swans: The Coming Boom in Regenerative Capitalism.’ (2020) ""A comprehensive international guide to the big issues facing humankind and what educators can do. A vitally important and timely book for teachers at all levels. Highly recommended."" David W. Orr, Professor of Practice, Arizona State University and Editor: ‘Democracy in a Hotter Time’. (2023) “The Routledge Handbook of Global Sustainability Education and Thinking for the 21st Century takes on big topics like climate change, mass extinctions, food production, forests, population, energy, and waste, while speaking the language of higher education: faculty support and training, leadership, governance, pedagogies, competencies. May this Handbook be the positive tipping point that transforms colleges and universities everywhere into the Noble endeavours we urgently need them to be”. Krista Hiser, Ph.D. Professor & Senior Lead and Advisor for Sustainability Education; Global Council for Science and the Environment, Washington D.C. “The current development trajectory is not sustainable. It is no exaggeration to say that our civilisation can only survive if we are educated about the principles of sustainable futures. This Handbook gives educators the tools and examples to fulfill their responsibility to future generations, helping us all to live sustainably”. Emeritus Professor Ian Lowe, Author: Australia on the brink: Avoiding Environmental Ruin (2023) “Progress toward sustainable development will require the reconceptualization and reorganization of our colleges and universities. Toward an essential transformation of sustainability education, this timely volume provides invaluable insights and practical guidance. The need to link knowledge with action is self-evident, and toward this end, the contributors provide a wide-ranging overview of the prospects for academic culture to contribute to shaping more sustainable futures. “ Michael M. Crow, President, Arizona State University."
“Sustainability education has come of age - precisely when our troubled age makes sustainability education imperative. The urgency of our times requires agency – to ensure decisively that globally and locally we make and take a pathway of safety and wellbeing, rather than descend into the chaotic scenario that is currently in prospect. The difference between these futures pivots on deep and widespread individual and societal learning. This is where higher education must now aspire to a higher purpose, something this timely and comprehensive book calls ‘noble education’. Over the past few decades, environmental and sustainability education has been developing, debated, and practised worldwide and now offers a rich, robust, hope-ful and holistic vision for re-thinking and renewing educational paradigm, purpose, policy and practice as a whole. We have no time to lose. This invaluable collection of essays and exemplars is here to make a difference: to challenge, inspire and motivate the flourishing of education for the regenerative transformation that expert opinion underscores - and that the public senses is necessary to build a positive future.” Stephen Sterling, Emeritus Professor of Sustainability Education, University of Plymouth, Author: ‘Learning and sustainability in dangerous times’ (2023) “The Routledge Handbook of Global Sustainability Education and Thinking for the 21st Century takes on big topics like climate change, mass extinctions, food production, forests, population, energy, and waste, while speaking the language of higher education: faculty support and training, leadership, governance, pedagogies, competencies. May this handbook be the positive tipping point that transforms colleges and universities everywhere into the Noble endeavors we urgently need them to be.” Krista Hiser, Ph.D. Professor & Senior Lead and Advisor for Sustainability Education; Global Council for Science and the Environment, Washington D.C. “Progress toward sustainable development will require the reconceptualization and reorganization of our colleges and universities. Toward an essential transformation of sustainability education, this timely volume provides invaluable insights and practical guidance. The need to link knowledge with action is self-evident, and toward this end, the contributors provide a wide-ranging overview of the prospects for academic culture to contribute to shaping more sustainable futures.” Michael M. Crow, President, Arizona State University “Education is the single most important investment that any society makes—and this timely collection of essays underscores the fact that sustainability education must now be our #1 priority if we are to make sense of the emerging market and political dynamics of the Anthropocene epoch in which we now find ourselves.” John Elkington, co-founder of Environmental Data Services (ENDS), SustainAbility and Volans, Author: ’Green Swans: The Coming Boom in Regenerative Capitalism.’ (2020) “The current development trajectory is not sustainable. It is no exaggeration to say that our civilisation can only survive if we are educated about the principles of sustainable futures. This handbook gives educators the tools and examples to fulfill their responsibility to future generations, helping us all to live sustainably.” Ian Lowe, Emeritus Professor and Author: Australia on the brink: Avoiding Environmental Ruin (2023) “A comprehensive international guide to the big issues facing humankind and what educators can do. A vitally important and timely book for teachers at all levels. Highly recommended.” David W. Orr, Professor of Practice, Arizona State University and Editor: ‘Democracy in a Hotter Time’ (2023)
Author Information
Michele John is Professor of Sustainability and Director of the Sustainable Engineering Group (SEG), Curtin University, Perth, Western Australia, Australia. Michele has been involved in sustainability education development for the past two decades. This Handbook was developed to fill an urgent need for a comprehensive resource in 21st-century sustainability knowledge and thinking for both education and management.
