 In the Lithuanian capital, Vilnius, on the 18 th of March 2005 , the UNECE (UN Economic Commission for Europe) Ministers, vice-ministers and other high-level representatives of Environment and Education Ministries adopted with acclamation the UNECE Strategy on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) -a practical instrument to promote sustainable development through education. They also adopted the “Vilnius Framework for Implementation” setting up a Steering Committee and an Expert Group on indicators in order to facilitate coordination and review of Strategy's implementation. The UNECE region includes 55 member countries, covering all European countries, Turkey and Israel , and all the former Soviet Union Republics (also those of Central Asia) plus USA and Canada.
The Meeting debated the progress in implementing ESD, explored good practices in the region and identified key challenges that lie ahead. Furthermore, the role of the UNECE region in implementing ESD in a global context was discussed, as well as its cooperation with UNESCO. The Meeting also launched the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development in the UNECE region.
The UNECE Strategy for ESD is intended to serve as a practical instrument to promote sustainable development through education. The objective of the Strategy is to incorporate key themes of sustainable development such as: poverty alleviation, peace, democracy, justice, human rights, health, social equity, cultural and biological diversity, economy, production and consumption, environmental protection, natural resource management, and biological and landscape diversity, in all education systems. The approach is two-pronged: integrating these themes into all relevant subjects and programmes as well as providing specific sustainable development subjects and programmes.
Apart from analysing the specific principles and objectives of ESD, the Strategy develops a comprehensive framework for ESD Implementation providing the critical components for the setting up of National Implementation Plans, including, inter alia : the roles and responsibilities of the government and other stakeholders, including civil society and NGOs, financial issues, evaluation and monitoring, as well as schemes of international cooperation.
The Strategy addresses all types of education: formal, non-formal and informal and covers all levels of education: primary, secondary, higher, vocational and adult. Generally, the Strategy is addressed to governments, motivating and advising them on how to develop policies and practices that incorporate sustainable development into education and learning with the involvement of educators and other stakeholders. To this end, it encourages interdepartmental, multi-stakeholder cooperation and partnerships.
The Strategy provides a flexible framework that each country can adapt to its own priorities, specific needs and circumstances. It addresses a wide range of issues, including curricula, teaching materials, the necessary skills of educators and inter-departmental and cross-sectoral cooperation. The importance of the public's awareness and understanding of sustainability and the special role of the media in this direction are also highlighted.
The Strategy is the result of a decision by the UNECE Environment Ministers at their “Environment for Europe” Conference in Kiev (May 2003). It was developed under joint Swedish and Russian leadership through a participatory process involving representatives from both the environment and the education sectors, UNESCO, NGOs and other stakeholders. It is considered as a substantive contribution to the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2015).
Prior to the High-Level Meeting of UNECE Ministries the NGO Preparatory meeting was held, during which the NGO Statement on ESD was finalised and presented to the High-Level Meeting.
More information about the Vilnius meeting as well as the document of the UNECE Strategy on ESD and all relevant documents can be found at UNECE website: www.unece.org/env/esd
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