ABSTRACT
There is little doubt that education is crucial in addressing the environmental, social and economic challenges facing humankind (Wright, 2004; UNESCO, 2006). The period 2005-14 marked the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD) which built on prior educational focused declarations, including the Rio Earth Summit (Agenda 21), the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) 2000 and the Education for All Dakar Framework 2000. The UNDESD goals were couched in the discourse of environmental education, with the intention of integrating the principles, values and practices of sustainable development into education across the globe, and at all levels of learning. The 2006 Framework for the UNDESD International Implementation Scheme set out a broad agenda considered essential in order to facilitate education for sustainable development (UNESCO, 2006). The framework identified three pillars of social, economic and environmental sustainability, which in turn ‘give shape and content to sustainable learning’ (UNESCO, 2006: 9).
