Achieving Sustainable Development Goals 2030: Education as a Catalyst

This book has covered a very comprehensive area in the field of education for sustainability such as environmental sustainability, environmental issues, value based education for environment and sustainable development. There are research studies reflecting on activity based learning strategies for sensitization on environmental preservation for a sustainable future, awareness on sustainable development, Impact of spiritual intelligence for achieving SDGs and role of women in sustainable management of the environment. Other areas include the role of education in preparing a future ready world, challenges and preparedness in achieving SDG and awareness of elementary student teachers. The book focuses on quality education for sustainable development, gender equality, equity in learning global warming and vocational education towards sustainable development. It also highlighted some Innovative/ best practices towards sustainable development. It also emphasizes on topics like sustainable development & green chemistry, teachers: nurturer of green citizens, entrepreneurship education: a step towards achieving sustainable development goals 2030 etc. We hope that the book will be beneficial to all the policy makers, teacher educators, teachers, textbook writers, educational administrators/ functionaries, student- teachers, students and all the educational stakeholders who work tirelessly towards a sustainable education, where achieving the SDGs is the need of the hour and education plays a vital role in it.

Dr. B. Barthakur took the charge of Principal, North East Regional Institute of Education (NERIE), Shillong on 3rd July, 2017. Dr. Barthakur did his M.Sc in Botany from Guwahati University and Ph.D from Dibrugarh University, Assam. He has over 30 years of teaching and research experiences. He started his teaching carrier from D.R College, Golaghat, Assam. Dr. B. Barthakur has also published more than 50 research papers in reputed national and international journals. Beside participating in several national and International conferences, seminars and symposiums, he has also been also been member of various scientific bodies and has actively contributed in reviewing manuscripts submitted to a few reputed journals. As a Principal investigator, he completed a large number of research projects funded by UGC, Ministry of Environment and Forest, Defense Research Development Organisation (DRDO), NCERT etc. Before joining NERIE, Dr. Barthakur was serving as a Professor of Botany, Regional Institute of Education, Ajmer.

Dr. BALAIADA R. DKHAR has been working as Professor in Education, Head Department of Extension Education (DEE) and Dean (Research) at North East Regional Institute of Education (NERIE). Prior to this she was posted at Regional Institute of Education (RIE, Bhubaneswar) as Assistant Professor, for almost nine years. She completed her PG in Education from North Eastern Hill University (NEHU, Shillong), obtained her Ph. D in Education from Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, Odisha and has also qualified UGC NET, in Education. Prof. 8 R Dkhar, has published as well as edited a couple of Books in Education and contributed several chapters and articles in various Education books and Journals (National and International). She has presented many papers including many research papers in International as well as National level Conferences and Seminars. Prof. Dkhar, has conducted many research studies including NCERT, ERIC Research Projects, etc. She has been involved both at the pre-service and In-service teacher education programmes and still continuing. Prof. B R. Dkhar, has more than 20 years of teaching experiences at the school level, Under Graduate and Post Graduate levels (M. Phil, M. Ed, B.A. B.Ed., B.Sc. B.Ed., B.Ed. levels) and Ph. D course work. She has also coordinated many in-service teacher training programmes, including National Conferences/ Seminars, workshops on development of Modules, e- content, among others.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development was adopted at the UN Sustainable Development Summit in New York, USA. The agenda contains 17 goals with 169 targets covering a broad range of sustainable development issues. Goal 4 of the SDG which focuses on Education, aims to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all. The next generation will be better prepared to cope with the daunting sustainability challenges if education for sustainable development is being taught and learned across educational sectors. Success will depend on effective professional development in sustainability education to teachers currently in service through participation in different sustainability programmes, inclusion of sustainability in classrooms; modelling of sustainable behaviours etc. The attempt would be further strengthened if education for sustainable development becomes an integral part of the pre-service teacher training programmes so that sustainability is internalized by teachers-to-be as the way to think and act. Education for Sustainable Development goes beyond formal education and includes Action Research, learning from Experiences, Hands on learning, Non-formal education, Communication, Mass Media & ICT. Personal Experiences, Knowledge Networks & Partnerships, Indigenous Knowledge, Livelihoods, Vocational Training and Best Practices among others. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) aim to go the last mile towards ending hunger, achieving full gender equality, improving health services and getting every child into school and shifting the world onto a sustainable path. Thus, education acts as a key driver for this change.

The present book entitled Achieving Sustainable Development Goals 2030: Education as a Catalyst endeavours to be a consciousness raising exercise for all stakeholders to appreciate the critical role that education plays in achieving the SDGs 2030 for a better planet and a better future for all. This book will be of great help to all the educational stakeholders and will be utilized for planning and implementation of education in North Eastern Region in particular and the country in general. I am also hopeful that the book will provide a forum to link teachers, scholars and educators who are interested in sustainable practices. The book promises to be a source of innovative ideas and educational interventions aimed at the achievement of SDGs 2030. I wish and hope that this book prompts new thinking and new researches in the area of education for sustainable development.

The area of education in general and school education in particular is in need of a revival and transformation. The framework for such transformation is provided through internationally acknowledged ideas such as the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs, 2030). For ensuring a better future for all, SDGs 2030 which are universal as well as holistic, were adopted at the United Nations Sustainable Development Summit in 2015. Thus, these Global Goals, are universal calls to action to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity by 2030. The agenda contains 17 goals with 169 targets covering a broad range of sustainable development issues. These SDGs are coordinated that is, they perceive that activity in one zone will influence results in others, and that improvement must adjust social, economic and ecological manageability. Thus, the SDGs recognize that all countries must stimulate action to handle the worldwide difficulties that are vital for the endurance of mankind.

The 2030 Agenda in itself gave a premium place to education as education is a stand-alone goal (SDG 4) and many education related targets and indicators are present in the remaining 16 goals. However, SDG 4 encompasses almost every level and dimension of education. This goal ensures that all girls and boys complete free schooling with quality education by 2030. Significant advancement has been made towards expanding access to education at all levels and expanding enlistment rates in schools especially for women and girls. The United Nations has aspired to make sustainable development an overarching, guiding principle and the SDG 4 aim to go the last mile towards providing accessible and quality education to each and every child. Therefore, quality education is the foundation for sustainable development as it plays a key role in promoting the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values needed to bring about behavioural changes that contribute to sustainable development. This can be best achieved if individuals become proactive contributors to a more just, peaceful, tolerant, inclusive, secure and sustainable world. Education is thus, the key driver to achieving many other SDGs as the latter are inter-linked and the achievement of one goal will likely lead to the achievement of other goals. To achieve this, it requires individual commitment, a change in habits and a transformative orientation.

**Contents and Sample Pages**