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Schools

“Education is a fundamental right and the basis for progress in every country. [...] With partnership, leadership and wise investments in education, we can transform individual lives, national economies and our world.”

- Former United Nations Secretary-General

Ban Ki Moon

Why should schools teach the SDGs?

Because the future of our planet depends on schools’ ability to nurture responsible leaders now.

Schools are the core foundation of our society. They are the epicenters for future generation to learn, nurture knowledge and create connections that will define the world that we will live in the future.

More than ever, the world needs schools to continue their critical role of raising awareness and addressing pressing global challenges: they need to prepare tomorrow’s leaders and citizens to have a positive impact.

Because schools are agents of change, and they have a responsibility to educate students on local and global challenges.

Schools have access to large concentrations of young and curious minds who are passionate, creative and have a desire for a better world. This access gives them an enormous responsibility: give the future generations the tools it needs to create the world they wish. As a practical framework, the SDGs give educators the apparatus necessary to introduce complex local and global issues like gender inequality, local poverty, racism, and many others, while empowering students to start making the difference they want to see in their communities.

Schools are also places where students, teachers and parents gather to collaborate and partner with the wider local, national and global community and as such, have a unique educational responsibility and potential to create change.

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Because teaching the SDGs is a powerful opportunity for teachers and educators  to take part in a worldwide movement and join a vibrant community of education specialists eager to make a difference.

All around the world schools and educators are using the SDGs to rethink their role in the 21st century and respond to societal needs and environmental changes. From the United States to India, schools are taking leadership and creating new pedagogic contents, finding innovative ways to engage students and setting example within their community. But starting to teach the SDGs isn’t only about one school’s community: its about entering one, a vibrant community of educators that exchange ideas and best practices across borders, using the SDGs as a common framework to set the new standards in education.

How to get started with the SDGs?

Pledge

Sign the pledge and join an active global network of schools, teachers and educators working towards the SDGs.

Teach

Invite your teachers to integrate the SDGs in classrooms and give them the tools to become ESD specialists and develop learning resources for the SDGs education with SDG aligned curriculums.

Learn

Widen your impact and align your institution’s governance and operation with the SDGs.

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UNESCO Sustainability guidelines for schools.

 

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