Education for sustainability

The United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goals state that education is both an end and a means for achieving sustainable development. Currently, education for sustainability focuses on (assessing and addressing) the external world of ecosystems, wider socio-economic structures, technology, and governance dynamics. A major shortcoming of such approaches is the neglect of inner dimensions and capacities, which constrains education for sustainability as an end. In addition, such approaches do not facilitate reflection on the cognitive and socio-emotional processes underpinning people’s learning, their everyday life choices, and decision-taking, which constrains education for sustainability as a means. More integral approaches and pedagogies are urgently needed. This chapter advances related knowledge. It presents a reflexive case study of a Master’s level course on Sustainability and Inner Transformation (Lund University, Sweden) with respect to its transformative potential. The findings show that inner dimensions and transformation can be a vehicle for improved education for sustainability, and how this can be achieved in practice. Students’ accounts illustrate their transformative experiences and mindset shifts, which have profoundly changed their way of seeing themselves, others, and the world. The chapter concludes with some critical reflections on the lessons learned, and ways forward in education for sustainable development.