Framework for Education for Sustainable Development

As part of our reflection surrounding Education for Sustainable Development (EfSD), we were required to design a framework for planning and evaluating EfSD programmes. The framework I have developed is set out below. It is the result of the conclusions I have come to regarding EfSD while doing the GSE827 course and keeping this journal.

I have kept this framework fairly high level as I wish it to be situationally flexible and to incorporate a large number of different types of programs. This is because I've learnt through our classwork that EfSD can cover a large range of types of engagement processes, from simple information that enables change (e.g.workshops, leaflets, media) to participatory projects (e.g. action research, partnerships, futuresearch conferences) (ARIES 2005).

EfSD should also be largely about giving people skills to bring about sustainability, rather than providing a rigid set of outcomes or goals that people need to learn (ARIES 2005, ARIES 2009, Ferdig 2007). It is for that reason that I have also approached this framework as more of an engagement framework that comprises education, participation and partnerships, rather than a pure education framework (although for ease of classification, I will continue referring to it as an EfSD framework) (ARIES 2005).

Evalution of engagement project or EfSD

One of the most important things I learnt in my previous job was the importance of building evaluation into a program from its development, especially in terms of clear and obtainable indicators. This helps with later reporting and with seeing if you've met your objectives along the way. Clear reporting against indicators also helps securing future funding for continuing the project, as it means you can set out clearly why your project/program works and its outcomes and impacts.

Sucessful engagement: Brown and Issacs "6 Cs"

Brown and Issacs (1994) have developed the "6 Cs" model for guide the development of a successful community engagement process:

• Capability - the members are capable of dialogue
• Commitment - mutual benefit beyond self interest is created or demonstrated
• Contribution - members volunteer and there is an environment that encourages participation
• Continuity - members share or rotate roles and, as members move on, there is a transition process that sustains and maintains the community corporate memory
• Collaboration - reliable interdependence, members have a clear vision and an environment of sharing and trust
• Conscience - embody or invoke guiding principles/ethics of service, trust and respect that are expressed in the actions of the community

These 6 Cs may also be used as filters to measure the functionality of a community or participant group.

(Reproduced from the Effective engagement toolkit, Victorian Government Department of Sustainability)

Workshop reflections

In doing this task, we split it up into three parts: I did the day outline, facilitation notes and feedback questionnaire, U did the rationale and S designed our 20 min workshop for the day. We then would pass a draft to each other and workshop it together to produce a final product.

I think the workshop went really quite smoothly on the day. Before we started, I got people up and energised with some yoga, and explained where we were coming from and the point of the day, which seemed to go down really well (the yoga in particular - I need to remember that one for next time!).

International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) framework for participation

The International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) framework outlines possible types of engagement with stakeholders and communities. It also outlines varying levels of stakeholder impact from  the participation process:

• inform - providing information to stakeholders
• consult - to gain stakeholder feedback on decisions, information, analysis etc
• involve - working with stakeholders to ensure concerns are understood and addressed
• collaborate - partnering with stakeholders in decision making, including the identification of alternative solutions
• empower - giving decison-making powers to stakeholders.

Resource: Victorian Department of Sustainability, Effective Engagement toolkit

The Effective Engagement toolkit was developed by the Victorian Government Department of Sustainability and the Coastal Co-operative Research Centre. The toolkit outlines a wide selection of engagement tools.

Each tool listing includes a detailed description of the objectives, resources required, a discussion of their strengths and weakness, as well as references for further exploration.

The Department's website also includes a tool - Choosing the Right Tool - that is design to help you select the most appropriate tool(s) for your needs.

The selection criteria for selecting engagement tools include:

• Project context (i.e. project goals, objectives and anticipated outcomes)
• Community context within which your project sits (i.e. your community profile and the social and political context)
• Project parameters (including the project size, budget, timeline and resources allocated)
• Project teams (i.e. skills of team and availability of the members).

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This is a useful and fairly comprehensive collection of tools, and most of the tools could be effectively adapted to multiple situations as necessary. The Choosing the right tool checklist, based on the International Association for Public Participation (IAP2) participation framework, also offers a quick and easy checklist for choosing a participation tool based on your projects requirements.

Framework for EfSD - issues to consider & notes on the run

Here I'll collect all the random thoughts and issues to consider in compiling my framework for designing and evaluating EfSD programs - hopefully I can pull it altogether into something coherant later on!