Citizens have little input

1. Learning our way out of unsustainability utilizing diversity through transboundary social learning

2. Greening Detroit Goals have been set in advance instrumental Citizens have lots of input Citizens have little input Goals are jointly set emancipatory

4. Systemic Global Issues: CC Example • Uncertainty– Natural or unnatural? How much? When? Where? Good? Bad? • Complexity– Causes, effects, factors, variables, correlations • Indiscriminate– Affecting everybody poor or rich, no matter where you are, in subtle and unsubtle ways • Discriminate – Affecting some more than others – amplifying inequities

5. Climate change education Peace education Development education Health education Environmental education Citizenship education Consumer education

11. Social learning • a collaborative, emergent learning process that hinges on the simultaneous cultivation of ‘difference’ and social cohesion in order to create joint ownership, unleash creativity and the kind of dynamic and energy needed to break with existing patterns, routines or systems.

12. Source: George Siemens, 2008

14. Instructional design of social learning What are appropriate learning & instruction theories, methods and techniques for enabling learners contribute to sustainability-oriented social learning?

15. Social learning at the interface of school-based and community-based learning What are key characteristics of effective sustainability-oriented social learning configurations?

16. Sustainability competence What constitutes sustainability competence? What are the conditions and affordances that are conducive to the development of such competence?

17. Integrating sustainability: T & L principles

18. Trans-cultural Gestalt Trans-spatial Gestalt Transformative learning Trans-temporal Gestalt Trans-disciplinary Gestalt Sustainability Competence?

19. Sustainability Competence / Gestaltungskompetenz • thinking in a forward-looking manner • dealing with uncertainty and complexity • working in a trans-boundary manner • developing an open-minded perception, trans-cultural understanding and cooperation • developing one‘s participation potential • being able to feel empathy, sympathy, compassion and solidarity • being able to motivate oneself and others • being able to reflect in a distanced manner on individual and cultural concepts and underlying principles and values Elements of Gestaltungskomptenz (based in part on: Michelsen and Adomssent, 2007)

20. Conclusions/points for discussion • Integrating sustainability is just as much about how we teach and learn as it about what we teach and learn. • Sustainability requires more space in curricula for systems thinking, integrative design and multiple ways of knowing. • Every student should discuss how his or her thesis and internship contributes to (un)sustainability. • New forms of teaching require new competencies on the part of teaching & research staff - this has HRD-implications. • Science for (societal) impact, not science for impact factors… • Blurring the boundaries between institutional and community-based learning is essential.

21. An ESD Lens (2) • Integrative – not only the ecological and the environmental, not only the present, not only the local, not only the human world • Critical - questioning continuous economic growth and consumerism and associated lifestyles • Transformative – exploration of alternative lifestyles (e.g. ‘voluntary simplicity’), values and systems that break from existing ones that are inherently unsustainable • Contextual –taking into account the local context

22. Pedagogical implications (2) By: • Increasing CC-visibility and impact of own actions (e.g. Citizen Science) • Developing CC-literacy (critical information literacy) • Providing viable alternatives and energizing futures (pedagogy of hope) • Connecting with other ESD-related educations (e.g. emergency education, development education, peace education) • Identifying values, behaviors and systems that underlie CC, and co-creating alternative ones that may be more sustainable

23. Role of the facilitator - stage manager • Openness access to the process, openness in agenda-setting, transparency of the process • Safety protecting against excessive risks due to participating, conflict management • Progress maintaining a sense of urgency, incentives for collaboration, progress reports (m&e) • Content preventing ‘negotiated nonsense’, role of experts, focus with variation • Energy – commitment, fun, feedback, atmosphere

24. Types of involvement • Involvement in the issue at stake (emotional, existential, personal interest) • Involvement in the process (full, equitable, responsibility, democratic) • Involvement in ‘the other’ (understanding, empathic, open, respectful) High involvementhigh participation potential

26. Social practices-based(Spaargaren, 2003)

27. Agency-competence based

28. Contemplating Social learning: yes or no? • Orientating • Exploring issue at stake • Assessing the playing-field • Determining instrument mix • Establishing core organisation Divergence Evaluating - Is the solution adequate? -was the process used adequate? • Activating • Selecting key actors • Expanding core organisation • Exploration of available relevant perceptions, imaginable futures & knowledge • Utilizing dissonance Environment -Communication with stakeholders not represented in the core group -Communication with peripheral actors Implementation of selected plan of action Formal decision-making Convergence • Selecting • Exploring possible solutions • Creating a shared vision • Choosing options/solutions • Designing plan of action