ESD Academy
DCU’s Education for Sustainable Development Academy is not a physical space.
It is an online resource bringing together all of the supports and resources available to academics and other staff, as they adapt their practice to emerging challenges related to sustainable development.
It is increasingly important that Higher Education Institutions play their part in meeting these challenges; a key part of this is for academics and other educators to integrate themes of sustainability, sustainable development and social justice into their curricula and engage in professional development to ensure their learners understand the importance of these challenges and are empowered to take action.
This academy will support this process by highlighting all of the available opportunities and resources.
There is no clear, uncontested, definition of sustainable development; however, the most commonly cited definition comes from the Brundtland Report:
“Development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.”
This definition captures the idea that development is required to meet human needs in terms of health, education and poverty reduction etc; however, this cannot be done in a way that harms the planet or has negative consequences for others, including future generations.
Fundamentally, sustainable development is about justice. It involves removing the barriers and providing the supports that all people need to reach their full potential. To do this, economic, social and environmental issues must be addressed at a local, national and global level to achieve this.
Another important idea is that for development to remain sustainable, it ought to remain within planetary and ecosystem boundaries. These boundaries, such as climate change, ecosystem and biosphere integrity and ocean acidification, present limits which, if transgressed, may have harmful consequences for future generations. In her book Doughnut Economics, Kate Raworth adds another dimension to this: the social foundation. For Raworth, sustainable development occurs when we meet people’s needs (staying above the social foundation) without transgressing planetary or ecosystem boundaries.
Diagram illustrating Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics.
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) enables people to analyse the world around them, understand the problems facing people and the planet, and take action to change things. ESD involves transformative learning through critical pedagogies to create a more just and sustainable future.
Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) has been identified as a key instrument to support the achievement of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) adopted by United Nations member states in 2015.
Image of Sustainable Development Goals
The SDGs provide a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future.
UNESCO aims to integrate the SDGs into all levels of education using the ESD framework, or ESD for 2030, to build a more just and sustainable world.
ESD has also been identified as a priority by the European Union. The EU has developed a sustainability competence framework, Known as GreenComp, which they argue can “help learners become systemic and critical thinkers, as well as develop agency, and form a knowledge basis for everyone who cares about our planet’s present and future state.”
ESD complements the three pillars of DCU Futures as it enables educators to innovate in the areas of what their students learn, how their students learn, and the skills their students need to thrive in an unscripted future.
ESD also complements pedagogical approaches such as Challenge Based Learning; particularly, as it should enable learners to apply their disciplinary knowledge to solving real world challenges.
DCU has provided all staff with access to an ESD hub. This resource, provided through Loop, is a ‘one-stop-shop’ for staff wanting to get started with ESD. It includes introductory sections on sustainable development and ESD, as well as sections on the EU’s GreenComp Framework and useful resources. The hub can be accessed here.
Each academic year, alternating between Semester One and Two, DCU offers all staff the opportunity to complete a Digital Badge: Introduction to Education for Sustainability. This six-week course, originally developed by the National Forum for Teaching and Learning, has been adapted to meet the needs of staff at DCU.
It covers three key areas:
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Introduction to Sustainable Development and ESD
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The EU GreenComp Framework for Sustainability Competences
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Integrating ESD into your Modules and Programmes
If you are interested in completing the Badge, please fill in this expression of interest form.
The Teaching Enhancement Unit has developed a number of workshops for staff interested in beginning or continuing their ESD journey. These can be delivered to staff at faculty, school or programme level, possibly at a Teaching and Learning Day or other suitable time.
The following workshops are currently available:
- The ABC of ESD: This is an introduction to many of the key ideas related to ESD
- ESD and Interdisciplinarity: This session should bring together staff members from more than one of DCU's faculties. Participants will consider how their discipline relates to issues of social, global and climate justice and reflect upon how it may not have all the answers, before exploring how collaboration and interdisciplinary approaches can have greater impact.
- ESD and Critical Thinking: Based on a framework developed by Dr Brighid Golden from Mary Immaculate College, this workshop encourages staff to consider how they can use themes related to sustainable development to develop their students’ critical thinking and reflection skills.
Complete this form to book one of the workshops.
Individually, staff can also join the ESD join the ESD mailing list and we’ll inform you of any forthcoming workshops or events.
DCU’s ESD Officer is also available for guest lectures / workshops with your students. These can either be a general introduction to sustainable development and the SDGs or tailored to illustrate the connections between the disciplinary subject and themes related to sustainable development.
Increasingly, and in line with the broad aims of DCU Futures, there is a need for all graduates to understand how their disciplinary knowledge relates to global challenges and can be harnessed to respond to these challenges in a positive way. Therefore, academics will need to respond by integrating new content, as well as new pedagogies and classroom activities into their curricula.
The TEU is available to support staff in this, whether it is at a module or programme level. This can be done at any time but support is also encouraged during New Programme Approval and periodic Programme Review.
The TEU has developed a set of Guidelines for Good Practice around ESD. This document can be used at module or programme level. It is voluntary, iterative and encourages reflection on practice to identify possible opportunities to enhance ESD content. It involves 11 actions, each with a set of indicators. Academics are invited to identify the indicators they are already meeting, as well as those that they would like to work towards.
Using resources developed by Advance HE and others, the TEU can guide you through the process of designing a curriculum with a strong focus on ESD. This process can be tailored to meet the needs of staff.
The Teaching Enhancement Unit regularly conducts research into the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning to improve educational practices within and beyond DCU. Beginning in January, 2026, this will include a focus on ESD. Research areas will include educators’ perceptions of ESD, what makes good ESD and the links between ESD and DCU’s broader approach to teaching and learning, DCU Futures.
If you are interested in conducting research related to sustainable development, please contact the ESD Officer using this form.