UN Decade "Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014)" in Germany
- © Freya Diepenbrock
In Germany, the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development is under the patronage of the Federal President Horst Köhler and is coordinated by a National Committee set up by the German Commission for UNESCO and chaired by Prof. Dr. Gerhard de Haan (expert on future trends in education and on sustainable development, Free University of Berlin). The principle of decentralized organization is crucial to the implementation of the UN Decade in Germany. Following the famous slogan "think globally – act locally", as many different stake-holders as possible are sought to be involved in the process in order to combine expertise and raise public awareness.
- © Büro für Kultur- und Medienprojekte
Thus, the bodies of the UN Decade in Germany include representatives of Ministries such as the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Development and the Ministry of Environment, representatives of Parliament, the federal states (Länder), NGOs, the media, the private sector and academia. In addition to the National Committee a Round Table has been established which comprises more than 100 members and comes together once a year. Eight working groups dealing with specific topics complement these structures. The coordination and supervision of the implementation of the UN Decade in Germany lies within the responsibility of a Coordination Secretariat. This includes the Secretariat UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development at the German Commission for UNESCO in Bonn and the Office of the National Committee Chairman in Berlin.
In order to specify the intentions and objectives of the UN Decade in Germany the National Committee and the Round Table have elaborated the “National Plan of Action for Germany“. This document was complemented by a catalogue of measures aimed at encouraging the relevant stakeholders to take concrete steps. Besides, so called projects and communities for the Decade showing outstanding commitment to ESD are recognised. This recognition contributes to the public visibility of the key concerns of ESD in Germany. Simultaneously, local ESD promoters and practitioners are supported. So far, this has happened at a scale exceeding all expectations. Since the beginning of the Decade more than 700 Projects and nine communities for the Decade have been recognized.
More information www.bne-portal.de (German)
