Carol Healy
Su-ming Khoo
Development Education
and Research Network
NUI Galway (DERN)
www.nuigalway.ie/dern
Environment and Development
Synopsis
1. Environment and
development cooperation
2. Environmental education and
development education
3. DERN
4. Environmental sustainability: Bridging
development education and research
Environment and Development
Cooperation
• Poverty and environment inextricably linked
– Global environmental threats compound local
environmental problems
– Health is closely related to quality of environment
– MDG Goal 7:Ensure Environmental Sustainability
– Ireland has obligations to help developing countries
address climate change
– Environmental issues are often addressed through
the “three pillars” of cooperation.
3 “Pillars” of Cooperation
Rights based
Link environment to
rights and law
Accountability and
participation
Rights involve duties
Non-discrimination
Vulnerable groups
come first
Sustainability
Environmental
Social
Economic
Future
generations
Commons
Poverty focused
Link to
environmental
justice
Livelihood
security
Impact on/
Participation of
poor and
vulnerable
International policy – UN framework
National policy directions set by Irish Aid White Paper
on Development (Sept 2006)
What is Development Education?
Development Education
Leads to:
Promote:
Builds on:
Responsible
Action
Understanding
Local/global
Interdependence
Knowledge
and
understanding
Critical
Engagement
with
Social Justice
issues
Attitudes
and
Values
Critical
Engagement
with
development
Skills
and
Capacitie
s
What is Development Education?
• Concerned with building of knowledge and
understanding, skills and capacities, and attitudes and
values necessary that enable individuals to critically
examine the world, its development and its
interdependencies and to act, both locally and globally to
make it a more just, equitable and sustainable place.
• “Development Education aims to deepen understanding
of global poverty and encourage people towards action
for a more just and equal world” – Irish Aid Development
Education Strategy Plan May 2007.
• Aims to promote critical engagement about development
and global justice issues
Linking Development Education and
Environmental Education
• Development Education + Environmental Education =
Education for Sustainable Development (UNESCO)
+
•Recognise localglobal connections
•Understand
causes of poverty
and inequality
•Enable people to
achieve a more
just and
sustainable world
• Increase
knowledge,
values, attitudes,
commitment, skills
to protect
environment
•Active participation
=
•Joined up approach to environment,
society & economy
•Ensure people have a healthy and
productive life (esp. FOOD);
•Assess, care for and restore the
state of our Planet;
•create and enjoy a better, safer,
more just world;
•Caring citizens who exercise their
rights and responsibilities locally,
nationally and globally.
Development education
and environmental research
• Bridging the gap between environmental research and
development is essential for sustainable development
• Sustainable development requires 3 pillars to be balanced
– Environmental protection
– Economic development
– Social justice/ inclusion – participation
• How to integrate these into research?
• Examples:
– IIED: Impacts of climate change on economic growth
– PEP: Research in the area of the environment and
development
– NUIG: IA-HEA research groups
• Can Development Education be integrated with environmental
research through focus on rights, poverty and sustainability ?
IA-HEA Research Clusters
Coordinated by DERN
Sustainable
technologies
Trade
Law and
Policy reform
Creating and sharing
knowledge for rights-based
and sustainable
development cooperation –
A research
HIV/AIDS
and training programme
for NUI Galway
Community
based health
Law and Policy Reform
Building Capacity
for Good
Governance
- developing
frameworks for
law and
policy reform
Social, Economic
and Cultural Rights
and the
Right to
Development:
Concept, Law
and Practice
Disability Law in
Foreign Policy
and
Development
Cooperation
Building research
capacity: Sex
in Post-Conflict
societies: rights,
responses and
public policy
Regional capacity
building in oceans
and marine
resource and
technology law
Appropriate Techonolgies
Building Capacity
to deliver
Environmental
Sustainability through
appropriate
technologies
GIS mapping & analyses
of relationships
between environment
and human health
in China and
South Africa .
Sustainable, low-cost
technology systems
for treating water
and wastewater
Sustainable, low-cost
technology systems
for treating
and recovering
energy from wastes
What is DERN?
• Development Education and Research Network
• Interdisciplinary, cross-faculty network, which includes
over 100 members.
• Three main objectives:
1. Mainstream
development
education
•
•
•
Embed Development
Education in existing
professional
education
Identify demand for
development
education content,
deliver modules
where appropriate
2. Develop research
capability and
professional expertise
relevant to Dev. Ed.
•Research fellowships in
Development Education
•Support networking
through DERN to build
capacity for collaboration
and professional work
3. Connect Dev. Ed.
and civic
engagement
•Web based resource
+ forum
•Interdisciplinary
seminars
DERN activities
• Coordinated NUI Galway research bid for the IA-HEA Programme of
Strategic Cooperation (€1.5m, 13 Projects)
• Mainstream development education into research activities
• DERN website: www.nuigalway.ie/dern
• Seminars:
–
–
–
–
–
Organic growing as national policy in Cuba,
The Jaipur foot
Career Options in Development
Funding opportunities and research needs for Development.
Development as Global Responsibility
• Development’s Futures Conference - Nov 2007
• Networking with with other third level institutions, NGOs etc .
• Publications contributing to current thinking on the development
education landscape
• Next priority: develop content for development education (lectures,
modules)
• WE ARE LOOKING for staff who want development education in
their teaching and research
www.nuigalway.ie/dern
What Next?
• Staff interested in development education
content for their teaching and research to
contact Carol
• Waiting for result of IA-HEA bid (July?)
• Other research proposals/ needs? Contact
Carol/ Su-ming
• Upcoming seminars – Rainforest Day!
• Topic/speaker suggestions welcome
• Conference – Nov 24-25 2007
Incorporating ESD- some questions
• Already overloaded curriculum
• Buy – in
• To what extent can ‘mainstreaming’ and the
integration of third level serve to realise the
vision of Development Education?
• How to capture the complexity of development
through educational processes?
• How to ensure genuine discourse?
• How can short term funding achieve the long
term aims Dev Ed?
• Critical engagement versus policy relevance
Some Resources
• Africa Up in Smoke: Working Group on Climate
Change and Development
• Stern Review, 2006
• Stop Climate Chaos
• IIED- http://www.iied.org/
• PEP http://www.povertyenvironment.net/pep/
• Comhar’s Principles for Sustainable
Development. www.comhar-nsdp.ie
• M. Gorman, D. O’Connor; Ireland’s Overseas
Aid Programme and Agenda 21
• Irish Aid Environmental Policy