Dr Alex Ryan’s Post

Building the Future: How the Blue Schools of Sustainability are Bridging the Green Skills Gap As a recent graduate who began my career amidst the challenges of the Covid outbreak, I experienced firsthand the gaps in the current educational system. The pandemic made it clear: we need to transform education to equip students with real-world skills, adaptability, and resilience. Now more than ever, we must rethink traditional approaches to prepare future generations for a rapidly changing world. At MonAsia Association, we embrace cathedral thinking—laying the foundation today for a sustainable future that unfolds long after our time. Through the Blue Schools of Sustainability, we’re creating educational programs that equip young minds to face the Green Industrial Revolution and upcoming climate challenges. The Blue Schools offer 15-18-year-olds a transformative experience, with a trimester spent on sailing vessels. This unique program combines academic studies with hands-on lessons in sustainable navigation, marine conservation, and environmental stewardship. Students graduate with a deep understanding of sustainability, strong leadership skills, and the practical experience needed to thrive. These are the qualities highly sought after by universities and employers, yet many conventional courses still lack real-world applications. In fact, 64% of employers report a sustainability skills gap among new graduates. Since 2008, the Blue Schools of Sustainability have impacted over 2,500 participants through 15,000+ berth days of immersive learning at sea. Our goal is to scale this initiative to support 500 students annually, closing the sustainability skills gap and contributing to a more inclusive and sustainable global economy. We invite universities, employers, and partners to join us in shaping the future of sustainability education. Together, we can build the foundation for a new generation of leaders who will drive the green industrial revolution forward. Let’s create a sustainable future, one student at a time. ✨

How is your institution preparing students for a sustainable future? In today’s rapidly evolving world, embedding sustainability in education is more crucial than ever. Check out this insightful piece Rich Hall has written on how to integrate sustainable practices into educational programs and shape curricula that truly prepares students for a greener tomorrow.   🔗 Read the full article here ➡️ https://bit.ly/4bWMVjh #RSMInsights #Education #Sustainbility Curricula for the future: embedding sustainability in education | RSM UK In January 2024, the World Economic Forum published its annual Global Risks Report, identifying 34 of the most severe short-term (two years) and long-term (10 years) global risks.  

The growing call to integrate sustainability into university curricula presents an exciting challenge for educators. While many institutions aim to prepare students for a sustainable future, it’s crucial to avoid approaches that feel superficial—like generic “bolt-on” lessons or “tick-box” mappings of existing courses. Instead, the focus should be on creating authentic educational experiences that connect sustainability to students' disciplines and future careers. Here are the four motivations driving sustainability in education: 🌱 Risk: Prepare students for careers in a world reshaped by climate change and sustainable development. 🤝 Responsibility: Equip students with the knowledge to act responsibly in their fields, minimizing environmental and social harm. 💡 Opportunity: Highlight how disciplines can address sustainability challenges and open new career pathways. 🌟 Purpose: Inspire students to use their expertise as tools for creating a more just and restorative world. 🔗 This framework offers educators reflective questions and practical strategies to integrate sustainability into teaching meaningfully, fostering engagement for both staff and students. How is your institution embedding sustainability into its curriculum? #SustainabilityInEducation #HigherEd #CurriculumDesign #AlandisTravel

Very proud to announce the publication of the Jisc Digital Sustainability in Tertiary Education Report. After extensive consultations with our valued members across the Higher Education, Further Education and Skills sectors, we have been able to take a deep into how digital sustainability is experienced and currently being addressed. This report explores the needs, challenges and emerging trends across the sectors. By exploring these aspects of digital sustainability in tertiary education, we hope to equip institutions with actionable insights and a broader understanding of best practices. #DigitalSustainability! #Education #Innovation #SustainableFuture

❓ What now? How about continuing to learn? Learning it's the key to transforming our reality. In a world full of challenges, education gives us the power to create solutions, and the best part is, we can do it together. 🙌 I am sure you have the potential to contribute to a more sustainable and regenerative future, I want to share with you 4 amazing courses from Gaia Education designed for people like you: 🍃 Design for Sustainability & Regeneration (https://lnkd.in/dZy3F3JZ) – Here, you'll learn how to design projects that truly create a positive impact in your community. With guidance from experts, you'll discover how to design regenerative cultures into everything we do, from the personal and local level to the global. 🌱 🍂 Transformative Education (https://lnkd.in/dVQBheWu) – Can you imagine being part of change through education? This course, featuring leaders like Jonathan Dawson, will show you how education can be a powerful tool to build a more just and equitable world. ✨ 🍃 Principles and Practices of Deep Transformation (https://lnkd.in/dnq-AMzp) – If you’re looking for deep and authentic transformation, this program is for you. Jeremy Lent will guide you to live more connected to nature and yourself. 🌿 🍂 4D Regenerative Design Literacy (https://lnkd.in/d6f_YvEu) – Led by Daniel Christian Wahl, this course introduces you to regenerative design from a holistic perspective, helping you create projects with real impact on ecological, social, economic, and cultural levels. 🌍 💡 Education is the first step to changing the world. And the good news is you don’t have to do it alone—there’s a global community waiting for you. 🌿 If you feel like it’s time to take that step, I invite you to explore these programs and join the movement! #SustainableEducation #PurposefulLeadership #GaiaEducation #GlobalTransformation #RegenerativeDesign #SustainableLearning

💡 This is an absolutely cracking article: 🌍 Sustainability in the Curriculum: Why We Don’t Need to Sacrifice Content to Prepare for Tomorrow 💡 As the Curriculum and Assessment Review unfolds, Charlotte and Laurence argue that including sustainability education shouldn’t been seen as a trade-off. 🥳 For me.. this is essential reading by Laurence Frewin, Principal and CEO at South Devon College and Charlotte Bonner, CEO at EAUC (The Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges) https://lnkd.in/er4kgnMs #GreenSkills #EducationForSustainableDevelopment #CurriculumandAssessmentReview #CurriculumReform #RethinkingAssessment

This is the second year that we have delivered an interactive sustainability session to all 6000 incoming students in Technological University Dublin and each year it gets better. Some things we learned this year! - Only 20% of incoming students say they "know a little bit about the Sustainable Development Goals". Is the phrase Global Goals more commonly used in primary/secondary school? - Co-creating and co-presenting the session with student ambassadors makes it much more engaging for our audience. - "How bad are bananas?", the Mike Berners-Lee game is a very effective, flexible and fun way to start discussions around climate emissions. - 32% of students want to engage with sustainability through Clubs and Societies, which is a strong argument for continuing our SDG project with Student Life. Claire Flannery Ronan Keaskin Christy O'Shea Thanks to the entire TU Dublin team bringing together Orientation from Student Success, Recruitment and Participation, Academic Affairs, and Sustainability Education. Dave Kilmartin John O'Carroll Sarah Rennick Mairead Murphy Roibeárd (Bob) Ó Mhurcú Dr. Aimee Byrne Lucia Walsh, PhD Paul Duffy Anne Campion Ken Boyle Olivia Freeman Rebecca Flanagan Heidi Kelly-Hogan Jennifer Boyer Thank you also to National Forum T&L and N-TUTORR for funding the engagement with students under the ESD strand. The N-TUTORR student sustainbaility champions were all awesome. #TUDublinSustainability

SUSTAINABILITY EDUCATION Sustainability education, also known as education for sustainable development (ESD), is a type of education that aims to equip learners with the knowledge, skills, and values necessary to make informed decisions about the environment, economy, and society. It encourages critical thinking, problem-solving, and taking action to create a more sustainable future. UNESCO defines ESD as "the education that empowers people to make informed decisions and take action for a more just, equitable and sustainable future." It is a lifelong learning process that integrates the key dimensions of sustainability - environmental, social, economic - into teaching and learning. Here are some of the benefits of sustainability education: * Increased environmental literacy and awareness * Enhanced critical thinking and problem-solving skills * Fostered sense of responsibility and stewardship for the environment * Developed capacity to participate in decision-making processes * Encouraged action-oriented learning and behavior change Conclusion:- Sustainability education can be incorporated into all levels of education, from early childhood education to higher education. It can also be used in non-formal and informal settings, such as through community programs, workshops, and public awareness campaigns. #talentserve #blog #blogpost #sustainabilityeducation

At this university, every undergraduate is required to take a course on sustainability Arizona State University students will now need to take a class on conservation or the environment in order to graduate. Summary: Starting in Fall 2024, Arizona State University (ASU) will require all undergraduate students, regardless of their major, to complete a course on sustainability as part of their general studies requirements. This new requirement reflects the growing need for interdisciplinary knowledge to tackle global challenges like climate change and environmental conservation. Students can choose from courses such as “Wilderness and Parks in America,” which explores conservation and recreation, “The Sustainable Plate,” focusing on the food system and its environmental impacts, or “Society, Supply Chains and You,” which addresses the sustainability of resource supply chains. The introduction of this requirement aligns with ASU’s long-standing commitment to sustainability, which dates back to the founding of its School of Sustainability in 2006, the first of its kind in the U.S. ASU’s charter emphasizes the university’s responsibility for the economic, social, and environmental well-being of the communities it serves. The revamped general studies requirements aim to equip students with practical tools to navigate complex sustainability issues and encourage a solutions-oriented mindset, rather than focusing on dystopian narratives. Students at ASU, like those at other universities, increasingly recognize the importance of sustainability in their future careers. Surveys show that many students are concerned about climate change and want more experiential learning opportunities in sustainability, as well as career services that focus on sustainable roles. Other institutions, such as the University of California, San Diego, have implemented similar requirements, reflecting a broader trend in higher education to integrate climate action into academic curricula. ASU’s sustainability requirement underscores the university’s belief that students must be prepared to address interdisciplinary 21st-century problems, such as climate change and the implications of emerging technologies like AI, with a comprehensive understanding of environmental and societal impacts. #SustainabilityEducation #ASU #ClimateChange #HigherEducation #EnvironmentalStudies #InterdisciplinaryLearning #SustainableFuture #GeneralStudies #ClimateAction #SustainableDevelopment

The Network of University Presidents for Sustainability emerges as an initiative uniting university leaders across Latin America and the Caribbean, aiming to integrate sustainability at the core of higher education https://lnkd.in/d9pp-6wY takes aim at transformative change