Expanding environmental management education and training


  • Educating in environmental science
  • Training specialists in sustainable development of ecosystems
  • Sponsoring environmental technology training

Description

Formulating and implementing environmental policies and programmes demands a broad range of environmental skills and knowledge.

This strategy features in the framework of Agenda 21 as formulated at UNCED (Rio de Janeiro, 1992), now coordinated by the United Nations Commission on Sustainable Development and implemented through national and local authorities.

Agenda 21 recommends that:

(a) environmentally focused training activities in sustainable land resources planning and management should be undertaken in all countries, with developing countries being given assistance through international support and funding agencies;

(b) governments at the appropriate level, and with the support of the relevant international and regional organizations, should promote members of local rural organizations and train and appoint more extension officers working at the local level; and

(c) regional and international economic organizations and non-governmental research institutes with expertise in this area should be encouraged to provide training sessions and seminars for government officials.

Implementation

High level training of specialists includes among others, the training of energy specialists at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory in the US. The International Chamber of Commerce (ICC) established the Industry Advisory Group on Environmental Education which developed the Learning and Environmental Action Programme (LEAP). LEAP improves existing corporate environmental activities, internal company training and external environmental training. The World Industry Council on Environment, has a working group on education and training which promotes LEAP and cooperates with AIESEC.

Two recent examples of government action on environmental education are the US National Environment Education Act and the National Strategy for Environmental Education produced by Finland's National Commission for UNESCO. The European Community Programme for Education and Training in Technology (COMETT) promotes the exchange of students, recent graduates and staff from higher education with enterprise personnel from industry to facilitate exchange of experience and mutual expertise, particularly in advanced technologies. COMETT is working to develop a European network of University-Enterprise Training Partnerships (UETPs) at the regional and transnational level. COMETT is planning at least 25,000 transnational exchanges, primarily student placements, funding 5,000 courses (150,000 people), and helping the continuing training of employees and graduates.

At the international organization level, various UN agencies and departments such as the UN Environment Programme (UNEP), UN Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), the International Labour Organization (ILO) among others, are working on international environmental education. In 1975, the International Environmental Education Programme (UNESCO and UNEP) was launched, and since then has operated in 160 countries, distributed educational materials to more than 150,000 institutions and individuals, contributed to the training of more than 30,000 key personnel, and helped prepare national environmental education strategies in 12 countries. UNESCO and UNEP have facilitated training of environmental specialist, particularly through the Man and the Biosphere (MAB) project, the International Geological Correlation Programme, the International Hydrological Programme, the International Oceanographic Commission and the Programme on Natural Hazards. In ten years UNEP has trained over 10,000 professionals and specialists from developing countries, particularly through the Oceans and Coastal Areas Programme Activity Centre, the Programme on Desertification Control, and INFOTERRA. The International Register of Potentially Toxic Chemicals (IRPTC) also offers training. UN Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR), has formed an international network of centres of excellence on resource evaluation and environmental management programmes.

Narrower

  1. Training youth for employment in sustainable development
  2. Training workers on environmental safety, health and welfare
  3. Training urban staff on environmentally sound management of urban development
  4. Training scientists to integrate environment in research and development projects
  5. Training protected natural area managers
  6. Training mountain communities in integrated environmental management
  7. Training local environmental technicians to assist local communities
  8. Training integrative approaches to environmental management and planning
  9. Training in rural development
  10. Training in population and development
  11. Training in environmental aspects of enterprise management
  12. Training environmental impact assessors
  13. Training demographers and ecologists in population-environment links
  14. Training decision-makers in use of environmental economics
  15. Supporting regional training programmes on environmental planning and management
  16. Strengthening sustainable development economics
  17. Recruiting women for environmental research
  18. Providing training on environmental information technology
  19. Providing training for urban environmental health workers
  20. Providing training about integrated environmental accounting
  21. Providing technology and training for local environmental information services
  22. Providing in-service training on sustainable development laws
  23. Providing environmental monitoring equipment in development aid programmes
  24. Providing environmental education in schools
  25. Preparing guides for environment training
  26. Involving workers in the design and implementation of environmental training programmes
  27. Integrating basic learning needs into environmental education programmes at all levels
  28. Increasing environmental management education capacities
  29. Including sustainable development issues in journalistic education
  30. Including environmental management in training programmes for all sectors of society
  31. Improving ability to analyse information on sustainable development
  32. Identifying workforce training requirements for sustainable development
  33. Extending environmental training programmes of United Nations system to employers and workers groups
  34. Expanding training on the environmentally sound use of biotechnology
  35. Expanding public awareness of environmental health hazards
  36. Expanding exchange of experience on environment and development training methods
  37. Exchanging information about environmentally sound technology
  38. Establishing training centres on environmentally sound technologies
  39. Establishing environmentally sound technology training for women
  40. Establishing environmental training programmes to meet needs of special groups
  41. Educating in natural systems, ecosystems and resource management
  42. Educating for integrated island management
  43. Educating for environmental identity
  44. Educating about alternative technology
  45. Developing new approaches for training on environmentally sound practices
  46. Developing environmental education on transboundary air pollution
  47. Conducting training for protection of the marine environment
  48. Assessing impact of environmental training programmes on productivity, health, safety and environment
  49. Assessing environmental training needs of people in geographically, socially or culturally isolated situations

Facilitated by

  1. Using audiovisual methods to increase awareness of environmental issues in rural areas
  2. Training ecological involvement
  3. Supporting technological research on urban environmental improvements
  4. Supporting education in developing countries on protecting marine environment
  5. Sharing of environmental education costs by local communities with richer assisting poorer communities
  6. Reviewing environmental education programmes in the United Nations system
  7. Producing TV and radio programmes for environmental awareness
  8. Including youth in task forces on environmental education
  9. Improving community capacity for environmental education
  10. Expanding research on mountain ecosystems
  11. Establishing multisectoral national advisory and coordinating groups on environmental education
  12. Developing environmental education material
  13. Developing an intergovernmental/NGO network for achieving global environmental educational goals
  14. Creating environmental education partnerships with industry
  15. Assisting education institutions to contribute more to public environmental awareness programmes


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