Education for a Sustainable Future: A Paradigm of Hope for the 21st Century

WHY EDUCATE FOR SUSTAINABILlTY? Ask most people-especially young people-what the future looks like to them. They will paint for you a rosy picture of their individual lives, their future homes, their careers and sometimes even the lives of their children. Then they will paint for you a depleted, conflicted and weary picture of the planet as a whole. Do any of us note the incongruence? We are becoming increasingly aware that the very things we need, the things we adore most in this world are the very things we are undermining through our individual and collective behaviors. We can feel the disconnect between the conse­ quences of our actions and our values, but we do not necessarily understand it or know how to reconcile it. Living with behavior that feels, and in fact is, inconsistent with our values is a recipe for anguish. We have disconnected so drastically from our sense of place that ironically we poison our water, our air, and our food while at the same time we work hard to secure a healthy and meaningful future for ourselves and our children. This just doesn't make sense.