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Douglas Bourn, Professor of Development Education at IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education & Society, and Jenny Hatley, Programme Leader in Education at Bath Spa University, invite you to read and download their major new report produced on behalf of the Our Shared World Coalition.

About the report:

We are proud to announce the publication of the Our Shared World Evidence and Research Report. This major new resource has been produced by Douglas Bourn, Director of Development Education Research Centre at UCL, and Jenny Hatley from Bath Spa University, on behalf of the Our Shared World Coalition of organisations.

The report aims to gather evidence of the extent to which the themes of Sustainable Development Goal Target 4.7 are being engaged with within schools in England, examining how they are being delivered, areas of success, identifiable gaps, and what the priorities for policymakers should be in the future.

SDG Target 4.7: ‘By 2030, ensure all learners acquire knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including among others through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship, and appreciation of cultural diversity and of culture’s contribution to sustainable development’.

The report was launched on May 16th 2022 in an online, interactive event.

Amongst other questions, the report,
and the associated event, ask:

  • To what extent could the implementation of Target 4.7 within education systems provide space for a radical and transformative approach to learning?
  • Are the themes of Target 4.7 popular within schools?
  • What role do civil society organisations and professional bodies play in promoting education for sustainable development and related topics?
  • How do the themes of Target 4.7 connect to wider questions such as the purpose of education and its role in securing a more just and sustainable society?
  • How does the current emphasis on testing and examinations in schools impact on the implementation of Target 4.7?
  • How best can advocates of Target 4.7 work with policy-makers to secure meaningful change?
  • What educational groups need to be considered first as potential allies and proponents of Target 4.7?

Author biographies:

Jenny Hatley‘s long interest in global education began when she worked with an international NGO to lead and develop education programmes in disease prevention education and in trauma and conflict resolution in areas of conflict, natural disaster and post-conflict situations overseas. This included program development and delivery in cooperation with the UN and working through local partners with a focus on capacity building, enabling the sustainability of projects. Jenny has also worked as a primary teacher in the UK across both the state and independent sectors with a focus on global education, social and emotional education and citizenship. Jenny now pursues this interest through Higher Education and research, where she seeks to develop a critical approach to global citizenship, social justice and how education can become responsive to changing global agendas. She is based at Bath Spa University

Douglas Bourn is Professor of Development Education and Director of the Development Education Research Centre at IOE, UCL’s Faculty of Education and Society. He has produced numerous publications on the themes of development education, global learning, global citizenship and education for sustainable development. These include The Theory and Practice of Development Education (2014), Understanding Global Skills for 21st Century Professions (2018), editor of Bloomsbury Handbook for Global Education and Learning (2020) and Education for Social Change (2022). He is chair of the Advisory Board for the Academic Network of Global Education and Learning (ANGEL) and from 1993 to 2006 was Director of the Development Education Association.

Our Shared World

About Our Shared World

Our Shared World is a broad coalition advocating for SDG 4.7 in England by 2030. First chaired by Oxfam and WWF-UK, and currently chaired by SEEd and CoDEC, OSW is a coalition of more than 150 members.

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