The Sustainability Movement: "A global mandate for change"

The most notable beginning of the sustainability movement can be most clearly marked by the establishment of the UN World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), most commonly know as the Brundtland Commission. This commission was formed in response to the UN general assembly resolution A/38/161 - "Process of preparation of the Environmental Perspective to the Year 2000 and Beyond" in 1983. The commission published a report through Oxford University Press in 1987 called our Our Common Future. Also known as the Brundtland Report, this document introduced the concept of sustainable development to the international community, and produced this definition of sustainable development which is the most frequently cited:

The Brundtland Report was generated in response to a universal plea for international cooperation to work toward a common future, as nations began to recognize the need to begin a comprehensive planning strategy for anticipating and managing the needs of the Earth's peoples and resources.

The full text of the Brundtland Report can be downloaded as a scanned copy of the UN General Assembly document A/42/427 - a 16 Mbyte [pdf] file.

This report has then lain the groundwork for the creation of an international charter of principles known as The Earth Charter, which was created as a roadmap to help the global community find ways to move forward in this endeavor to walk a sustainable path, and to address the "global mandate for change". The Earth Charter is a living document in that it is an open venue for international dialogue on how to address global needs in light of the most recent information we have available to us. For educators, the charter is a significant model for legitimizing the spirit of international, democratic dialogue and cooperation. The Charter is arguably, the most widely sourced, international, grassroots organizing effort ever undertaken by the international community, with the inclusion of over 5,000 voices in its initial creation and publication by March of 2000. It has since been endorsed by thousands of organizations and individuals. This fact alone sets the publication apart from any other, and should command the attention of educators everywhere. The history and creation of this living document is in and of itself, a profound tribute to the power of genuine democratic representation, spanning the breadth of values and needs of a diverse global community. 

The Earth Charter stands as an inspiration and historic monument to the power of bridging cultural and geographic distances through organized dialogue, in order to work peacefully toward a single common purpose. We must decide as institutions and individuals to endorse this document in our teaching and learning. The Earth Charter gives us a singular opportunity to respond in an organized fashion to our personal and collective resolve to work for a more just, and sustainable future.

Here is a link to a separate web page introducing the charter: http://www.earthcharter.org/

Today, universities are leading the way to confront the global challenges we are facing as global citizens. Teacher colleges play a vital role in changing the culture of education to become "sustainability literate", and we are working to help instigate that movement.