Education plays crucial role in enabling push towards sustainability

WHILE our world leaders continue to tackle a host of global challenges, the role our education systems can play in ensuring a more sustainable future is also becoming increasingly apparent. New Zealand is keenly aware of this, and has made strides to ensure our students - both local and international - are equipped with the knowledge and skills to address the global challenges of today and tomorrow. New Zealand's "future focus" education system is centred around developing graduates with the skills desired by future employers, but these skills must also empower them to address challenges of global consequence.

This focus is matched by the students themselves. We know that the motivators for students when selecting an education, and ultimately a career pathway, are very different from what they were as recently as five years ago. In the QS Environmental Concerns Survey 2019, 79 per cent of international students looking to study in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia or Canada said that they were more likely to choose a degree if the content taught them about reducing their environmental impact.

The 2020 global survey Students, Sustainability and Education conducted by Students Organising for Sustainability (SOS) International, also saw 92 per cent of respondents agreeing that sustainable development is something that all universities and colleges should actively incorporate and promote.