Background
Higher Education Sustainability Initiative (HESI) is hosting an event including a workshop facilitated by the Student Action Group (HESI-SAG), on the occasion of the Times Higher Education Global Sustainable Development Congress in Istanbul on June 16, 2025.
Rethinking competencies, such as systems thinking, anticipatory thinking, strategic thinking, implementation and integration is critical for preparing individuals to address complex socio-ecological challenges. As the global community works toward achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), defining the skills and competencies needed to support this transformative agenda has become a critical focus, particularly in higher education. This workshop will bring together key international initiatives that have developed frameworks for sustainability competencies, including the UNESCO Competency Framework, GreenComp: the European Union’s Sustainability Competence Framework, and national or sectoral frameworks.
There is a consensus that sustainability competencies bridge knowledge and action, facilitating collaborative problem-solving for societal transformation, and yet a lack of awareness and adoption of these tools has created obstacles to the practical implementation of pedagogical practices and curriculum changes needed to develop these competencies. In this interactive workshop, participants will:
Explore the similarities and differences among these competency frameworks while assessing how they align with the competencies necessary for achieving the SDGs.
Understand why these frameworks are not being sufficiently utilized and to identify ways to better support the essential evolution of program content through learning goals.
Discuss the practical implementation of pedagogical practices and curriculum changes needed to develop these competencies.
