The 2030 Agenda with the 17 SDGs identifies inclusive and equitable quality education for all as crucial in attaining a sustainable future.
SDG target 4.5 now specifically refers to ensuring “…equal access to all levels of education and vocational training for the vulnerable including (…) indigenous peoples…”
Yet today and with few exceptions, youth, in or from traditional cultures, remain among the least-well served by their respective public education and training systems with some of the lowest graduation rates from elementary, secondary, or tertiary education.
The #IndigenousESD is the first international network of researchers focusing on improving the education of Indigenous Peoples around the world in light of the SDGs, in particular SDG targets 4.5 and 4.7. #IndigenousESD research follows a community-based participatory research approach. Research results and recommendations are published in open-access formats and shared within the communities to assist education and community leaders worldwide develop their own policy recommendations. The first research project of our network is entitled ‘Reorienting Education and Training Systems to Improve the Education Outcomes of Indigenous Youth’.
This research is intended to generate and share findings of how schools and formal education systems could be modified to directly improve the quality of their education and indirectly the lives of Indigenous youth. There is a dire need to address the inadequacies inherent in the education of Indigenous youth globally. The main goals of the research project are developing policy recommendations on how to improve the quality of education of Indigenous youth, creating an international Indigenous education research network, and further innovative local teaching and learning approaches where possible.
If you are interested in joining our #IndigenousESD research network, please feel free to contact us at any time!
Research report #1 on quality education outcomes
Research report #2 on good practice using ESD
Soon: performing action research in selected settings (2023/24)
The full report provides a data analysis from all UN regions, is available as open access document and has also been published.
Global Report on Research Initiative 1 Outcomes of Quality Education (December 2019, final version download)
We published an overview of the research as well as an analysis with a focus on twenty-first centuries in the peer-reviewed Journal of Teacher Education for Sustainability (JTES):
Volume 21, Issue 2, 2019, titled ‘ESD for All: Learnings from the #IndigenousESD Global Research’ (DOI: 10.2478/jtes-2020-0018).
Volume 22, Issue 2, 2020, titled ‘Learnings from the #IndigenousESD Global Research: Twenty-First Century Competencies for All Learners’ (DOI: 10.2478/jtes-2019-0020).
This second research initiative focused on collecting relevant examples of good practice that are based on ESD approaches, i.e., changing content and/or pedagogy.
The Research Report focusing on the potential of quality education and ESD practices to contribute to the ‘COVID-19 recovery and Indigenous Peoples’ was shared with the Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples for the report to the Human Rights Council at its 48th session in September 2021.
The Research Report including the Annex with 32 practices is available for limited Creative Commons Download (CC BY-NC-SA 4.0).
The results from the second phase were also published in the Journal of Teacher Education for Sustainability (JTES):
Volume 24, Issue 2, 2022, titled ‘Reflections of Good Practice of Infusing ESD to Improve Education Outcomes for Indigenous Learners in Light of a Global Pandemic’ (DOI: 10.2478/jtes-2022-0019).
Many good innovations have already been attempted. But too seldom have these innovative approaches been researched or shared to see if the work can be replicated or scaled up. The third initiative of this research aims to perform action research in selected settings. The last phase of the #IndigenousESD research will be rolled out when the pandemic lifts. It will hopefully also further contribute to the recovery of Indigenous Peoples in a post-pandemic world putting equitable access to quality education at the core of all efforts.
Specific guidance and support for implementation will be provided through the UNESCO Chair.