Bhavya George, Climate Change
On September 17th and 18th, I participated in the 7th International Conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE) held at the India Habitat Centre, New Delhi. The conference was organized by Mobius Foundation. The conference built upon the momentum of previous ICSE conferences, recognizing the urgent need for transformative action to address the global climate crisis. This year’s theme was “Sustainability Education for Green Jobs”. The conference included talks, panels, and workshops with an interdisciplinary lens on sustainability education, skills, knowledge, and competencies required for the growing green jobs sector.
It was interesting to listen to and interact with educators, policymakers, government representatives, researchers, industry leaders, NGO representatives, and young students. Besides this interaction, I was a panelist, anchored by the UNESCO science sector. The objective of the panel was to share experiences and perspectives on sustainability education and green jobs from a Biosphere context.
There were 4 panelists, including myself, representing the Gulf of Mannar, Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, Kanchenjunga and Himalayan Geo Park. I touched upon Keystone’s work in the Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve, focusing on training, skill building, and livelihoods, and highlighted our ongoing climate education efforts. Over one hour, our panel shared important insights, including our personal motivations for choosing green jobs as our career path.
The conference also stressed that green jobs should be socially just, with decent pay and safety. It touched on many sectors from coast to forest, and the emerging renewable energy sector.
