Tomorrow Today

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Regional Centres of Expertise on Education

for Sustainable Development: advancing

partnerships across boundaries

Yoko Mochizuki and Sampreethi Aipanjiguly,

United Nations University Institute of Advanced Studies

he concept of Regional Centres of Expertise on Education

for Sustainable Development (RCEs) was developed by

the United Nations University (UNU) to promote part-

nerships for education for sustainable development (ESD) at

local and global levels. At the UNU-UNESCO International

Conference on Globalization and ESD in June 2005 in Nagoya,

Japan, which celebrated the Asia-Pacific launch of the DESD, the

UNU launched the first group of seven RCEs. Since that time,

the number of RCEs has increased significantly and as of August

2010, the expanding global network of RCEs comprises 77 RCEs

worldwide: in Asia, the Pacific, Europe, the Middle East, Africa

and the Americas. RCEs, both individually and collectively,

aspire to achieve the goals of the DESD.

What is an RCE?

An RCE is not a physical centre but a network of existing institutions with

joint strategies to advance ESD in the local regions in which they operate.

The RCE initiativemobilizes schools, institutions of higher education, local

public authorities, non-governmental organizations (NGOs),

civil society organizations, businesses, media and other local

organizations, synergizing their activities anddeveloping new

collective practices. RCEs assist with the enhancement of

horizontal links between schools at the same level of educa-

tion, vertical alignment of curricula – from primary school

through university education – and development of lateral

linkages between formal and non-formal education.

The UNESCO’s Mid-Decade Review Report, 2009

had this to say about RCEs: “The networked Regional

Centres of Expertise, supported by UNU-IAS, may serve

as an example of how different local groups in society,

who do not ordinarily work together but are bound by

mutual sustainability issues, find themselves working

creatively towards their improvement.”

By providing local stakeholders with an opportunity to

design their own strategies in accordance with regional

strengths and needs, RCEs encourage them to focus on

Participants in an intergenerational course on sustainable development