42 / 192
[
] 42
Education for sustainable cities
Training and Capacity-building Branch, UN-HABITAT
E
ducation has a key role in promoting socially and environ-
mentally sustainable cities. It is also an important factor
in the realization of the Habitat Agenda goal of adequate
shelter for all. UN-HABITAT is engaged in improving the quality
and range of appropriate educational opportunities on urban
issues through activities such as:
• Developing partnerships with universities
• Promoting the values and principles of sustainability in key
areas such as water and sanitation as well as climate change
• Actively participating in the inter-agency committee for the UN
Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD)
• Raising public awareness.
UN-HABITAT activities in support of the DESD are conducted
within the Medium Term Strategic and Institutional Plan (MTSIP)
framework. The plan has an overarching goal of sustainable urbani-
zation through initiatives such as Human Values-based Water,
Sanitation and Hygiene Education (HVWSHE) and UN-HABITAT’s
engagement with universities to promote sustainable development.
Human Values-based Water, Sanitation and
Hygiene Education (HVWSHE)
HVWSHE is a strategic entry point for bringing about
positive attitudinal changes among both water consum-
ers and providers, and in the longer term it can develop
a new water-use ethic in society. Properly understood, it
constitutes a comprehensive lifelong education, respon-
sive to a rapidly changing world. It should prepare the
individual for life through understanding of the major
problems of the contemporary world vis-à-vis water,
sanitation and hygiene, and the provision of skills and
attitudes needed to play a productive role towards
improving living conditions and protecting the environ-
ment with due regard to ethical values. The initiative
involves integrating sustainability values into teaching
on water, sanitation and hygiene.
In Africa, UN-HABITAT has been implementing
HVWSHE in nine demonstration countries (Cote d’Ivoire,
Cameroon, Mali, Niger, Burkina Faso, Senegal, Ethiopia,
Little girl using a public tap, Africa
Image: UN-HABITAT