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• In China, the Environmental Educators’ Initiative
(EEI) – a partnership between the Chinese Ministry
of Education, WWF and BP – is embedding envi-
ronmental education in China’s national school
curriculum through teacher training, pilot schools
that test new materials and approaches and 21
environmental education centres at teacher training
universities
• In June 2005, a 10-year, $16-million commitment
was made to the BP Energy and Environmental
Programme to provide education and training to
emerging leaders in the fields of conservation and
development.
HK Electric Holdings Ltd
runs ‘Education Tours on
Renewable Energy’ for students in Hong Kong in part-
nership with the Education and Manpower Bureau of
the HKSAR Government under the School-Business
Partnership Programme. HK Electric is one of more
than 130 companies that deliver education on environ-
ment and sustainable development in this programme.
Through visits to the company’s wind station and
exhibition centre on the Lamma Island of Hong Kong,
engineers of the company educate secondary school
students on the operation of windmills as well as the
wider use of renewable energy.
Newmont Gold Australia’s
programmes in remote areas
of Australia are based upon a sustainable and effec-
tive indigenous training and employment strategy.
Newmont has developed a comprehensive programme
of pre-vocational and mine access training, guaran-
teeing successful graduates jobs with Newmont upon
completion. The programme also involves training in
cross-cultural awareness to help provide a culturally
safe work environment for indigenous employees, with
the objective of creating a culturally competent and
culturally safe work place.
From the examples described above, it is clear that
educational initiatives are often targeted at issues
of importance to particular industries. This is not
surprising, given that the companies often want such
initiatives to have a strategic fit with their line of busi-
ness or particular issues that need to be addressed (e.g.
supply chains, safety or the environment). Moreover,
they are likely to have more skills at hand if they focus
on areas where they have existing expertise.
Learning from successful initiatives
Whilst there are a number of initiatives around ESD
across all industry sectors, what remains to be seen is
just how effective these are and what types of training
and education are actually most effective. It is important
now to identify how training and education are actually
delivered, both within organizations and along supply
chains, and to investigate the most successful ways of
educating target audiences for sustainable development
in future.
enforcing acceptable working hours, preventing forced or compul-
sory labour and child labour, and ensuring fair wages, freedom of
association, non-harassment and safe and healthy working envi-
ronments. Outside experts and NGOs are commissioned to help
worker representatives understand their rights and to improve their
communication and problem-solving skills.
IBM’s
hardware business units and procurement staff provide envi-
ronmental education for key segments of the IBM supply chain,
explaining the use of material declaration forms and their impor-
tance in manufacturing products which comply with regulations
such as the European Union’s RoHS Directive. IBM has also part-
nered with industry peers and the University of California, Santa
Barbara Bren School to develop the initiative ‘Environmentally
Responsible Packaging: A Guideline and Certification Program for
the Electronics Industry’.
Approach 3: ESD programmes for the communities that form
the constituencies for businesses
Adaro Envirocoal’s
mining and port activities in South Kalimantan
are supported by a community education and development
programme that includes equipping schools and hospitals, staff
training, and scholarships for high school, agricultural college and
university study. Adaro also provides training and loans to support
the establishment of farming and plantation activities, aquaculture,
automotive and light engineering and local cooperatives. These are
supported by a procurement policy optimizing the use of local goods
and services, thus ensuring market viability in the initial phases of
development.
H&M
: In Cambodia, H&M organizes HIV/AIDS awareness and
prevention activities, including health promotion sessions and
training of 300 peer educators who provide education to 3,000
factory employees on the issues of HIV/AIDS and reproductive
health.
BSH Bosch und Siemens Hausgeräte GmbH (BSH)
: In Germany, BSH
organizes the Yolante Women Engineering Training Programme to
prepare women for work in the field of engineering through mentor-
ing and personal development programmes. In South Africa, BSH
supports the Buskaid Soweto String Project, which provides musical
training for students in classical music forms as well as their own
compositions and interpretations of traditional and modern African
forms. In Turkey, the firm has developed a highly trained rescue
team to assist community organizations in developing skills for
managing disasters and providing assistance to victims. Firefighters
at the BSH Fire Department also hold training sessions for schools
to raise public awareness of fire prevention techniques to improve
safety at school and at home.
Approach 4: Corporate support for ESD in schools, vocational
education and training and universities
BP’s
initiatives in the formal education sector range from projects to
help schoolchildren learn about the environment in the UK, US and
China to high-level academic work in Russia and China. For example:
• BP’s signature programme in California and Texas, ‘A+ for
Energy’, provides USD 2.5 million in grants and training to
teachers for the enhancement of energy education and has
reached more than 3,000 teachers