The education and awareness of the population concerning environmental problems is a strategic aspect to advance decisively towards the sustainability of the planet. The need to use education as a tool in response to this problem was already mentioned in the final document of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment held in Stockholm in June 1972, almost 50 years ago. This document specifies that the objective is "that the world’s population should become aware of the environment and be interested in it and the problems related. They should also have the knowledge, attitudes, skills, motivation and desire needed to work individually and collectively in the search for solutions to current problems and to prevent those that might arise from now on ".

Half a century later, the need to address the environmental challenges we face as a society through education is more pressing than ever. Just a few weeks ago, on 26 January, World Environmental Education Day was commemorated, an annual reminder that aims to raise awareness among citizens to conserve and protect the environment through actions and activities. Currently, in Catalonia more than two hundred environmental associations and foundations promote citizens’ involvement in environmental protection and nature conservation in a committed and active way. But this is not all, since in the current scenario the training that is being given in schools and high schools, in a permanent and participatory process, to provide young people with an ethical and civic sense of environmental co-responsibility and loyalty to future generations is critical.

Main lines of action

The promotion of sustainable development through education and the adoption of sustainable lifestyles; human rights; gender equality; the promotion of a culture of peace and nonviolence; the appreciation of cultural diversity; and, finally, the contribution of culture, are the backbone of the work to be carried out in the educational and environmental fields. Some of the important aspects of the work being carried out in this field are those related to vulnerable populations; the prevention of food wastage in schools; health; environmental education with a gender perspective; environmental education and awareness in urban environments, in relation to consumption and waste; the climate emergency and the new youth movements; and, finally, climate justice.

In short, we are talking about a set of tools and broad knowledge that must allow us to consolidate among the entire population, and especially among the youngest, the need to take firm and irreversible steps towards a paradigm shift in which sustainability plays a fundamental and essential role in the development of human societies.