Pedagogy for Sustainability: Reorienting Education in an Era of Global Crises

Abstract

The contemporary world is facing unprecedented environmental, social, and economic challenges arising from climate change, ecological degradation, and unsustainable patterns of production and consumption. Despite growing awareness and policy initiatives, meaningful progress towards sustainability remains limited, underscoring the need for deeper value transformation among individuals and societies. Education plays a critical role in addressing this gap by shaping worldviews, ethical responsibility, and critical consciousness. This paper critically examines the evolution of pedagogy for sustainability within the broader framework of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD), as promoted by UNESCO and embedded in the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, particularly SDG 4.7. The study traces the shift from early environmental education focused on awareness and conservation to transformative, learner-centred pedagogies that emphasise critical thinking, social justice, and ecological responsibility. It further explores the tensions between sustainability education and dominant paradigms in business and management education, which have historically prioritised economic growth and profit maximisation, often conflicting with planetary limits. Focusing on the Indian context, the paper analyses the implications of the National Education Policy 2020, which advocates holistic, experiential, and transdisciplinary learning for sustainability. However, it argues that pedagogical practice remains constrained by rigid curricula, examination-oriented systems, and inconsistent teacher preparedness. The paper concludes by highlighting the fragmented and under-researched nature of sustainability pedagogy in India and calls for transformative, value-oriented educational approaches aligned with global sustainability imperatives and local socio-cultural realities.