On Thursday 30 October and 6 November 2025, the UNESCO Chair on ESD with the Earth Charter and the UNITWIN Network on ESD and Social Transformation, organized another edition of their series of webinars: Education for Sustainable Development in Practice: Tips from Educators, which started in 2023, with four webinars per year, two in English and two in Spanish. Previous webinars can be found in the following playlist.
The objective of this series is to open a space for sharing and learning about how education for sustainability can be put into practice and get inspiration from concrete actions, from primary and secondary to higher education, in formal or non formal settings and from different cultural contexts.
The theme of these episodes was: “Embedding sustainability in university courses”. Six university professors were invited to share concrete examples about how they have been able to integrate pedagogy and content or themes associated with sustainability in their courses, which challenges they have faced and strategies to overcome those challenges. In both webinars, the ACT4SDGs project was presented, giving a more emphasis on this in the Spanish webinar. This project involves 10 universities in Latin America and 3 universities in Europe that are generating capacity building processes and specific tools to help academics of those institutions to work with the SDGs in their teaching.
These are the recordings:
More than 300 people registered to attend these webinars. In 2026, we expect to continue to engage with inspiring educators, and learn more about their practical work.
Speakers in the English version webinar:
- Zulfi Ali (UK, Pakistan). Senior Lecturer. School of Social Work, Education and Teacher Education, Cantebury Christ Church University, UK. Zulfi has a background in international development, with over two decades of field experience in South Asia. His interests lie in postcolonial educational histories, as well as education for social and environmental justice, and peace education. His teaching and research at CCCU relate to these areas of interest. Prior to moving to the UK, Zulfi was Director at the Children’s Museum for Peace and Human Rights in Karachi, Pakistan. This project aimed at delivering socially relevant education through a proactive, inclusive and innovative institutional model.
- Jenn Manak (USA) Professor in the Education Department at Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida, USA. She received a PhD in Education/Curriculum and Instruction focused on Language, Literacy, and Culture from the University of Florida. She was a public elementary school teacher for seven years before entering higher education. She teaches courses infused with strategies to support culturally and linguistically diverse students and students with learning needs. Her research interests include transdisciplinary education, culturally responsive and inclusive pedagogies, and education for sustainable development.
- Alejandro Álvarez-Vanegas (Colombia). Professor at EAFIT University in the Natural Systems and Sustainability Area. He holds a degree in Process Engineering from EAFIT University, a Master’s degree in Sustainability Sciences from Leuphana University in Lüneburg, and a PhD in Higher Education for Sustainable Development from Maastricht University and the United Nations University – MERIT. His research focuses on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and transformative and experiential learning, seeking to foster sustainability competencies in students and educators. He is also a board member of the Low Carbon City Foundation and the Otraparte Cultural Corporation.
Speakers in the Spanish version webinar:
- Ainoha Garayar (Spain) – Professor and Academic Director of the Master’s in Leadership and Change Management for Sustainability at the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) and founding member of ALDATUZ, a social value creation lab. She holds a degree in Business Administration from UPV/EHU (1999) and a PhD in Economic and Business Sciences (2013) from the same university. She received the XVI Carlos Cubillo Valverde Award (2012) and first prize at the II Doctoral Research Conference on Economics and Business Administration in San Sebastián (2013).
- David Eduardo Velázquez (Mexico) – Professor at the Autonomous University of the State of Mexico. He holds a PhD in Continuing Education, a Master’s in Environmental Education, a degree in Dentistry, and a Diploma in Education for Sustainability from the Earth Charter Center for ESD at the University for Peace in Costa Rica. He is a National Researcher (Level I) within the SNII and member of the Academic Body in Consolidation “Quality of Life and Degrowth.” Currently, he is one of the coordinators of the international Erasmus+ project funded by the European Union: Professionalization of Academic Teaching to Infuse the SDGs in Latin American Universities. He also serves as the Affiliated Focal Point and Coordinator of the Earth Charter in the State of Mexico.
- Florian Köhler (Germany) – Executive Coordinator at the Center for Education for Sustainable Development at Heidelberg University of Education, responsible for the M.A. programme Digital Education for Sustainable Development and for the ESD workshops area within the ACT4SDGs project, collaborating with Latin American partners. He holds a Master’s in Regional Development, Nature Conservation and Education for Sustainable Development from Eberswalde University for Sustainable Development. His academic interests focus on sustainability and (digital) education for sustainable development. He also contributes to sustainability initiatives within Heidelberg University of Education, helping to transform the institution towards sustainability through curriculum design, sustainability reporting, and participation in the Senate Commission on Sustainability.
Moderator: Alicia Jimenez (Costa Rica) Director of Programmes, Earth Charter International. Costa Rica. She is a biologist from the University of Costa Rica, with a MSc in Resource Development from Michigan State University in the United States and a PhD on Education from La Salle University, Costa Rica. In 2006, she joined the ECI, where she is involved with the Secretariat’s projects on education for sustainable development, facilitating courses, workshops, participating in research and writing projects. She has co-written two books, edited two books and written a number of articles and book chapters on ESD topics.
