Many people around the world, including civil society, scientists, youth, and policymakers are concerned about the future of our common home and the choices we must make today to ensure that we change our course and stop contributing to our current planetary crises. To do this, all decision-makers, including governments, educational institutions, the private sector, and individuals must come together to achieve our global goals for justice, sustainability and peace, guided by common values. Through this intercultural dialogue, we will explore what it means to work towards an ecological civilization and the implications of that for education, specifically higher education.
In this webinar, we aim to clarify the link between ecological civilizations and education. To do so, this panel will address the following questions:
- What does the term Ecological Civilization mean?
- How do you imagine the kind of education that fosters ecological civilizations? What are some specific examples of what is currently being done, or what could be done, towards this vision in the context of education?
For more content on the topic of Ecological Civilizations, click here to access the our webinar recordings.
Speakers
Ma Shuang
Professor, Director, International Exchanges Department, Liaoning University, P.R. China
Utak Chung
Adjunct professor of Kyung Hee University, and former Director of the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding – APCEIU, South Korea.
Maria Guajardo
Professor, Leadership Studies, Soka University, Japan
Philip Clayton
President of the Institute for Ecological Civilization (EcoCiv.org) and Ingraham Professor at Claremont School of Theology, USA
Moderators
Amanda Bennett and Sifan Jiang, Earth Charter International
Ma Shuang
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Professor MA Shuang, PhD and Graduate Supervisor, is the director of the International Exchanges Department of Liaoning University. She has served as Vice Dean of the Asia-Australia Business College, Vice Dean of the College of Comprehensive Foundation Studies, and Vice Dean of Sunwah International Business School of Liaoning University. She was the Co-chief Adjudicator of the 21st “FLTRP Cup” National College English Debate Final in 2018. She was selected as one of the top talents in Shenyang, China in 2020. And she has just been awarded the title of “Provincial Distinguished Teachers” in Liaoning Province. She teaches and does research in the areas of China National College English program, English for academic purposes for postgraduate students and doctoral students, translation, and cross-cultural communication.. Ma Shuang has held various leadership roles in teaching College English and international business education programs. Some highlights of her achievements include being the recipient of many institutional and state Teaching Excellence Awards, the Head Coach of a few dozens of top prize winners of regional and national English Language Debate Contests, the “Internet +” National College Students’ Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training program. She has also published more than 20 papers, translated 5 books and edited 4 textbooks.
Utak Chung
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Adjunct professor of Kyung Hee University, teaching Global Citizenship Education and SDGs and Representative of Korea for Global Partnership for Education (GPE). Former Director of the UNESCO Asia-Pacific Centre of Education for International Understanding – APCEIU.
Maria Guajardo
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Dr. Maria Guajardo is Professor of Leadership Studies at Soka University, Japan, where she previously served as Dean and Vice-President. Her life’s work is at the intersection of leadership, global learning, and critical pedagogy. An author, international trainer, and motivational speaker, she recently published Value-Creating Education: Teachers’ Perceptions and Practices (2024) and Global Wisdom: The Antidote to Magical Thinking (2023). She is recipient of the University of Denver Alumni Lifetime Achievement Award and the Soka University Award of Highest Honor.
Philip Clayton
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President of the Institute for Ecological Civilization (EcoCiv.org) and Ingraham Professor at Claremont School of Theology. Having received his PhD from Yale University, he has held guest professorships at Harvard, University of Cambridge, and University of Munich. Among his academic specializations are ecology, comparative religions and ethics, and ecological economics.
As a nonprofit leader, Clayton has organized and facilitated international convenings for more than 20 years. He is the author or editor of several dozen books, including What Is Ecological Civilization? (2019) and The New Possible: Visions of Our World Beyond Crisis (2020).