{"id":7056,"date":"2017-10-02T06:59:15","date_gmt":"2017-10-02T06:59:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/?p=7056"},"modified":"2017-10-02T06:59:15","modified_gmt":"2017-10-02T06:59:15","slug":"another-pledge-to-sign","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/2017\/10\/02\/another-pledge-to-sign\/","title":{"rendered":"Another pledge to sign"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>EAUC is urging us all to <a href=\"http:\/\/mailchi.mp\/eauc\/e-news-furniture-recycling-and-capturing-the-sun-1369917?e=baf4e6c237\">sign<\/a> the pledge. \u00a0It says:<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>A pioneering global initiative to embed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) across post-16 education has now been launched. \u00a0We are calling on your institution to sign and commit to the\u00a0SDG Accord. Come and join your global counterparts in this international initiative. \u00a0Download the SDG flyer and petition your institution\u00a0and students to sign up and spread the message.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>This is the message:<\/p>\n<p><em>Recognising that we are different stages in our journey towards a sustainable future, with\u00a0differing strategic priorities reflecting our strategic ambitions, areas of expertise and\u00a0organisational cultures. \u00a0This Accord calls upon we, the world\u2019s universities and colleges\u00a0to embed the Sustainable Development Goals into our education, research, leadership,\u00a0operations, administration and engagement activities. \u00a0We\u00a0Accord Signatories recognise ...<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>The indivisible and interconnected nature of the universal set of Goals \u2013 People,\u00a0Prosperity, Planet, Partnership, Peace<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>That, as educators, we have a responsibility to play a central and transformational role in\u00a0attaining the Sustainable Development Goals by 2030.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><em>And we thereby assert that as leaders or individual practitioners, academics, students or researchers, we will:<\/em><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><em>align all major efforts with the Sustainable Development Goals, targets and indicators,\u00a0including through our education, research, leadership, operational and engagement\u00a0activities;<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>aim to involve members from all key stakeholder groups in this endeavour, including\u00a0students, academics, professional staff, local communities and other external\u00a0stakeholders;<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>collaborate across cities, regions, countries and continents with other signatory\u00a0institutions as part of a collective international response;<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>using our own unique ways, give an account to both local and global communities on\u00a0our progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, informing others and sharing\u00a0our learning;<\/em><\/li>\n<li><em>annually report on how our institution contributes to the Goals and what more can we\u00a0do.<\/em><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>.......................<\/p>\n<p>I'll summarise this as \"everybody, in HE everywhere, all the time, collaborating with everyone else, should work towards realising all the goals\".<\/p>\n<p>At one level, this is fine, although we have been there before: Think <em><a href=\"http:\/\/ulsf.org\/talloires-declaration\/\">Talloires<\/a><\/em> etc. \u00a0But at another, more fundamental level it's far from alright. \u00a0Universities are places where ideas are critically examined and guidance provided to society about policy shifts and priorities. \u00a0As such, it was good to see this reflected in the following rationale of the unique role for HE (<strong><em>my emphasis<\/em><\/strong>):<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>Universities and colleges recognise our unique role in fostering and empowering youth as\u00a0a force for change, and in fulfilling the urgent need for new knowledge, <strong><em>rigorous debate\u00a0and critical academic engagement<\/em><\/strong> to support the SDGs. \u00a0The SDGs can inspire our\u00a0teaching and learning with their goal of education, for all, for sustainable development. \u00a0The SDGs can be a focus for our research: this vision of a fair future for our shared planet\u00a0generates an agenda of innovation and discovery, <strong><em>but also scrutiny and challenge<\/em><\/strong>. \u00a0The\u00a0SDGs offer a catalyst for engagement beyond our institutions, with policymakers and\u00a0publics alike. \u00a0But they also provide an opportunity to turn our gaze inwards, striving for\u00a0inclusion, equity and sustainability in all aspects of our operations. \u00a0In our collaborative\u00a0endeavours towards common goals, universities and colleges embody the spirit of the\u00a0SDGs. \u00a0We recognise our potential as agents of change for sustainable development - at the heart\u00a0of local communities, and as part of national, regional, and global networks.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>In his 1948 book, <em>Notes towards the definition of culture,\u00a0<\/em> TS Eliot argued that a main outcome of education and knowledge has to be skepticism; that is an ability and willingness to provide criticism of political projects in order to check and\/or improve those projects. \u00a0He said that it was criticism (growing out of skepticism) that helped societies advance. \u00a0It is this idea that lies at the heart of what EAUC is putting forward here.<\/p>\n<p>You can sign the pledge at <em>sdgaccord.org<\/em><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>EAUC is urging us all to sign the pledge. \u00a0It says: A pioneering global initiative to embed Sustainable Development Goals (SDGS) across post-16 education has now been launched. \u00a0We are calling on your institution to sign and commit to the\u00a0SDG...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":237,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[2,4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7056","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-comment","category-news-and-updates"],"acf":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack-related-posts":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7056","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/237"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7056"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7056\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7056"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7056"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blogs.bath.ac.uk\/edswahs\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7056"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}