Second announcement > Second announcement

_{(Bordeaux, October 27 - 29, 2008)}

Second announcement

Under the high patronage of UNESCO, which is responsible for the implementation of the 2005- 2014 United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and as part of the French presidency of the European Union, the French National Committee of the United Nations Decade is organising an international conference in Bordeaux, from October 27 - 29, 2008, gathering French and international stakeholders in education, training, information relating to sustainable development.

CONFERENCE OBJECTIVES

Our planet is faced with serious threats: climate change, dwindling resources, decreasing biodiversity and demographic pressure are all increasing on a daily basis. Faced with these threats, education, training and information have emerged as being essential to equip all citizens with the knowledge and skills necessary not only to understand what is at stake with sustainable development, but above all to adopt and promote the changes in behaviour necessary to reverse current lifestyle developments which are at odds with sustainability.

How can education in all its forms make all citizens, at all stages in their life, able and responsible to manage the present and to be prepared to face an uncertain future in an ever-changing and complex society? This key question affects both the people and systems involved in developing a true educational approach.

In the lead-up to the Decade's mid-term world conference to be held in Bonn, Germany, in March 2009, the Bordeaux event will bring together French and foreign specialists in Education for Sustainable Development, both in order to review the progress made during the 2005-2008 period and draw up the strategies to be implemented for the 2009-2014 period, and in order to examine schemes conducive to giving local, national and international ESD actions as high a profile as possible.

CONFERENCE STAKEHOLDERS

The conference will focus on the actions carried out in France and other European countries, but will also take into account the processes developed in French-speaking and non French-speaking nations, with a more particular emphasis on countries in the Euro-Mediterranean area.

In a joint action of partnership and participation, the United Nations Decade brings together all the stakeholders from each country - the State and public institutions, regional authorities, civil society and the private sector - working in cooperation with the UNESCO and other United Nations bodies.

• The State is mainly in charge of education, training and information via various ministries and public institutions.

• Regional authorities play an important role in ESD as they have an impact on many different categories of people. During the conference, the French and foreign regional, département and municipal authorities will be able to report on progress and the related initiatives, and also discuss the partnerships and schemes implemented.

• The UNESCO, national commissions for UNESCO and UNESCO chairs
UNESCO's responsibility for the Decade is relayed and disseminated via the national commissions, UNESCO chairs, UNITWIN networks and related schools.

• The United Nations economic commission for Europe (UNECE)
In March 2005, the UNECE formed an executive committee which sits in Geneva and brings together the 56 nations in Greater Europe and several international NGOs

• French National Committee of the United Nations Decade
Following the recommendations of the Vilnius strategy, France has set up a national committee (focal point). The French committee for the Decade was set up in October 2005 by the Ministers of National Education and of Ecology and Sustainable Development. This committee organised the international colloquium held at the UNESCO in June 2006.

• The Institutions of the French-speaking world
The Organisation Internationale de la Francophonie (OIF), the Energy and Environment Institute for French-Speaking Communities) (IEPF) and the Francophone University Agency (AUF) play an important role in education for the different French-speaking countries.

• The United Nations agencies
The Regional Bureau for Science and Culture in Europe (UNESCO BRESCE) and the other United Nations agencies (UNEP, UNDP) will be taking part in the Bordeaux conference.

• Civil society
Associations, NGOs, unions and other civil society stakeholders are often pioneers in ESD. They carry out work on a grassroots level which raises awareness of the reality of sustainable development and strengthens dialogue, meetings and exchanges on a local, national and international level.

• Private sector
Companies make an important, practical contribution to the implementation of sustainable development efforts, on a regional, national and international scale. Companies which are members of the French committee in the person of their sustainable development directors represent the principal fields business in our society.

• Other stakeholders attending the colloquium :
- The European Youth Eco-Parliament (EYEP)
- The Environment and School Initiatives network (ENSI).

INFORMATION ABOUT THE CONFERENCE

Conference dates:
3 days, October 27 - 29, 2008.

Conference venue :
Bordeaux Convention centre (Bordeaux Lac), France.

Number and origin of conference delegates :
Around 800 delegates from 60 countries, with balanced numbers of French, European and international representatives, from French and non-French speaking countries.

Registration fees :
Registration for the colloquium is free, but subject to approval by the organising committee.

Carbon Offsetting :
The committee undertakes to offset greenhouse gas emissions arising from the preparation and holding of the conference. This will be achieved by means of a voluntary contribution from each conference delegate. The money collected will be donated to an organisation which manages the emission credit market.

The scientific and organising committees :
The conference is being organised by the French committee for the Decade, which brings together all the national stakeholders in ESD.

CONFERENCE ORGANISATION

In addition to the official opening and closing sessions, the conference will include full sessions, topical workshops, stands and poster presentations. These different events and features will be based on preparatory work carried out under the responsibility of the French committee for the Decade.

Conference preparatory work

Prior to the colloquium, preliminary work for the full sessions and topical workshops included in the sessions will be carried out by working groups which will draft preparatory documents to provide delegates with information on progress achieved and examine a certain number of proposals for the future.

This work, under the responsibility of the members of the French committee for the Decade in cooperation with various external partners, aims to fuel and direct the work by delegates, as well as facilitating interactive exchanges by limiting the number and length of introductory presentations.

The documents resulting from the preparatory work will be sent to delegates according to which sessions they have registered for, a few days prior to the start of the colloquium.

Full sessions and topical workshops

• Session 1 : ESD in the European Union
be a review of the 27 countries in the European Union for the 2005-2008 period. The results of this review and the recommendations arising from it for the second part of the Decade, from 2009 to 2015, will be the subject of a final joint declaration to be presented at the Bonn event.

This review will be conducted on the basis of preparatory work carried out by the Environment and School Initiatives NGO (ENSI) calling on the participation of European experts who will also speak during the session.

Session with simultaneous translation in French and English.

• Session 2 : ESD and the French-speaking world
Countries which are part of the French-speaking world develop ESD initiatives, either alone or in partnership with others, which have a common linguistic framework, offering the possibility of pooling programmes and education, training and information resources.

ESD results will be presented at this session, and proposals will be put together with the aim of implementing new initiatives.

The preparatory work will be carried out by the French committee with the support of the IEPF and AUF.

• Session A3 : ESD and the media
The media – radio, television, the press and the internet – are both opinion leaders and informers, and play a major role in our modern-day society. The educational and informational mission aimed at raising public awareness of the seriousness and complexity of present and future problems is as yet insufficiently taken into account in terms of both quality and quantity.

The aim of the session dedicated to education for sustainable development is to review the actions undertaken to date, in terms of the role of the media, their means of action, the training of key stakeholders, and making proposals for the future.

This session will be prepared by the French committee with the help of a number of key players from various media.

• Session A4 : Teaching resources
There are many different and often disparate teaching tools: paper or electronic works, databases, online resources, internet portals and networks. This session will provide the opportunity to review the main tools in existence and means of cooperation for developing shared and pooled tools as well as various existing networks. The preparatory work will be carried out by the French committee with the support of the CNED and the CNDP/SCÉREN.

• Session 5 : France's action at the national, European and international levels
This day-long full session will be dedicated to reviewing France's action in the field of ESD, the role of different stakeholders - the State, regional authorities, civil society and companies - and the perspectives envisaged for the second part of the Decade.

Based on a review conducted prior to the colloquium, the main areas of progress for the 2005- 2008 period will be analysed, following which a certain number of recommendations will be drawn up on the basis of discussions between the participants and those leading the session, to be presented at the reporting and wrap-up session on the morning of October 29.

The preparatory work will be carried out by the members of the French committee with the support of various external organisations:
- State action: senior civil servants for sustainable development in various ministries;
- local authority action: "Comité 21" and associations representing various local authorities;
- civil society action: review under the responsibility of the "CFEEDD";
- corporate action: "Des enjeux et des Hommes" with sustainable development directors from French committee member companies.

• Session 6: Regional coordination and ESD
The regional and local authorities of Aquitaine – the Aquitaine region, the Gironde département, the Bordeaux urban district and the city of Bordeaux – have worked together to develop exemplary procedures in the field of ESD. During a day-long full session, these four authorities will be presenting their work and analysing it in workshops which will be interspersed throughout the session. These presentations and exchanges will be illustrated by examples from other French and international local and regional authorities.

The preliminary work will be carried out by a committee drawing together the Aquitaine region, the Gironde département, the Bordeaux urban district and the city of Bordeaux, in addition to the Aquitaine education authority and the regional delegations of the ministries concerned.

• Session 7: ESD in the Euro-Mediterranean basin
The aim of the work in this session is to bring together countries with different environmental, socio-economic and cultural characteristics, but with strong geographical and historical ties. The aim is to find shared initiatives for education, training and information in order to work together to build more "sustainable" societies whilst strengthening the ties between both shores of the Mediterranean. The work will be presented by high-ranking figures and continue with discussion groups to examine ESD issues from a Euro-Mediterranean perspective and make proposals with a view to final recommendations.

Three main subjects will be dealt with in the session on the Mediterranean:
- the network of Mediterranean "sustainable development universities";
- the protection of the Mediterranean environment;
- education and culture in Euro-Mediterranean countries.

The preparatory work will be carried out by the French committee with the support of the UNESCO-BRESCE, the PAM, the NGO MIO-ECSDE and the association U Marinu.

Session with simultaneous translation in French, English and Arabic.

• Session 8: Education for sustainable consumption
The Marrakech process on sustainable modes of consumption and production was launched in 2003 for a period of 10 years. The aim of this process is to make a drastic change in behaviours in order to preserve our planet's resources. The subject of this session, to be prepared and led by the UNEP, will be education in sustainable consumption and buying practices, sustainable tourism and sustainable lifestyles. These "task forces" are chaired by Italy, France and Sweden respectively.

The preparatory work will be carried out by the French committee with the support of the UNEP. Session with simultaneous translation in French and English.

At the end of each session there will be a summary review of each major topic, with proposals for the second part of the Decade. The summary reviews and proposals will be presented at the reporting and wrap-up session.

Posters

In addition to the exchanges in full sessions, workshops and on-stand presentations, delegates will be able to present posters on various topics relating to education in sustainable development.

Presentation stands

Conference delegates will have the use of a dedicated space to install stands presenting their work for the three days of the conference.

REGISTRATION PROCEDURE

To register for the Conference : accommodation and sessions
Registration for the conference and various sessions and hotel bookings must be made online at the following website :

• Conference registration :
Conference registration is free, but subject to approval by the organising committee. Delegates wishing to attend are asked to register as soon as possible after August 1st, 2008. Registration confirmation will be sent out by September 15, 2008 at the latest.

• Session registration :
When you register for the conference, you will be asked to register for the sessions of your choice by order of preference – from 1 to 3 - and to specify if you wish to speak or present a poster.

Submission of papers and posters

Delegates wishing to present a paper or a poster relating to the chosen topics must submit a summary (3000 characters max., Times 12, 1.5 line spacing) by e-mail to :

Acceptation will be sent out by September 15, 2008 at the latest.

Presentation stands

Delegates wishing to have a stand to present their work in the field of education, training and information relating to sustainable development must specify their request on their registration form. They must contact the organising committee by e-mail and submit their project, setting out in detail the content and presentation methods.

Expenses incurred for stand presentations are to be borne by the presenters and technical (surface area, electrical and other connections, etc.) and financial aspects are to be settled with the Convention Centre managers.

PRELIMINARY CONFERENCE SCHEDULE

Monday October 27, 2008 :

• Morning (9.30am-12.30pm) :
- Official conference opening
• Afternoon (2.30pm-6.30pm) : parallel sessions with workshops
- Session 1: ESD in the European Union
- Session 2: ESD and the French-speaking world
- Session 3: ESD and the media
- Session 4: Teaching resources

Tuesday October 28, 2008 :

• Morning (9.30am-12.30pm): parallel sessions with workshops
- Session 5: France's action in terms of ESD (part 1)
- Session 6: Regional coordination and ESD (part 1)
- Session 7: ESD in the Euro-Mediterranean basin.
• Afternoon (2.30pm-6.30pm): parallel sessions with workshops
- Session 5: France's action at national, European and international levels (part 2)
- Session 6: Regional coordination and ESD (part 2)
- Session 8: Education for sustainable consumption

Wednesday October 29, 2008 :

• Morning (9.30am-12.30pm): single session
- Wrap-up of work and list of proposals
• Afternoon (2.30pm-6.30pm): single session
- Final recommendations
- Full closing session

REGISTRATION CLOSING DATE

Closing date for registration is September 15, 2008
Full details of this colloquium are available on the French committee for the Decade's website :