On November 1-3, 2023, a youth conference took place as part of the Education for Sustainability project, led by Rannís on behalf of the Nordic Council of Ministers in collaboration with Samfés. Over 70 young people from all Nordic countries and autonomous regions of the Nordic countries attended the conference.
The topic of the conference was to hear the voices of young people and get their opinions on how schools address sustainability and how sustainability can be integrated with the existing curriculum.
The young people who attended the conference worked together in workshops and came to a conclusion about the steps they believe are essential for a sustainable future. They emphasized that, first and foremost, information and skills are required in order to address the challenges that society faces. They wanted to do this by creating a special subject that deals with sustainability alone but also emphasised that the skills and abilities of teachers in the field need to be strengthened. Their third suggestion was to give students and young people further opportunities to have an impact on their own future and express their views.
The results were presented to the Minister of Education and Children, Ásmundur Einar Daðason, at a formal event. In the picture, the minister receives the group’s results.
The visiting youth also had the chance to connect and explore Iceland through a variety of formal and informal programs, with a focus on experiencing Icelandic culture and nature.
Iceland holds the presidency of the Nordic Council of Ministers, and this event was part of Iceland’s presidency plan.
Here, you can access the results of the group: Young people and the future Education for Sustainable development
The project Education for sustainability has established a cooperation network in and between the Nordic countries that works to integrate sustainability into the teaching of all school levels. Education for sustainability is one of six projects designed to implement the vision of the Nordic countries becoming the most sustainable and integrated region on earth by 2030. Here you can read more about the six projects under Sustainable Living.
