Words by Smiley Team
The Sustainable Development Goals (SGDs) are 17 ‘Global Goals’ that set out targets to end poverty, protect the planet, and achieve prosperity for all by 2030.
A student charity – SOS-UK’s – runs what’s called a ‘SDG Teach In’. It’s a campaign to put the SDGs, and therefore sustainability, at the heart of all aspects of education and across all disciplines by encouraging educators to include them in their teaching and learning.
The fifth annual SDG Teach In ended on March 11th, 2022. This year's was the largest yet - with 772 educators from 134 institutions around the world pledged to incorporate the SDGs in teaching and learning for 3 weeks, reaching an estimated 141,369 students.
The annual campaign runs in February/March of each year, and calls upon educators to include the SDGS within their teaching, learning and assessment during the campaign (and beyond!).
“The Teach In spans the formal, informal and subliminal curriculum, at all stages of education and all disciplines, so educators of all kinds can take part” says the charity.
“You can incorporate the SDGs in any way you like, but we encourage solutions-focused and participatory learning that is relevant to your discipline.”
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The five aims of the Teach In are to: raise awareness of the importance of sustainable development; catalyse curriculum reform and test new ideas; embed sustainability and social responsibility across all learning; link teaching, learning, and assessment to local and global concerns; and prepare students with the knowledge, skills, and attributes to tackle the world's greatest challenges.
SOS students for students organising for sustainability. It’s a student-led education charity focusing on sustainability. “We know environmental sustainability cannot be achieved in isolation, so our work spans across issues of justice and wellbeing as well,” they say.
“We believe in lifelong learning and work on sustainability across all forms of education from early years to workplace learning. We act as a support crew - facilitating, encouraging and mentoring people wherever they are on their sustainability journey in sustainability.”
They want to see more students leading on, and learning for, sustainability, as well as an education system repurposed around the climate emergency and ecological crisis.
The charity was created by students and staff at the National Union of Students (UK) in 2019 in response to the climate emergency and ecological crisis.
FIND OUT MORE: Want to embed the SDGs in your education work? Check out SOS-UK’s resource page with case studies, articles and other helpful information.
JOIN: Join SOS-UK for an online session to hear the outcomes from the Teach In and the 2022 campaign report and facilitate a space to share reflections and learnings from the campaign.
