Even during a pandemic, K-8 teachers gathered virtually to explore how today’s challenges affect everyone during an institute on sustainable development this fall.
By using the UN Sustainable Goals Framework, participants of the K-8 Institute on Using the UN Sustainable Development Goals explored how today's pressing challenges are experienced in local communities and around the world. The second part of the institute this fall followed a webinar in June and spanned four weeks. Due to the challenges associated with COVID-19 and the need for teachers to adapt to their districts' chosen instructional models, organizers had to be creative in designing professional development that would be meaningful and transformational without adding additional responsibilities for the teachers – resulting in some live presentations, while other were filmed and could be watched at whatever time was most convenient. Sessions were organized around three large topics: people (social sustainability), planet (environmental sustainability) and prosperity (economic sustainability).