“Is green development a contradiction or an opportunity? The skills perspective”

Deutsche Welle Global Media Forum, Bonn, Germany

UNESCO-UNEVOC was invited to host a workshop on “Green development – a contradiction or an opportunity?” at the Global Media Forum in Bonn, Germany, on 25 June 2012.

The Global Media Forum takes place every year and is hosted by Deutsche Welle, Germany’s international broadcasting service. This year, it took place under the patronage of the German Commission for UNESCO. In over 50 panel discussions and workshops under the theme of “Education. Culture. Media. Shaping a Sustainable World”, the three-day Forum aimed to provide a platform for debate on the right to education, skills and cultural diversity, and the role of the media in shaping sustainable societies. 1800 participants from 100 countries – educators, policy makers and journalists – were expected, including German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle and former Indonesian President Jusuf Habibie.

UNEVOC workshop

The panellists of the UNEVOC workshop debated on the question, “Is green development a contradiction or an opportunity?”

Mr Shyamal Majumdar, Head of UNESCO-UNEVOC, was the host and moderator of the workshop. He presented the mandate and role of the United Nations in green development and why its member states consider green skills an important theme that can make the shift towards a low-carbon economy happen. He also gave an overview of the role of UNESCO in implementing the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005-2014).

Ms Shobha Mishra Ghosh from the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry was first to speak, presenting the perspective of the industry and the demand for qualified workers with green skills, displaying a definite need of training in this area.

Next to take the floor was Prof. Rajesh Khambayat of the National Institute of Technical Teachers' Training and Research, Department of Education and Research, Bhopal, India. He responded to Ms Ghosh’s presentation by offering the perspective from the formal education sector, the supply side. His presentation was centred on three main concerns: how to prepare the workforce for a green economy; how to respond to business needs; and how to educate for green jobs.

Laila Iskandar, Chair of Community and Institutional Development (CID) Consulting provided an alternative angle to the discussion: the community perspective. She shared her experiences in Egypt leading a waste recycling project with youth in Cairo. This uncovered some harsh realities, but also presented the project as a means to equip the poorest youth with market-based vocational skills and learning that will help them live in sustainable ways and contribute to the development of their communities.

The last panellist was Armin Himmelrath, freelance journalist specializing in education, whose presentation highlighted the contribution of the media in building better awareness on green skills and environmental issues. He presented the realities of the newsroom in getting environmental themes published and found that, ironically, demand for environmental themes declines as public awareness on the environment rises.

After hearing from the panellists, a 30 minute open discussion took place, with many questions from the audience to all members of the panel. The questions were varied in theme, and instigated a great discussion amongst the panellists who offered different perspectives to the questions posed.

The session ended with some concluding remarks by Mr Majumdar, who summarized the main points discussed during the workshop as:

the need to integrate green skills into existing occupations;
the gap between the demand and supply sides of the green economy;
the education sector lagging behind green technological advances;
the importance of integrating green skills in TVET and;
the vital role of non-formal and informal education systems in sustainable development.

Photos of the workshop

Sound recording of the workshop

Final report

More information about the workshop (Global Media Forum website)

Panellists

Shobha Mishra Ghosh
Director, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, New Delhi, India

Prof. Rajesh Khambayat
National Institute of Technical Teachers' Training and Research, Department of Education and Research, Bhopal, India

Laila Iskandar
Chair, Community and Institutional Development (CID) Consulting, Cairo, Egypt

Armin Himmelrath
Freelance journalist, Cologne, Germany

Shyamal Majumdar (Moderator)
Head of the UNESCO-UNEVOC International Centre for Technical and Vocational Education and Training, Bonn, Germany