Ecological Sustainability and Steering of Finnish Comprehensive Schools

Abstract

With the climate catastrophe and biodiversity loss, our globe is facing enormous challenges: the basis of life on Earth is in danger. Eco-anxiety and global eco-social crises are also driving education to search for solutions to build a sustainable future, for instance the United Nations Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development views education as a key instrument for change. One of the key promises of the Finnish Ministry of Education is to commit to sustainable development, and the Finnish National Forum for Skills Anticipation states that important future skills should include knowledge of sustainable development. In national reports on how to carry out Agenda 2030, Finland has highlighted education as a key strength in meeting the sustainability goals. Yet the global goals of sustainability education fail to translate into concrete actions by the time they reach everyday life in Finnish schools. The 2014 Finnish national core curriculum for basic education is also insufficiently clear in the area of sustainability even though it expects sustainability to be included in school culture and teaching. In addition to this, the enactment of the curriculum in Finnish comprehensive schools meets various hindering and promoting cultural elements, which are interconnected. Change towards sustainability across levels of activity from high-level policy to everyday life within schools in Finland is complicated.