Five Elements in Education for Sustainability from Tilbury T and Wortman D 2004 Engaging people in sustainability Commission on Education and Communication, IUCN, Gland Switzerland and Cambridge UK.

	What?		Examples	Challenges
Imagining a better future	Individuals envision what they wish the future to look like. This can be done in a variety of ways. Individuals are then asked questions that uncover personal beliefs, biases and assumptions. Tasks that require individuals to imagine a better future moves away from the negativity that can be associated with Environmental Education. Individuals are also required to question their visions.		Future trees- individuals consider the possible future impacts of a change. The change is drawn on a tree trunk with the impacted groups as the main branches and the consequences as smaller branches stemming from the main branches. A history of the future- Individuals imagine themselves living in a more sustainable future 50 years from the present. Individuals then construct a visual history of how the change came to be. Timelines- Personal, community or national timeline. Important past events are put on a timeline with an alternative scenario for the future built onto the timeline. Other examples- Steps to Change, alternative  futures cartoons, scenario construction.	May be confronting for those who are not used to sharing their personal views. As such tasks may need to be adapted. For example: Discussing visions in small groups and having the option to volunteer visions in a whole group structure.
Critical Thinking and Reflection	Individuals examine how they interpret the world and what influences their interpretation. Individuals come to understand how our views can be influenced by others, media, advertising and politics. Allows individuals to understand how our views can be shaped by outside influences and how this relates to sustainability. Self-Reflection allows individuals to clarify values.		Questioning advertisements- What am I being sold? What qualities is it attributing to the product? How might this advertisement affect the way we think? Reflective Journal Bloom’s Taxonomy of higher order thinking.	Self-reflection and critical thinking can be challenging for those who have not been involved in such a process before. Open ended questioning is needed. Individuals may be confronted by their long held beliefs and values being determined by outside influences.
Participation in Decision Making	Participations involves all members of society in decision making. It is a shared process free from manipulation or passive involvement. Involves the government, industry, community groups and individuals. It is a learner centred and learner guided practice with the educator as facilitator. Through interaction and dialogue learners build a deeper understanding of their values and beliefs. Individuals build confidence, persuasion skills, negotiation skills, thinking through problems and leadership skills.		Participatory Mapping- Does not require literacy. Effective group work- Each member of the group having a role with scenarios to work on. Each new activity group members change roles. Roles- Leader, Scribe, researcher, presenter.	Time consuming and change can be slow. Requires patience, commitment and willingness to put decisions in the hands of learners. Facilitators need to have skills in conflict management and be aware of power structures within participants. Challenges power structures present within participants.
Partnerships	Partnerships allow for combination of resources and talents. They break hierarchies and motivate action for the future. Stakeholders work collaboratively.			Requires time and persistence. Must be transparent at all times. Each stakeholder must be represented. Commitment and motivation of partners must be maintained over time.
Systemic Thinking		An alternative way of traditional ways of thinking. No longer analysing and understanding things by taking them apart. It is interdisciplinary and participative. A holistic way of thinking. Problems are not looked at separately but interconnected. It looks at assumptions, patterns and connections. 3 Parts- Perception- extending our view point beyond what we can see, Conception- recognising patterns and connections, Action- action is holistic and integrates.	What’s in a Name?- Looks at how labeling an issue can affect our perceptions, eg ‘economic issue’. Learners name an environmental issue. It is not suggested to be local, national or global. Write topics on the board without dissuasion. Choose one that will be looked at in this activity. Divide learners into groups. Using pre-prepared cards with a label on it, hand one to each group. Eg. A label could state economic, social, ethical, political, human rights, intergenerational etc. This is then said to the group: ‘You have defined an environmental issue. But is it only an environmental issue? In this activity, you will explore it by thinking about it in different terms too.’ Each group is asked to discuss their label in relation to their environmental issue. Each group is then asked to speak to the class as a whole about their label stating first: ‘This issue is an (their given label) issue because….’ While they speak construct a spider diagram on the board to illustrate main points. Once each group has shared their findings with the class, question: What sort of issue is this environmental problem? (It may now been seen from many perspectives) How has the use of many labels changed how you see this environmental issue? Is there such thing as only an ‘environmental’ issue?	Children appear to think this way quite naturally but as they progress through the education system it appears to disappear.