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Sustainability Education
The National Environmental Education Council (NEEC) was established in July 2000 as a central element of the Australian Government's National Action Plan for Environmental Education.
The purpose of the Council is to raise the profile of environmental education and provide expert advice to the Australian Government on environmental education issues, in particular on how Australians can move beyond environmental awareness to informed action.
Council members are drawn from a range of sectors. It is chaired by Paul Perkins, Adjunct Professor in Sustainability, Australian National University.
Meetings of the National Environmental Education Council are held three times a year. At each meeting, members are updated on key developments in the school, industry and further and higher education sectors. Other agenda items that are revisited each meeting include the Australian Research Institute in Education for Sustainability (ARIES) research and the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (UNDESD). The summaries listed below highlight some of the key issues raised within the individual meetings.
The Council is a non-statutory body providing expert advice to the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts and the Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts on the effectiveness and profile of the Australian Government's environmental education activities and environmental education issues nationally.
The Council is responsible for:
The Council meets at least twice each year. Council members are appointed for a term of two years and are remunerated in accordance with the appropriate determinations of the Remuneration Tribunal.
A focus for the Council in 2002-2003 was the establishment of Working Groups. Given its broad charter, members agreed that the Council's work would benefit from the contribution of a wider range of people with expertise in particular areas.
With the approval of the Minister for the Environment, Heritage and the Arts, individuals with expertise in the further and higher education, compulsory schooling and industry sectors were invited to join working groups relevant to their sector. The formation of the Further and Higher Education, Industry, and School Education Working Groups has considerably increased the capacity of the Council to address its charter.
The Working Groups meet as needed to discuss issues relevant to each sector. Deliberations and recommendations are then put forward to the full Council for endorsement.
The Council recognises the role and importance of community engagement in environmental education. A Community Working Group will be set up when the Council has capacity to expand its focus in this sector.
The Further and Higher Education Working Group (FHEWG) is working at the strategic level to assist universities and vocational education and training bodies to address the need for more integration of the principles of sustainable development into core curricula and for these institutions to set an example by the way in which they manage their facilities. More about the Further and Higher Education Working Group.
The Industry Working Group (IWG) has been actively involved in considering the main impediments to the adoption of sustainable practices by industry and business and how best to engage industry in change towards sustainability. More about the Industry Working Group.
The School Education Working Group (SEWG) has been exploring ways to work with the formal education system, through appropriate bodies, to determine how environmental education may be given a higher priority in the curriculum frameworks of States and Territories. More about the School Education Working Group.
In addition to working with environmental agencies from each State and Territory, the Council maintains a strong working relationship with other education bodies including the New South Wales Council on Environmental Education (NSW CEE). The NEEC and the NSW CEE have undertaken to work together on joint priorities in the school and tertiary education sectors and to identify opportunities for cooperative research partnerships.
To contact the Council or for further information, please contact:
National Environmental Education Council
Secretariat
Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts
GPO Box 787
Canberra ACT 2601
Phone: 02 6274 2872
Fax: 02 6274 2510