Chapter 9: Sustainability and Higher Education: Latin American Perspectives

In the Latin American context, the role of education for the necessary transformation has been addressed since the 1960s from different approaches, including Latin American Environmental Education (LAEE) and Latin American Environmental Thinking (PAL). Regional discussions have important implications for education, especially for higher education, since they pay attention to the coexistence of different epistemologies among the region (like indigenous) based on approaches such as dialogue of knowledge, participatory action research, etc. Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and Education for Sustainable Development Goals (ESDGs) have made enormous advances since its popularisation in recent decades; however, the work strategies around the environmental crisis must be addressed from a more contextualised perspective, which can be greatly nourished by Latin American perspectives. We carried out a documentary research in order to address what elements are key for the incorporation of sustainability in Latin American Higher Education Institutions (LAHEIs), analysing the corpus obtained (149 documents from around the world) in the light of LAEE and PAL. Results show the role given to higher education institution (HEIs), the pedagogical approaches, and the expected learning objectives related to sustainability according to ESD and ESDGs: some important elements and considerations are addressed according to LAEE and PAL.