Editorial

Welcome to another issue of IJSHE. We are pleased to document in this issue some interesting experiences on sustainability in higher education from across the world.

The first paper, prepared by Sally Crompton, Robin Roy and Sally Caird from the Open University in the United Kingdom, introduces a methodology dealing with household ecological footprinting, relating it to distance learning. It is followed by a paper by Neil Dewar and Karen Shippey from the University of Cape Town, South Africa, who describe trends related to environmental education at the tertiary level in South Africa.

Mark Starik and colleagues from George Washington University present an interesting paper on environmental project characterization, using four universities as examples. In a paper related to college and university performance in sustainability, Thomas Graedel from Yale University defines quantitative targets that may be used as reference points. As far as background research is concerned, David Eastwood and Jennifer Blumhof from the University of Hertfordshire, UK describe the experience of a UK benchmark statement, with a critical evaluation which includes considerations on its implications for assessing quality curricula. Finally, David Nobes, from Canterbury University in New Zealand describes its experiences with environmental science and the impact of the teaching on students' awareness of sustainability.

By the time this issue of IJSHE is published, we shall be entering the"post-Johannesburg" era. If one thing has become clear after the discussions which have preceded the UN Sustainable Development Summit, it is the fact that we are still a long way towards reaching a satisfactory level of sustainability. But, by the same measure, it is also clear that we are on the right path and this journal will continue to provide a Forum for the documentation and dissemination of works, projects, experiences and good practice.

Walter Leal Filho