4 minute read
EDUCATION
Sustainability in schools
Danny Harrington, founder and Director of ITS Education Asia on the latest key part of the school choice process
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School selection in Hong Kong has undergone a huge transformation over the last 15 years, as the number of international schools has grown and the range of people considering them has broadened. Before that, it was often a case of which ESF catchment do I fall in? Or, where do my friends’ children go to school? Now we are all aware of considering a variety of elements such as school size, class size, curriculum, facilities, location, ethos and so on. I think we should now unquestionably add an element with at least equal importance to these for the 21st century - sustainability.
Sustainability is now very much at the forefront of mainstream consciousness. The terrible outcomes of our unsustainable approaches through (especially) the last 50 years are now at the top of the media stories we consume every day; be they economic hardships, social inequalities, or, of course, environmental impacts. The idea of a sustainable approach to modern and future life has also gained prominence, especially
with the United Nations.
Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provide an overarching framework for inter-governmental discussion and policymaking, all of which filters down to us at community level. And schools are very much communities. It makes sense, therefore, that schools should consider sustainability in a range of ways so that they can be confident that they are sustainable in themselves and that they are contributing to a sustainable world around them. But ultimately, this all comes down to us as individuals. Our actions and behaviours contribute to the level of sustainability we achieve and our opinions and demands contribute to how communities and governments act, creating, ideally, a virtuous circle of action and policy to move us into a more sustainable future.
The last few years have seen huge strides in the Hong Kong international school community to address these issues of sustainability. And what has been very pleasing has been the way in which so much of this has been student driven. In my mind, youth voices, initiatives and actions are key characteristics of a vibrant, modern, sustainable community. The days of dismissing teenagers as “too young” or “too inexperienced” are over. This generation is digitally native, extremely well-informed, better educated at an earlier stage and is engaged with global crises, angry that they have happened and determined to do something about it.
We see a range of student initiatives at many schools: the sustainability audit at CIS driven by Drop in the Ocean (DITO); Wanbo at Island School; the Global Goals Council (GGC) at CDNIS, to name just a few. ESF schools all have a staff member appointed as Sustainability Rep and the ESF has engaged with The Nature Conservancy to create NatureWorks across all ESF schools. Many schools have installed solar panels, are looking at water recycling, dealing with the types of stationery they purchase, banning single-use plastic and so on. This is a wonderful range of advocacy and action.
Increasingly, we are also seeing SDG Education creep into the curriculum. This is harder as schools have to prioritise their core curriculum such as A-level or IB, but it is possible. There are opportunities within certain subjects like Geography to use the SDGs as a framework for existing curriculum content. Some schools have allowed their PSHE lessons to be used for SDG education sessions. At my own school, we have initiated a full SDG oriented programme called the Young Changemaker Incubator and also taken on a range of UN courses to make SDG Education more directly accessible to students who want it, both those enrolled with us or any other student in Hong Kong who wishes to do it as a cocurricular activity.
The sustainability activity of a school now needs to be a high-priority element in parents’ reasons for choosing it. This is one of the many ways we , as parents, can actively do our part in driving sustainability ever forward. Schools will accelerate their drive to be sustainable and to teach the SDGs Our children will become even more engaged and be “sustainability natives” so that their choices and actions as individuals, employees and business owners, and policy-makers in the future are sustainably minded.
A true talent
Patrick Ho, on using visual records for school interviews
Students endure endless hours of practice until at long last, they obtain the coveted certification, a hallmark of their achievement. Yet, with countless Grade 8 pianists, musicians, athletes, artists, how can one truly distinguish themselves? In a school application, you can only merely list out performances or competitions you’ve taken part in or certificates you have achieved. There is little room to physically showcase your artistic talents as you cannot sing or start drawing in the middle of a school interview. That is why you should make a visual record of your work. As schools increasingly embrace technology, many schools now welcome students to submit an electronic portfolio as part of their application. You can upload your artistic or sporting performances on a video streaming platform, showcase your artwork or share your written work on a blog. Start recording your electronic footprint now as it will come in handy.
As a Senior Admissions Counselor, Patrick Ho has over 10 years of experience in the education consulting industry. His mission is to empower students to be the best they can be. Contact him via
