ABSTRACT
Following the denition of sustainable development by the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), education for sustainable development (ESD) reorients education to address multi-disciplinary issues to ensure that present-day development does not compromise the ability of future generations to meet their own needs. is multi-disciplinary focus encompasses the environment, economy, and society at large. To eectively engage in ESD, higher education institutions (HEIs) must reconsider their programs, operation, research, and public outreach. In particular, HEIs’ role to educate and train future professionals and leaders in many sectors of society is critical in realizing sustainable development. is consideration is timely. e increase in the number of institutes embarking on higher education for sustainable development (HESD) has led to the development of various HESD networks/forums. Importantly, many of these are international networks that operate as cross-border partnerships. e aim of this chapter is to understand the role and promise of international networks as a model of cross-border collaboration in higher education. ese networks consist of (a) agencies that undertake initiatives and contribute their own resources for network development, and (b) other participants, who are members of these agencies. An underlying principle is that collective actions of the network need not be based on an equal contribution of all actors.
