ABSTRACT
This chapter examines this social foundation from an educational perspective, in terms of the development sectors most closely associated with people and their physical, mental, emotional, and social wellbeing; namely, health, nutrition, water and sanitation (WASH). It explores the relationship between education and these development sectors. The chapter includes education and health; education and nutrition; education and water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH); and promoting individual wellbeing through education. Research has demonstrated a strong link between poor mental and physical health in adolescence and the disruption of educational attainment and employment pathways. Globally, healthy life expectancy (HALE) is increasing, though more slowly than life expectancy, with the number of healthy years lost to disability on the rise in most countries. The education sector has a key role to play in countering this crisis and the other obstacles to meeting the sustainable development targets in a number of direct and indirect ways.
