ABSTRACT
The presented doctoral study is assigned to the research field of education for sustainable development (ESD). ESD is understood as a politically motivated programme, which has been supported and promoted by numerous international political conventions and agreements, such as the Halifax Declaration in 1991, Agenda 21 as a result of the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and the Decade for Education for Sustainable Development (2005–2014), led by UNESCO. ESD aims to promote learning which develops skills such as ‘Gestaltungskompetenz’ (de Haan 2008, 2006; Barth et al. 2007), ‘Values, Knowing, Skills, Understanding’ (Parkin et al. 2004), and ‘Heads, Hands, and Heart’ (Sipos et al. 2008). The ultimate objective is to help learners develop competences and skills that are conducive to social transformation processes (in terms of sustainable development) (e.g. Barth and Michelsen 2013; Wals 2010).
