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Utrecht sa- hans van ginkel
- 1. Rising to the Occasion Roles of Universities in EfSD Dr. Hans van Ginkel Honorary Professor Utrecht University, The Netherlands
- 2. The cyclone andfloods in the Irrawaddy-delta and the earthquake in Sichuan are just two recent, horrific examples of the unquestionable trend that (un)natural disasters are on the increase, both in frequency and in impacts. Our common future is under threat.
- 3. The two examplesalready indicate that our environmental risks go well beyond climate change and include risks of a geo-tectonic and a human nature.
- 4.
- 5. Our Changing World Salvador Dali: The Child Watches the Birth of New Man (1943)
- 6. Challenges of OurTimes Core Processes Leading to Change Globalization and Localization Increasing frequency and impact of environmental hazards Development of the knowledge society Growing importance of ethics and values
- 7. Challenges of OurTimes Main Challenges 1. World governance, peace and security 2. Climate change, risk and vulnerability 3. Globalization and urbanization 4. Global health 5. International crime and terrorism 6. Ethics, values and inter-cultural leadership 7. Fragile ecosystems, access and benefit-sharing
- 8. Precious Niche ofUNU = given by the two parts of its name: United Nations and University Being a university provides the autonomy and independence that guarantee its objectivity and integrity; Being United Nations focuses the work of UNU on the agenda of UN: peace, security, governance; development, environment and the related science and technology.
- 9. Mission of UNU “tocontribute, through research and capacity development, to efforts to resolve the pressing global problems that are the concern of the United Nations, its Peoples and Member States.”
- 10. Some main contributionsto UN Some examples: 1. Programmatic 2. Conceptual Human and Social Development Development as Freedom Growth Standards for Children Human Security Water “Crisis” Horizontal Inequalities Mega-cities Responsibility to Protect Land degradation Zero Emissions Access and Benefit sharing Inter-linkages Risk and Vulnerability Agro-Biodiversity Regional Integration
- 11. Core Messages at World Conferences (1) 1. WCHE, Paris Real innovation in (higher) education must come from within ( GUNI, Barcelona) 2. WSSD, Johannesburg Inter-linkages (widely accepted) Subsidiarity ( partnerships) Concrete topics ( WEHAB) To be successful in ESD: education and educators must be taken serious ( DESD)
- 12. Core Messages at World Conferences (2) 3. Third World Water Forum, Kyoto • All engineering leads to more engineering think first, e.g. Aral Sea, Arsenic Pollution in Bangladesh ( World Water Week, Stockholm) • Related: e-governance with respect to water issues 4. WCDR, Kobe • Next disaster will be different again: “imagine the un-imaginable” ( quick start of UNU-EHS, modeling studies UNU- ESD; global consortium on floods, IFI, as well as one on landslides)
- 13. + RCEs +Online Learning Projects RCE Rhine Meuse RCE Greater Sendai RCE Toronto RCE Barcelona RCE Tongyeong Global Virtual University RCE Jordan RCE Okayama REDMESO Asia Pacific Initiative Biological Water Virtual RCE Penang Conservation Learning Centre RCE Pacific
- 14. United Nations University Keio University University of Ryukyu Asia Human Development & Environment Curriculum Introduction Coral Reef Management MEAs & Environmental Governance Kyoto Protocol: Negotiations & Landscape Diversity and Ecosystem Pacific Water Resource Managm’t Sustainable Agriculture Impacts Functions of Coral Reefs Coastal Zone Planning Initiative University of Hawaii Earth Observing Technologies Climate Change Integrated Coastal Zone Management Sustainable Development Planning Island Land Use Planning Thailand Sustainable Agriculture Asian Institute of Technology Integrated Water Resource Management Poverty Alleviation in the Greater Mekong Asian Development Bank Additional Lectures National University FASID Economic Development in the University of the of Samoa JiCA Greater Mekong and Pacific Islands South Pacific East-West Center Water Resource Management Terrestrial, Freshwater and Marine Research Institute for the Sub- Land and Marine based Chemical Tropics Biogeography Pollution Pacific Is. Global Ocean Observing Sustainable Fisheries Waste Water and Solid Waste System Community Based Marine Management Int’l Society for Mangrove Conservation Sustainable Agriculture Ecosystems1
- 15. Climate change, risk andvulnerability
- 16. Climate change, risk andvulnerability
- 17. Climate change, risk andvulnerability
- 18. Climate change, risk andvulnerability
- 19.
- 20. Climate change, riskand vulnerability Events 830 • Africa 476 Death toll >10 million • Asia 7.7 million Financial loss >60 billion • Asia 16.1 billion
- 21. Climate change, riskand vulnerability Events 2,777 • Asia 1,155 Death toll 6.9 million • Asia 6.7 million Financial loss >345 billion US$ • Asia >200 billion US$
- 22. Climate change, riskand vulnerability Events 806 • Asia 456 Death toll >2 million • Asia >1.3 million Financial loss >415 billion US$ • Asia >183 billion US$ N.B. Windstorms: Death toll in Asia >1 million Financial loss in Americas >325 billion US$
- 23. Creeping Disasters Land Degradation(1) Affects 23% of the landscape under human use, including about 60% of the area of Africa and Asia Each year an additional 20 million hectares of agricultural land becomes too degraded for crop production or is lost to other uses
- 24. Creeping Disasters Land Degradation(3) Prevention and reversal of land degradation fosters the achievement of UN Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) and the objectives of major global environment conventions
- 25. Shrinking of theAral Sea May 29, 1973 August 19, 1987 July 29, 2000
- 26. Climate change, riskand vulnerability Increase of Exposure (in money terms) Disasters 1950-1960 1990-2000 ------------------------------------------------- ---- Number 20 82 ------------------------------------------------- ---- Losses US$38 billion US$535 billion
- 27. Human Security People first; (Un)naturaldisasters claim more casualties than war and violence; (Un)natural disasters are on the increase: during the 1990s more than 3 times as many natural disasters as in the 1960s ∴ Guiding Principle: Dimensions of (human) in-security
- 28. Environmental Individual and Risk Collective Vulnerability ∴ (Un)Natural Disasters Prevention Infrastructural Solutions Mitigation Early Warning Relief Communication Resilience Social Organization
- 29. Approaches to ReduceRisks define acceptable risks to each society prioritize strengthening critical infrastructure including lifelines, such as energy and water supplies, transportation develop policies to promote incremental strengthening of infrastructure through legislation and incentives find ways to share risks through financial and insurance mechanisms develop safety nets to support recovery after disasters
- 30. Education for SustainableDevelopment: a Vehicle to Build Winning Alliances A multi disciplinary approach Research on ‘hard’ – meaning infrastructure and ‘soft’ – meaning non-structural measures, to develop effective policies and innovative solutions An educated public supporting long term measures Community participation and support in strategic development agenda that incorporate disaster risk reduction in development planning
- 31. Decade of Education forSustainable Development (DESD) Proposed in JPOI (2005-2014) Adopted by UN General Assembly in 2002 The International Implementation Scheme (IIS) for DESD was approved in Sep. 2005. Governments are invited to consider the measures to implement DESD in their educational strategies and action plans.
- 32. DESD Vision Creation ofthe Global Learning Space for EfSD, based on RCEs Create a world where everyone has the opportunity to benefit from quality education and learn the values, behavior and lifestyles required for a sustainable future and for positive societal transition.
- 33. Regional Centers ofExpertise on EfSD Formal Education Non-Formal Education (Research centers) Knowledge-related institutions Universities Universities (Science) museums Secondary Secondary Botanical gardens Schools Schools Nature parks Vertical links Lateral links Primary Primary Local Governments Schools Schools Community Leaders Media Horizontal links Local Businesses Local NGOs
- 34. 12 Previously AcknowledgedRCEs and 23 New RCEs Greater Sudbury Rhine-Meuse Saskatchewan Toronto Barcelona Tongyeong Grand Rapids Greater Sendai Jordan Yokohama Okayama Cebu Ghana Greater Penang Nairobi Pacific Island Countries Kwa-Zuku Natal Curitiba-Parana Makana & Rural Eastern Cape
- 35. About Knowing You Know It is just not what you see, you know • “New Society”: ... new challenges • Surprise:………… be prepared • Engineering:…… never stops • Complexity:…….. respect nature • Education:……… WEHAB
- 36. Sea Level Rise Peopleat risk from a 44 cm sea-level rise by the 2080’s assuming 1990s level of flood protection
- 37. Surprise … 100 39, Moisture overland Precipitation on 61 land Evaporation on Land 424 385 Evaporation from Precipitation on Interflow ocean ocean 38 Unconfined Aquifer Surface Flow 1 Confined Aquifer groundwater Flow Our knowledge of hydrological cycle, is not complete at the local scale. Increasing water stresses will ultimately alter the fragile balances through withdrawal, springing surprises. Ground water contamination (arsenic, salt water),
- 38. Increased Flood vulnerability due to land subsidence in Tokyo Area below normal low tide Area below normal high tide Area below abnormal high tide Present embankment to protect subsided areas
- 39. Is it alwayspossible? Underground Flood Diversion tunnel
- 40. Need to lookfor sustainable solutions Restoration of water cycle through artificial infiltration and onsite retention
- 41.
- 42. “Glass City” inThe Netherlands
- 43. An important decisionfor the G-8 to take in Hokkaido would be to agree that in all their countries in all curricula from primary to higher education elements of EfSD must be included in a thoughtful, systematic way, as was already done e.g. in Sweden.
- 44. Another important strategicdecision would be that all agree to systematically support the formation of RCEs in all G-8 countries, as has already been decided by Japan in its EfSD policy.