With India and the world battling the three planetary crises of climate change, pollution, and loss of biodiversity, we believe that India can reset the paradigm for low-carbon, green and inclusive growth. It can play a leading role in reimagining and restoring our relationship with nature at this critical juncture when countries are reflecting on climate and biodiversity ambitions and dedicating themselves to a Decade of Ecosystem Restoration.

India has the largest youth population in the World. They are perhaps the most important stakeholder group and an important vehicle towards achieving the sustainable development goals as they are the innovators, creators, builders, and leaders of the future. But they can transform the future only if they have skills, good health and are empowered to make the right choices.

ICSE 2021 with its theme on ‘Education for Ecosystem Restoration’ offers a wonderful platform for examining efforts taken so far with youth on issues of sustainability, conservation and protection of our ecosystems and explore the way forward for a transformative learning that will lead us to a better future for humans and all other living beings.

On behalf of UNEP India, I wish the very best for the Conference and a meaningful discourse among all experts and organizations

Mr. Atual Bagai
Head, UN Environment Country Office, India

Pandemics, biodiversity loss, climate change, and pollution are four of many contemporary challenges related to sustainable human living. These issues are real, and they are of great concern for human survivability in times of continuous global population increase. Therefore, every activity (small, medium or large), that makes a contribution to raise awareness, to enhance knowledge, skills and education, and every activity that catalyzes science-based activities to improve the current situation, counts. All of us, every single one of us, we have to be part of the momentum to reduce these existing global problems, and take action to achieve better behavior, and better policies and science-based regulations.

Dr. Benno Böer
Natural Sciences Programme Specialist at UNESCO New Delhi

Protecting biodiversity is at the heart of UNESCO’s action. To rebuild humanity’s relationship with nature, UNESCO counts on the its Man and the Biosphere Programme, whose 50th anniversary we are celebrating this year.

In 714 UNESCO biosphere reserves around the world, including 12 in India, best practices of biodiversity conservation are being applied, with an emphasis on indigenous knowledge.

2021 also marks the beginning of the United Nations Decade on Ecosystem Restoration, and UNESCO is closely associated. The magnificent reservoir of nature-based solutions in the World network of Biosphere Reserves will now become more visible to the world, and it will undoubtedly inspire others to replicate these important best practices.

ICSE 2021, with its themes on ‘Education for Ecosystem Restoration’ and ‘Climate literacy’, surely has rich technical content and gives an opportunity to the professionals to showcase ideas, challenges, and solutions to preserve biodiversity and restore degraded ecosystems. It also offers a platform for young professionals to shape their career, and improve their knowledge on sustainability issues.

On behalf of UNESCO New Delhi, I wish the Conference, a grand success and wish all participants a great learning experience.

Eric Falt
Director and Representative
UNESCO New Delhi Cluster Office
for Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal,
the Maldives, and Sri Lanka

The planet is in a crisis. We need immediate and sustained action at all levels. Environment education (EE) needs to lead to action. Empowering children, youth and communities to take their own Handprint actions must become one of the main goals of EE and ESD.

Mr. Kartikeya Sarabhai
Founder and Director, Centre for Environment Education (CEE)

On behalf of Earth Day Network India, and EARTHDAY.ORG, congratulations to Mobius Foundation for taking the lead to put together this prestigious conference for the third year running. We are proud to continue to partner the event over the years. In today's world of unprecedented changes in climate, degraded green cover, an explosion of unmanaged waste, rapid reduction in species, loss of natural wealth, and air, soil and water pollution, Climate Education provides a critical foundation on which to build climate literacy and stewardship for the environment from a young age. With this in mind we call upon governments across the globe to mandate compulsory, assessed climate and environmental education that motivates all to play a major role to help ‘Restore Our Earth'.

Ms. Karuna A Singh
Regional Director Asia
EARTHDAY.ORG

Let me begin by extending my warmest wishes at this trying time.

We are together facing the biggest global crisis since the Second World War. Earth is entering the dangerous zone of being unsustainable and humans are the ones to be blamed. If our children grow-up with the same uncaring, unconcerned attitude as we have, humanity as we know it will cease to exist. It becomes very important that we must also think about recovery and addressing the inequalities and fragilities the virus has so painfully exposed. The planet cannot support our current lifestyle. We must be aware of what lies ahead of us. I am confident that if we start to act positively in direction of sustainable way of living, the strong resilience power of planet earth will surely get to a balance state. Our blueprint remains the Sustainable Development Goals.

Education is key to the global integrated framework of sustainable development goals. International conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE) is an initiative to create youth as advocates of sustainability, at the age when they can be moulded into one. ICSE-2019 has been successfully able to set the tone of discussion and dialogues with clear objective of delivering outcome of awareness, education and catching the success stories related to environment concerns. To keep up with the momentum, 2nd ICSE-2020 was organised through virtual mode, where pandemic generated situation was kept in centre of discussion and topics like Sustainability Education and the New Normal and Sustainability Education and the Youth was discussed through several frames like New Education policy, Girl’s education and its linkage with sustainability etc.

We are now going to organise 3rd International Conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE) on 9-10 September 2021 through virtual platform. In line with UN decade (2021-2030) on Ecosystem Restoration, the first day of the ICSE 2021 will therefore focus on the theme “Education for Ecosystem Restoration”. The deliberations of the 2nd day will be devoted to the theme of “Climate Literacy.

I extend my sincere wishes for the success of this conference and believe that this conference will surely deliver the outcomes of education, awareness and insight building in direction of attaining sustainable future.

Thank you. Stay safe. Good health to you and your families. Let’s all take care of each other

Pradip Burman
Chairman of Mobius Foundation

International Conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE) brings an opportunity for a deep discussion on educational challenges and opportunities through sustainability aspects. It is a valuable forum to learn, exchange know-how and get inspired. We want to share this knowledge also with a group of Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) who are active participants but also journalists spreading the message around the world.

Mr. Pramod Sharma
International YRE Director at FEE

In these changing times, it is imperative that all stakeholders working in the sector of education for sustainability deliberate upon the direction and areas that need impetus. We will succeed only if we adopt the best practices and collaborate to reach every educator paving the way for sustainability education. The ICSE conference is a step towards that.

Ms. Radhika Suri
Director Education, WWF India

"Welcome to the 3rd Edition of ICSE 2021!

International Conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE) is a flagship initiative of Mobius Foundation which was conceptualised in partnership with some of the world’s leading environment and sustainability organizations, educators and leaders.

The first ICSE was successfully organised on 9-10, September, 2019 in New Delhi. The conference received overwhelming response from over 750 attendees from over 40 countries which included sustainability educators, leaders, policy makers, teachers and practitioners from across the disciplines and professions. The proceedings of the conference not only echoed a common cause for betterment of environment in which we live in but also resulted in forming a network of sustainability professionals, educators, leaders, policy makers, teachers and practitioners from across the disciplines and professions with whom we are connected and interact on regular basis. This connect of common cause has been a driving force for all of us which keeps us looking forward to ICSE with great interest.

While, the global sustainability community along with us were looking forward to welcome the year 2020 as the remarkable year for environment and sustainability, the unprecedented COVID pandemic and lock down as its preventive measure caused huge social, economic and educational disruption apart from serious health impacts. Therefore, the second version of ICSE-2020 was organised in a modest way through virtual mode. The main topics of discussion for Day 1 and Day 2 were “sustainability education and the new normal” and “sustainability education and the youth” respectively. ICSE-2020 was able to keep the momentum and motivation to look forward for the future with much promise and possibilities.

Though we face the third wave of COVID in 2021, our point of encouragement and inspiration to carry forward the motives of ICSE remains the same which is undoubtedly the interest and determinations of our partners and participants of previous two versions of ICSE. We along with our partner organisations are now going to conduct 3rd edition of ICSE-2021 on September, 9 -10 2021 through State-of -the-Art virtual platform. Through this virtual platform we have tried our best to make very exciting experience for the participants wherein they will experience the physical feel of delivering Plenary lectures in an auditorium, panel discussions/ deliberations/poll events in 11 theme based dedicated parallel session halls, showcasing of products and contents through stalls within the exhibition halls, networking lounge, poster presentation area, chat rooms, selfie zone etc. This conference will cover two themes i.e Ecosystem Restoration and Climate Literacy under which 11 sub themes ranging from School education to Nature Connect will be covered through parallel sessions. These themes are aligned to Sustainable Development Goals.

I am confident that ICSE-2021 will be able to explore the pathways to address current and emerging sustainability challenges through education by empowering learners with new skills, values and attitudes that lead to more sustainable societies.

Dr. Ram Boojh
Convener, ICSE 2021
Chief Executive Officer, Mobius Foundation

It is an honor to speak at The International Conference on Sustainability Education. Sustainability is “The ability for a species to survive in perpetuity without depleting its resources or damaging the environment in which it exists.” The truth is we humans are a very successful species and like any other species that adapt successfully to their environment they eventually overshoot their resources, what ecologists call the carrying capacity of the environment and they must eventually either move or contract. The problem is we have run out of places to go and new areas to exploit. We have invaded every corner of the globe and we must recognize this fact, begin to contract voluntarily, and live within the means of one planet. We have to be massive cheerleaders for a better, safer, less-crowded and more sustainable world.

Mr. Terry Spahr
Executive Director, Earth Overshoot

I am quite optimistic that the 3rd International Conference on Sustainability Education (ICSE) will be an effective platform for convergence of global leaders, educators, researchers, and policymakers to discuss about ecosystem restoration to create an enlightened citizenry for concrete action on climate change. I am delighted that TERI is partnering with Mobius Foundation in organization of this conference since its inception. I believe this conference will be instrumental in building momentum and interest for uptake of sustainability education and help in transforming sustainable development into a reality for our younger generations.

Dr. Vibha Dhawan
Director General, TERI