This ESD meeting is very important not just for Indonesia but also for Asia-Pacific
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) meeting can improve cooperation in education in the Asia-Pacific, according to Early Childhood, Primary and Middle Education Director General at the Education, Culture, Research, and Technology Ministry Iwan Syahril.

The ESD meeting, an Asia-Pacific Regional-level meeting with 21 countries participating, was held by the ministry along with the Indonesian National Commission for UNESCO (KNIU) and the Japanese government in Bali on June 12-14.

"This ESD meeting is very important not just for Indonesia but also for Asia-Pacific," Syahril noted through a statement, Wednesday.

All during this time, the concept of ESD has been adopted by Indonesia through the Kurikulum Merdeka (Freedom in Curriculum) Program held by the ministry.

Kurikulum Merdeka is very flexible, with one of the reasons being that it encourages students to conduct learning relevant to real and sustainable living in society, he explained.

"Moreover, the Pancasila Student profile principle also motivates students to become part of global citizenship," Syahril stated.

This aligns with the stance of Interim Head of KNIU Itje Chodidjah who stated that the conference's main goal is to create a space to share initiatives that had been carried out by 14 countries in the Asia-Pacific, including Indonesia.

The result of this meeting will serve as a benchmark for Indonesia through KNIU and conduct curation of various good practices across Indonesia.

Moreover, the meeting serves as a platform to share various good practices on ESD in Indonesia that will be showcased to the world at the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) 2030 Forum.

Meanwhile, Japanese government representative Fumie Hara stated that education for sustainable development is an important aspect as an effort to create a better future for Asia-Pacific.

UNESCO ED/PSD/ESD Programme Specialist Mark Manns made assurance that his side will continue to encourage the organization's member countries to implement ESD in the national curriculum and policies.

The result of the 2030 ESD-Net Meeting will be a valuable input for discussion in the global 2030 ESD-Net meeting that will be held in Japan in December 2023.

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Translator: Astrid F H, Fadhli Ruhman
Editor: Sri Haryati
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