From Rags to Riches...and not sitting still

So what I have learnt about myself over the past 35 years is that when I am stressed - I can't sit still! Five weeks ago I handed in my thesis on sustainability in design education to my supervisor and then planned to rest and relax until I got it back. I feel like the last 2 years of my study have been exhausting - but what did I do? I accidentally created a range of clothing made from old scraps of fabric.... haha! So nope - I cannot sit still. I even surprise myself sometimes (but probably not surprising for my partner and for my close friends, who all shook their heads, saying - weren't you going to rest? some however were squealing with delight (those with little ones anyway)!

This thing called sustainability...

Sustainability for me is a way of thinking and acting. It is not one thing over another, it is decision-making that over arches just about everything I do. In education for sustainability I do not believe it is about forcing people to "come around to my way of thinking", instead it is about opening up their ways of thinking that challenge norms, through asking deeper questions, making connections between communities of people and building relationships for the betterment of societies.

I personally shy away from the idea that sustainability is about pointing at people/products/actions and saying - you are wrong, that action is wrong - and therefore you must do this to be right. Rather, I would like to think that I could calmly talk to the group responsible for the product/action/environment and ask - have you thought about the consequences of this action in 10/20/50 years time?

About me

I am currently waiting for feedback from my supervisor on my 108,000 word thesis. I am sick of theorising about sustainability and writing in depth about what it is and what I know, so I have avoided joining the blogging world for so long. However, in these 21 days since I handed it all in to my 'super' I have found that I am actually quite keen to get it out there.... my ideas that is, my pontification about this complex subject that has been bugging me for the past 4.5 years.

So here I am, blogging about this thing called sustainability.

Who am I and how do I qualify to join in this discussion? Well, I am currently doing bits and pieces of work for the Otago Polytechnic, as the Education for Sustainability Advisor - meaning I am helping the institution include sustainability into the curriculum, but more importantly, into the decision making processes of teachers.

I run a wiki-educator course about Education for Sustainability, I give lectures about the subject to staff and students, and I consult with businesses about what this means and what they can do to include it in their thinking.