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Issue 25 : June 2003

Ubuntu Group holds
first working session

The first working meeting of the Ubuntu Group, a strategic alliance between the world’s leading education, science and technology organizations working toward achieving the goals of sustainable development, was held at UNU Centre, Tokyo, April 16.

At the World Summit on Sustainable Development in Johannesburg last year, representatives of these organizations  signed the Ubuntu Declaration, an agreement in which the members pledged to promote sustainable development through education at all levels – from primary to tertiary.  Signatories also committed their organizations to strengthening the use of science and technology for sustainable development in education.

Signatories to the Ubuntu Declaration are:

• United Nations University

• United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization

• International Association of Universities

• Third World Academy of Sciences

• African Academy of Science

• Science Council of Asia

• International Council for Science

• World Federation of Engineering Organizations

• Copernicus-Campus

• Global Higher Education for Sustainability Partnership

• University Leaders for a Sustainable Future

The group will begin as a loosely organized consortium that will gradually define itself as it develops collaborative work and actions. Initially, an interim secretariat will be established within UNU Institute of Advanced Studies (UNU-IAS) that will compile materials, act as an information-clearing house and serve to focus the group's activities.  The projects and functions of the group will be distributed among the membership, so that each member will lend their strengths and expertise to pertinent issues.

Membership will remain open, with the goal of targeting network organizations as new members while endeavoring to achieve a balance of the regional distribution of the group’s member organizations. The group will create a website that can be incorporated into the International Association of Universities homepage, and a listserv to facilitate communication among members. 

The Group defined two types of actions: those that each member has already developed or is in the process of developing, and new actions to be developed jointly.

As their contribution to the work plan endorsed by the meeting, UN University and UNU-IAS will:

• Offer its Global Virtual University and Internet Media Studio for the promotion of learning material on sustainable development.

• Offer its offices as an interim secretariat.

• Develop a "training the trainers" course in cooperation with ULSF’s tool kits on sustainable development education for university professors.

Collaborative actions agreed upon at the meeting are:

• Develop for 2005 the Ubuntu Prize Rewarding Excellence in Higher Education for Sustainable Development.

• Work collaboratively at CSD 11 and WCHE+5 to promote the ideals and goals of the Group.

• Create publicity and promotion material as a group.

• Define a draft substantive programme for discussion at its next meeting and for presentation during WCHE+5.

• Consider new membership and transmit suggestions to the interim secretariat.

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