Geoparks and SDGs/ESD
Geoparks as a Tool for Sustainable Development
ESD stands for "Education for Sustainable Development." While the term might sound a bit abstract, its core idea is simple: learning how to live in a way that doesn't compromise the future of our planet.
To give this broad idea a concrete set of targets, the United Nations established the SDGs (Sustainable Development Goals) during the 2015 UN Summit. These "Sustainable Development Goals" consist of 17 Global Goals and 169 specific targets to be achieved by 2030.
The ultimate vision of the SDGs is to "Leave No One Behind." It is a global mission to create a world where every person can live a happy, healthy life while staying within the limits of our Earth's resources.
The SDGs are not just for Geoparks or other UNESCO-related organizations. From major corporations to local schools across Japan, people are actively integrating these goals into their daily activities. We are all moving toward the same destination: a sustainable and equitable world.
Geoparks are an important tool in realizing these goals by taking education out of classroom and into the field, learning about how our land and natural environment affect our lives and societies and the effect that human development has on our planet. We also work directly to effect change within our community, from beach cleaning to gender equality.
SDGs × Itoigawa UNESCO
Global Geopark
As a specialized agency of the United Nations, UNESCO requires Global Geoparks to actively contribute to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In Itoigawa, we realize these goals through a variety of community-led initiatives:
Conservation
To save our rare dragonfly populations, local volunteers and local high school students have teamed up to remove invasive fish from local ponds, helping to preserve Itoigawa’s rich biodiversity for future generations.
Tomigaike Pond Black Bass Removal Project
Development
Geotourism creates meaninful work and direct economic benefits. Every meal you enjoy, every night you spend, every handicraft you purchase breathes life into our community.
Geopark Guided Tour
Education
Mt. Yakeyama is a young and active volcano and is used as a field to teach about geohazards and the blessings and dangers of the land around us.
Disaster Education at Mt. Yakeyama
Cooperation with Local High Schools
Alongside updates to Japan’s national curriculum, Itoigawa High School launched a new program called "Period for Inquiry-Based Learning" for its 151 first-year students in 2019. They chose the SDGs as the central theme.
To help the students better grasp these global goals, we connected the concepts of the UN to something they see every day: the Itoigawa UNESCO Global Geopark. Through three intensive sessions Itoigawa Geopark Council staff serve as guest lecturers to bridge the gap between global theory and local reality.
On the first day, students are introduced to the basics of the SDGs. They learn about how the Geopark uses its landscape to drive quality education and regional revitalization and how this is relevant to their daily lives.
On the second day, the focus shifts to conservation, disaster risk reduction and exploration of personal values. Students are challenged to identify which of the 17 goals they feel are most important to them and to the future of Itoigawa.
Finally, students form groups to brainstorm ways they can help implement the SDGs, not only as high school students but as individuals and as members of their local community.
In order to realizes the Sustainable Development Goals, everyone needs to understand and take part, both working together and individually. Through this course, students are able to discover this for themselves. It is our hope that the students will continue working toward sustainable development in their daily lives.
ESD × Fossa Magna Museum
In 2020, the Fossa Magna Museum--the heart of Itoigawa UNESCO Global Geopark--was officially designated by the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT) as a Regional Center for the Promotion of ESD Activities.
As a registered hub, our museum is dedicated to realizing Education for Sustainable Development and the SDGs through various roles including field-based learning using the Geopark as a living classroom for social education, educational innovation in teaching materials and methods through local partnerships, and acting as a science communication bridge for the local community to ensure that residents have the knowledge and tools that they need to build a sustainable future.
Through its activities as a regional hub, the museum is also able to connect the people of Itoigawa to the rest of Japan and the global community, fostering the cooperation necessary to achieve our shared goals for a better tomorrow.
