This launching ceremony introduces the E-learning course: The Concept of Sustainability. The course demonstrates the importance of joining efforts, more necessary than ever, to integrate sustainability into our society. The proposal to continuously strive for a more sustainable world, and to bring social, environmental and economic dimensions together, offers a window of hope for generations to come.

Many governments, businesses, civil society, academia and other actors are currently working to integrate sustainability into their agenda. But the challenges remain —- how to do it, which inspired the creation of this course. 

In September 2015, the United Nations General Assembly approved the 2030 Agenda. This decision opened up a new way of working that appealed to new political decisions, and social changes. The lack of equality and justice in our society is not merely the government’s responsibility, but the responsibilities of the entire society. This is one of the most important messages in the 2030 Agenda. Thus, sustainability goes beyond the Agenda itself, and the scope of government’s work. It requires the involvement of all social actors. A sustainable future is only possible when the entire society is dedicated to building on the triple pillars (environmental, social and economic); and putting “human” back to the center of development. 

The course is designed with sessions given by specialized speakers in different modules. The design of each session is unique - considering different topics, and various methodological formats. The genesis of the negotiation of the 2030 Agenda, or the challenges of access to water, or the ways to consolidate public & private partnerships, require very different approaches, analyses and ways of approaching the issues. These are the topics, discussions, and debates that you will find in this course

- and we hope that the students could seek answers through a wide range of questions that we posted as instructors. 

This design of the course aims to offer a global vision of what sustainability means, and its importance today. The final objective of the course is to provide a basic understanding of the meaning and the implications of sustainability. With this preliminary knowledge, more specific training actions will be carried out in the future with different actors in mind.