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Education for Sustainable Development

Our concept of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)

Sport has great educational potential. This ranges from physical education in schools to recreational and club sports to the training of multipliers for sport.

It is important to realise that sport offers much more than just learning how to move. Sport can also promote Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). ESD aims to enable people to acquire competencies, values and knowledge to understand the present and future impacts of their own actions on society and the environment and to analyse their own sporting activities against the background of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The question is how sport can be shaped in terms of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD).

In our research, we deal with how teaching-learning situations and experiences in sport can be designed in the sense of ESD, which sustainability-related competences learners acquire through ESD in sport, how teachers and multipliers in sport (e.g. sports teachers, exercise instructors in clubs, lecturers at universities) can be trained for ESD and how scientifically sound and practice-oriented educational concepts can be developed.

On this page you will find research projects and educational materials on ESD in various sport-related settings. Are you conducting research on ESD in sport yourself? Or do you know of other interesting research projects and/or educational materials that should be linked here? We would be happy to add them to the existing materials and links if you provide us with the relevant information. To do so, simply contact a person from our group by e-mail.

Research

raus! Experience climate action together through play: A toolbox/-set for families

Development and distribution of a toolbox that encourages families to get outside together and engage with sustainable development in a playful way.

Duration: 4, 2023 bis 3, 2026

Funding body: BMWK (FKZ: 67KF0201B)

Contact persons: Sarah Spengler und Barbara Eigenschenk

More information >>>

SEE - Sustainability and Environmental Education in outdoor sports

Development of a method box for sustainability education for multipliers in outdoor sports

Duration 2021 -2023

Funding body: Erasmus+

Contact person: Barbara Eigenschenk

More information >>>

Sport.bne - Education for Sustainable Development in Physical Education Teacher Education

Participatory development of teaching concepts to promote ESD-specific professional action competence of future sports teachers.

Duration: 2021-2023

Funding body: BMBF (FKZ 01JA1809)

Contact person: Julia Lohmann

More information >>>

Climate moves!

Development of teaching examples for physical education on climate and sustainability topics.

Duration 2019 -2021

Funding body: BMUB (FKZ 67KF0092)

Contact persons: Sarah Spengler and Barbara Eigenschenk

More information >>>

EDS in leasure sports

Qualitative study of the processes and opportunities for promoting sustainable development and competences in leisure sports.

Contact person: Sandra Klaperski-van der Wal

More information: coming soon...

Materials

Here you find a collection of practical materials on ESD in sport. The collection of materials is a subjective selection based on the research of Dr. Karen Petry (DSHS Cologne), Dr. Julia Lohmann (University of Augsburg) and Dr. Barbara Eigenschenk (TU Munich) and therefore does not claim to be complete. No responsibility is taken for the quality of the materials and their content. If you know of materials that are missing from this compilation, please feel free to send suggestions to julia.lohmann@sportainable.eco.

University

Sport.bne: Educational materials for ESD in sports teacher education are currently being developed and published as a manual. For further information, please contact Julia Lohmann and for the end of the sport.bne project (2023), please see here.
A course is currently being tested at Radboud University to make the topic of sustainability accessible to all lecturers at a university. A short version of the content or introductory information can be downloaded here. For more information on the more detailed course, please contact Sandra Klaperski-van der Wal.

Extracurricular sports

SEE (Sustainability and Environmental Education in outdoor sports) is developing a method box for outdoor sports multipliers (instructors, trainers, etc.). The toolbox (from 2023) as well as numerous interim results (reports on perceived challenges with various outdoor sports from the perspective of nature conservation as well as results of a European association survey on the current training situation) are available here. Project Manager: Barbara Eigenschenk
The Sport for Development initiative develops teaching and learning materials on ESD in the field of international development cooperation. A variety of materials on different sports is available on the homepage. For more information please contact Katrin Bauer.

Publications

Becker, C., Lauterbach, G., Spengler, S., Dettweiler, U. & Mess, F. (2017). Effects of regular classes in outdoor education settings on students’ social-, learning- and health dimensions: A Systematic Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 14(5), 485.

Eigenschenk, B., et al. (2019). Benefits of Outdoor Sports for Society. A Systematic Literature Review and Reflections on Evidence. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(6), 937.

Klaperski-van der Wal, S. (2022). Sport and Exercise Psychology and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals: Reflections and Suggestions. Manuscript accepted for publication. Asian Journal of Sport and Exercise Psychology.

Klaperski-van der Wal, (S. (2023). Sport and education for sustainable development - ‘A perfect team’? An exploratory qualitative study of leisure time athletes' perspectives on promoting sustainable development in sport and exercise settings, Social Sciences & Humanities Open, Volume 8, Issue 1, 2023, 100733, ISSN 2590-2911, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssaho.2023.100733.

Kronbichler, Elvira ; Kuhn, Peter (2010): Bewegungserziehung als Unterstützung ökoästhetischer Selbstbildung. In: Motorik. Bd. 33 Heft 3 . - S. 117-121. ISSN 0170-5792

Kuhn, Peter (1997): Natur als Herausforderung der Sportpädagogik. In: DVS-Informationen. Bd. 12 Heft 2 . - S. 14-18. ISSN 0944-6222

Kuhn, Peter ; Brehm, Walter ; Suck, Christian (1998): Umwelterziehung im Sportunterricht : in der Theorie und in der Praxis. In: Sportunterricht. Bd. 47 Heft 2 . - S. 44-53. ISSN 0342-2402

Lohmann, J. (2022). Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung und Sport – eine Seilschaft für die Zukunft? In M. Wegner & J. Jürgensen (Hrsg.), Schriften der Deutschen Vereinigung für Sportwissenschaft: Bd. 298. Sport, Mehr & Meer - Sportwissenschaft in gesellschaftlicher Verantwortung (S. 19–20). Feldhaus Ed. Czwalina. Keynote-Vortrag beim 25. dvs-Hochschultag in Kiel, 29.-31. März 2022.

Lohmann, J., Breithecker, J., Ohl, U., Gieß-Stüber, P. & Brandl-Bredenbeck, H. (2021). Teachers’ Professional Action Competence in Education for Sustainable Development: A Systematic Review from the Perspective of Physical Education. Sustainability, 13(23), 13343.

Lohmann, J., Wegner, E. & Gieß-Stüber, P. (2019). BNE outdoor - Modulkonzeption für eine Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung durch Natursport. Zeitschrift für Studium und Lehre in der Sportwissenschaft, 1(3), 5–13.

Schmid, J., Imbach, L., Klaperski, S., & Sudeck, G. (2021). The natural environment of physical activity and perceived stress: The mediating role of specific recovery experiences. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living, 3, 706467.

Scholl, N. and Dr. Frowin, F. (2022), Umwelt bewegen – Spiele fair für die Umwelt, Hofmann-Verlag, 978-3-7780-8200-3 (ISBN) (Englische Version “Play Fair for the Environment” – in 2017 durch PlayHandball veröffentlicht)

Spengler, S. & Eigenschenk, B. (2021). Das große Potenzial des Sports für Bildung für nachhaltige Entwicklung nutzen. Informationsdienst „Sport schützt Umwelt“ des DOSB, 136, 5-6.

Verch, J. (2018). Humanökologische Perspektiven der Nachhaltigkeit von Sporträumen. In N. Eßig, R. Kähler, M. Palmen & C. Deuß (Hrsg.) (2018), Nachhaltigkeit und Innovationen von Sportstätten und -räumen (S. 31-71). Köln/Bundesinstitut für Sportwissenschaften: Cwalina.

Verch, J. (2021). Schneesport als Beitrag zu einer erlebnis- bzw. naturpädagogischen Bewegungs- bildung. In sportpädagogik 45. Jg., September 2021, S. 29-33.

Verch, J. (2022). Nachhaltigkeit und Sport. Eine (natur-)räumliche Perspektive für einen Beitrag zu einer Bildung für Nachhaltige Entwicklung im Kinder- und Jugendbereich. In J. Schwier & M. Seyda (Hrsg.), Bewegung, Spiel und Sport im Kindesalter. Neue Entwicklungen und Herausforderungen in der Sportpädagogik (S. 170-178). Bielefeld: transcript