Success in Malta with the Workshop “Integrating Education for Sustainable Consumption and Production in existing university curricula”

The workshop was mainly participative, including the techniques that the CP/RAC is trying to incorporate to its meetings, so as to increment their interest and improve their results. Participants highlighted important issues with their comments, such as: “We have to use education to get through the students for a better future”; “We can push the consumer, showing that we can still create jobs through the cleaner industry, letting them know that they won’t be losing money from their pockets”; “The teaching of our environmental subject (in Malta) is too theoretical”; “Status Symbol is a big factor leading to SCP” or “Awareness leads to education and this can make people react and this could prevent”, among others.

Participants also worked in groups to show their opinion about the pos and cons of the introduction on SCP in university curricula and designed a strategy to reach this objective.

The conclusions of the workshop were the following:

• The University Network for the Mediterranean Region (UNMed) has received a great support of Maltese professors and stakeholders; they are interested on the subject and on the project.


• The professors came from different Faculties, and different backgrounds. They were very participative and interested.


• The modality of the seminar was very positive, it induce people to the participation and discussion.


• They support the project for continuing working in the introduction of SCP in university curricula in Malta.


• The comments on the seminar where very positive.


• The synergies have started, for some of them were the first time hearing experiences of SCP in the Maltese Universities.

About the University Network for the Mediterranean Region (UNMed)

UNMed is a CP/RAC project based in cooperation and networking. The creation of partnerships with key actors and the promotion of dialogue and discussion are activities that have been carried out by the Centre in the last years, and they have provided a wide stakeholders network, giving support in a transversal way to the Centre’s actions. In 2009, the CP/RAC fosters the next step, a Mediterranean Network, starting with a pilot project in 3 Mediterranean countries (for facilitating monitoring and evaluation).

The Mediterranean Network project focuses on:

- Promoting courses on sustainable production and consumption and sound chemical management

- Establishing partnerships with Universities, and fostering them between Mediterranean Universities.

- Building a data base of Mediterranean professors and researchers

The project consists in organize different seminars for university teachers and present them three e-courses:

• E-Course in Pollution Prevention in Enterprises, available in the CP/RAC webpage


• A Environmental Policy Course


• A Course about Consumption and Climate Change.

The CP/RAC did a pilot project in Egypt in May that was replicated in October in Malta.

Times of Malta

The Malta Independent Online

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