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Abstract:The term sustainable development is often criticized for having lost credibility due to a lack of clear-cut delineation. The same holds true for education designed to foster sustainable development often referred to as education for sustainable development (ESD). This contribution agrees that the term suffers from a want of meaning, but argues that the persistent hunt for a definition-i.e., a fixed generic description-produces rather than resolves this deficit. What sustainable development means is context and time dependent and is therefore necessarily ambiguous, open-ended and dynamic. Hence, the success of ESD depends on the paradoxical imperative of reducing vagueness while at the same time maintaining ambiguity. This paper explores how this can be established and proposes a process informed by the arts. Drawing from dialogic practices, site-specific theatre and a project conducted in a British village, this writing discusses elements that constitute a process of -context-based meaning finding‖. It concludes that ESD essentially starts with and revolves around re-embedding SD in life and the act of living, engaging people in place through processes in which communities yield their own, context and time specific interpretations of sustainable development.

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Orgamc agnculture contmues to be portrayed as a promlsmg alternative for the present 'unsustamable' farmmg practIces around the world. The conversIOn to 'orgamc' IS often accompamed by the mtroductlOn of umversal pnnclples and standards that allow for certIficatIOn. The research reported on here took place on the mterface between two knowledge systems: orgamc agnculture as mterpreted by the Inter• natIOnal FederatIOn ofOrgamc Agnculture Movements (IFOAM) and the shlftmg cultIvatIOn based system as exemphfied by the Naga tnbes m the north•east of IndIa. The study demonstrates that the mtroductlOn of a umversal knowledge system, such as IFOAM, m some cases may actually be counter• productive m the development of contextually appropnate and workable sus tamable land management systems. Instead oflmposmg orgamc agnculture on local commumtles m a well• meant attempt to estabhsh a more sus tamable agncultural system, the authors conclude that alternative paths towards sustamable development are needed, paths that take mto account dlffenng perceptIOns of what 'sustamable land use' means m a specIfic context. A sOClallearnmg approach IS proposed to create synergy between the two systems.

Reflective learning Learning concepts, theories and models Reflection Methods Facilitation Product or corporate names may be trademarks or registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation without intent to infringe. This handbook summarises methods that can be used to facilitate the process of reflection on the knowledge and experiences people acquire during a capacity development trajectory or training event. We believe that by explicitly integrating reflection in the learning process the learning will become clearer and better articulated and will contribute more strongly to meaningful change. Therefore we advise facilitators to deliberately include reflective learning sessions in their process design and implementation. This handbook can inspire you to do so and provides many methods which help to facilitate this. Photos • CIAT/Georgina Smith (p. 113)