Conference of the DGfE Commission ESD 2025
Annual Conference 2025 of the DGfE Commission on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)
Education, democracy & sustainability
Contributions to theory development and empirical research
The annual conference of the DGfE Commission on Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) took place at TU Dresden from September 23 to 25, 2025.
Numerous ecological and social upheavals can currently be identified, which education for sustainable development has to register and reflect on and to which education for sustainable development may have to react in terms of its theoretical development.
The conference will explore the following and other questions:
- Which concept(s) of democracy or which theory(ies) of democracy are explicitly or implicitly brought into play in ESD research?
- In terms of educational theory, which concept of democracy or theory of democracy should be used?
- What normative pedagogical programs and concepts are put forward in the field of ESD with regard to democracy and how are these justified?
- What ideas of democracy do educators have in the context of ESD?
- What pedagogical ESD practices can be observed from this perspective?
- How is the connection between education, democracy and sustainability negotiated in educational institutions, how are inherent tensions and controversies negotiated?
- What are the criteria for controversy, and where might it also have limits?
- How do socially and politically controversial debates affect the culture of discussion or the thematization of ESD in educational institutions?
- Who is actively involved in shaping democratic structures and to what extent do educational inequalities limit or structure opportunities for participation? How can ESD contribute to social cohesion?
- How can ESD contribute to empowerment for political participation? Which pedagogical approaches prove to be effective?
Edda Sant (The University of Manchester) and Johannes Drerup (TU Dortmund University) have been invited as keynote speakers.
You can find the Call for Proposals for the conference proceedings (open until 31th October 2025) here: German and English.
Here you can find the program as well as the abstracts.
