Active listening is when you not only hear what someone is saying, but also attune to their thoughts and feelings. It requires the listener to feed back what they hear to the speaker, by paraphrasing what they have heard in their own words, to confirm what they have heard while also communicating with empathy. Active Listening eliminates superficial commentary, automatic responses of little value, ensuring that you receive information in an impactful way.
Adaptability is the ability to
Reflect on one´s own role in the local community as well as personal views, beliefs, arguments and interests
Motivate one´s actions and continually improve oneself drawing on competences related to emotional intelligence and social and emotional learning regarding societal issues in relation to sustainability challenges.
A person that is analytical examines or likes to examine things in detail, in order to discover more about them. Being analytical involves applying a logical, critical and methodical thought process when assessing information, or solving a problem. This includes looking for root causes, identifying variables or sources of error, and predicting their potential impact on the final outcome.
Consequence analysis involves the analysis of the potential of hazardous incidents that could cause injuries, fatalities, and damage to assets and the environment. A sequence of failures may result in a hazard becoming a major incident, and analysts need to determine the consequences of each of these hazards.
Argumentation is a set of arguments used to explain something or to persuade people. It is closely connected to critical and higher-order thinking. Whereas it is developed earlier in an oral form, argumentation is a more formalized process in writing. Argumentative writing involves thoughtful consideration of both sides of a debatable issue. It requires to consider how one should use language appropriately to justify their position and refute others.
Your sense of self refers to your perception of the collection of characteristics that define you. Personality traits, abilities, likes and dislikes, your belief system or moral code, and the things that motivate you. The ecological self is a term introduced by Norwegian philosopher Arne Naess to describe human potential to identify with other living beings, widening and deepening our sense of who we are to include everything alive upon our planet and even the Earth itself.
Behavioral science, refers to any of various disciplines dealing with the subject of human actions, usually including the fields of sociology, social and cultural anthropology, psychology, and behavioral aspects of biology, economics, geography, law, psychiatry, and political science. The term behavioral sciences suggests an approach that is more experimental than that connoted by the older term social sciences.
Creativity is the ability to produce or use original and unusual ideas. It is the source of inventions and new solutions that, when applied, become innovations. Research indicates that innovation is a social product: innovators draw know-how from their peers, and new products, services are produced that are important for both the individual and society in general.
Bio-based materials and processes cover:
Sustainable biomass sourcing, logistics and production systems
Life sciences and their convergence with digital technologies
Bio-based value chains, materials, including bio-inspired materials
Biotechnology
Inclusive bio-based systems
There are three main circular objectives to consider in Circular Value Chains:
1. Narrowing the loop: Using fewer resources per product
2. Closing and regeneration the loop by creating a circular flow of resources, closing the loop between post-use and production or by incorporating biobased materials and energy
3. Slowing the loop: Extending the use period of products through design
Collective Action is the capacity to act in collaboration with others while:
Enhancing the ability to learn from others
Relating to and being sensitive to others though empathic leadership
Truly engaging and motivating diverse stakeholders and to empathically work with collaborators’ and citizens’ different ways of knowing and communicating
Sharing (rather than hoarding) knowledge
Commitment is considered a promise or firm decision to do something.
Communication entails the transfer of ideas, thoughts or feelings by the sender to receiver via verbal or nonverbal means. In order to plan and develop sustainability and sustainable strategies it is necessary for people to express themselves internally and externally by using appropriate mode(s) of communications.
Conflict management is the use of the right skill, process, and technique to respond to a disagreement or dispute in a strategic manner. It is the art of creatively resolving a contentious situation through collaborative and effective communication skills, like active listening and articulate expressions. It involves acquiring skills related to conflict resolution, and self-awareness about conflict modes.
Being cooperative is to be willing to help or do what people ask.
Awareness creation forms part of a change-oriented communication in which all the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and targets will be communicated to other civil society organizations (CSOs), traditional rulers, and marginalized community groups in response to the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.
The ability to critically assess information within the sustainability discourse to:
Questions norms, practices, and opinions
Identify assumptions and challenging the status quo
Reflect on one´s values perceptions and actions
Question how social and cultural backgrounds influence thinking and conclusions
Being curious is being interested in learning about people or things around you
Being decisive is being able to make decisions quickly and confidently, or showing this quality.
Digital literacy is the ability to safely and appropriately access, manage, understand, integrate, communicate, evaluate and create information using digital technologies and includes computer literacy, ICT literacy, information literacy and media literacy.
Digital numeracy is becoming increasingly important in times of "big data," "open data" and the use of algorithms in many digital environments.
Disruptive innovation, a term of art coined by Clayton Christensen, describes a process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing established competitors.
Life-cycle assessment (LCA) is a process of evaluating the effects that a product has on the environment over the entire period of its life.It can be used to study the environmental impact of a product or a function it is designed to perform. LCA is also known as a "cradle-to-grave" analysis. LCA's key elements are to identify and quantify the environmental loads, evaluate the potential environmental impacts of these loads; and assess the options available for reducing these environmental impacts.
Ecological knowledge usually refers to the functioning of environmental systems in technical, mechanical or biophysical terms, such as information about the ecological structure and functioning of ecosystems.
Effectiveness, or impact, knowledge addresses the outcomes of different behaviors, essentially answering the question ‘is the behavioral sacrifice worthwhile?’ Stern’s (2000) Value-Belief-Norm (VBN) model of pro-ecological behavior highlights two key determinants pertinent to effectiveness knowledge; the first is the perceived consequences of behaviors, and the second is beliefs about who is responsible for environmental outcomes.
Emotional intelligence is defined as the ability to understand and manage your emotions, as well as recognize and influence the emotions of those around you. The term was first coined in 1990 by researchers John Mayer and Peter Salovey, but was later popularized by psychologist Daniel Goleman.
Empathy is the ability to share someone else's feelings or experiences by imagining what it would be like to be in that person's situation
Empowerment for sustainable development means giving to people and communities the true capacity to cope with the changing environment, for increased social awareness, higher levels of social and economic participation and the utilization of new insights on ecological processes of change and self renewal
Environmental law is central to sustainable development. It integrates environmental needs with the essential elements of the rule of law and provides the basis for improving environmental governance. It emphasizes ecological sustainability by linking it to fundamental rights and duties. It reflects universal moral values and ethical standards of conduct and provides a basis for environmental rights and duties.
Being ethical has to do with beliefs about what is morally right and wrong, empathically considering the interests of others to achieve a greater good. The intersection of ethics and sustainability relies on conscientious reflection on and reasoned justification of what we should do to live well with others. Being ethical includes both the quality of our interactions and our reflection on that behavior.
Experiential learning is a widely recognized and influential framework that describes how people learn through experience. Because learning is the primary process used to navigate through life, people can use this process for all forms of learning, development and change. Learning takes place in all contexts and continues throughout life. Experiential learning includes the cycles of experience, reflection, thought and action.
Exploratory Thinking is the abilities to:
Collectively develop and implement innovative actions and design strategies for sustainability,
Be able to recognize the historical roots and embedded resilience of deliberate and unintended unsustainability and the barriers to change.
Creatively plan innovative experiments to test strategies.
Find alternative ways to compete and provide value
The ability to envision and create possible future scenarios by:
Applying the precautionary principle and protect society from harm
Assessing consequences
Managing risk and change
Providing individuals with the ability to cope with uncertainties and handle complexity empowering people to shape and design their preferred future scenario.
Hindsight is the ability to understand an event or situation only after it has happened.
Open to everyone : not limited to certain people.
The UN describes an Inclusive Green Economy as an economy that is low carbon, efficient and clean in production, but also inclusive in consumption and outcomes, based on sharing, circularity, collaboration, solidarity, resilience, opportunity, and interdependence.”
Individual Initiative implies the capacity:
To navigate the political system, identify political responsibilities and accountability for unsustainable behavior and demand effective policies for sustainability,
To identify own potential for sustainability and to actively contribute to improving prospects for the community and the planet.
To investigate is to examine a problem or proposition carefully, especially to discover the truth.
Experimenting is trying out methods, activities, etc. to discover what effect they have.
Sustainable investing balances traditional investing with environmental, social, and governance-related (ESG) insights to improve long-term outcomes. In many ways, sustainable investing can be seen as part of the evolution of investing.
Justice is fairness in the way people are treated. Environmental justice seeks greater accountability and protection of "environmental rights" for current and future generations. These goals are pursued through building and enforcing legal and policy frameworks; supporting people-centered, effective institutions as the primary implementers of enforcement and implementation; legal self-reliance and access to justice on environmental matters.
Leadership is the power or ability to lead other people. A Sustainable Leader must have a set of personal characters and managerial traits that enable him/her to lead with empathy inside a multitask-holder environment. A Sustainability leader is someone who inspires and supports action towards a better world.
The term used to describe thinking about the nature and consequences of relationships. Similar terms are ‘systems thinking’ and ‘holistic thinking’.Linking thinking is the necessary complement to analytical and critical thinking: approaches to problem solving and ways of thinking that are more holistic, systemic, ecological, inclusive and integrative.
Stakeholder engagement is an essential part of the management process, particularly in megaprojects, helping to manage what can be complex stakeholder relationships. The alliance procurement approach has been acknowledged as a platform that can provide a collaborative way of managing such stakeholder complexity.
One of the main goals of in decision-making for sustainable development is to identify and chose the most sustainable option from among different alternatives. This process usually involves a large number of stakeholder with multiple, often conflicting objectives.
Mindfulness is the practice of being aware of your body, mind, and feelings in the present moment, thought to create a feeling of calm. It promotes subjective well-being, empathy and clarification of values, which can lead to more sustainable behavior.
At the core, negotiation skills encompass back-and-forth communication designed to reach an agreement between two or more parties who are in conflict. Negotiation is an intrinsic part of any kind of joint action, problem solving, and dispute resolution, and may be verbal, nonverbal, explicit, implicit, direct, or through intermediaries.
New Education Policies aim to build a new social contract for education, grounded on principles of human rights, social justice, human dignity and cultural diversity. It unequivocally affirms education as a public endeavour and a common good. It should allow us to think differently about learning and the relationships between students, teachers, knowledge, and the world.
Open minded is to be willing to consider ideas and opinions that are new or different to your own.
Global partnerships aim to maximize the effectiveness of all forms of development cooperation for the benefit of people, the planet, prosperity and peace. They bring together governments, bilateral and multilateral organizations, civil society, the private sector and representatives of parliaments and trade unions, among others, who work to strengthen the effectiveness of their development partnerships.
Public participation can be any process that directly engages the public in decision-making and gives full consideration to public input in making that decision.
Impact assessments are conducted for initiatives expected to have significant economic, social or environmental impacts. It is a study of the adverse effects of a planned action on a particular place, activity or group of people, or a report giving the results of such a study.
Planetary knowledge describes the range of information about the environment, its issues and the preventive actions required to conserve and protect the environment, that is collected, organized, and evaluated by the individuals. It equips us to effectively address global challenges and contribute to a more equitable and sustainable future.
Policy is a set of ideas or a plan of what to do in particular situations that has been agreed to officially by a group of people, a business organization, a government, or a political party.
Legislation is a law or set of laws suggested by a government and made official by a parliament.
Political Agency refers to the abilities to:
Navigate the political system, identify political responsibility and accountability for unsustainable behaviour
Demand effective policies for sustainability
Actively engage in the political process, contribute to policy making and positive, transformative change
Communicate and collaborate effectively for policy goals.
Enhance perceptions of possibilities to contribute
Sustainable risk prediction is a systematic approach towards the management of a company’s ESG performance and its impact on the SDGs. It allows to embed the management of their companies’ sustainability-related priorities in their business models and value chains. Risk management can help an organisation to determine its material ESG metrics, to design and deploy appropriate responses, and to measure and control progress, thereby increasing its ESG performance over time.
Problem Framing employs various frameworks while addressing complex sustainability problems to:
Develop viable, inclusive, and equitable solutions that promote sustainable development
Formulate current or potential challenges in terms of difficulty, people involved, time and geographical scope.
Mitigate and adapt to existing problems
Draw on pertinent disciplinary, interdisciplinary, transdisciplinary, and other ways of knowing
Promoting Nature involves:
The development, understanding and consciousness toward the biophysical environment and its problems, including human interactions and effects.
Promoting nature and learning from previous generations we can support equity and justice for all.
The recognition of the roles and responsibility of different actors in the system, including designers, producers, consumers, policymakers, etc.
Reflect is to think carefully, especially about possibilities and opinions
Autonomous is to be independent and having the power to make your own decisions
Self-distanced perspective which means people view their own experience like an observer of the self is an adaptive way to reflect.
Research is a method of finding solutions to scientific and social problems through objective and systematic analysis. It is a search for knowledge, that is, a discovery of hidden truths. The information might be collected from different sources like experience, human beings, books, journals, nature, etc. A research can lead to new contributions to the existing knowledge.
To be respectful is to show politeness or honour to someone or something.
Societal learning is the process of articulating new paradigms that can alter the perspectives, goals, and behaviors of social systems larger than particular organizations. Societal learning develops new relationships, strategies, and organizational structures to do what could not be done before, so it is critical to addressing issues such as sustainability, poverty, and culture clashes
A standard is a set of guidelines that describe the processes, procedures and products that should be used to ensure quality and uniformity. Standards are usually developed and disseminated by professional organizations or international bodies.
Certification is formal recognition by an independent body that a system, product, individual or organization meets and continues to meet the criteria of a specific standard or regulation.
Supporting Fairness is understood to:
Support equity and justice for current and future generations and learn from previous generations for sustainability.
Promote sustained, inclusive and sustainable economic growth, full and productive employment and decent work for all.
Accelerate progress as an effective means for empowering those who are now losing out.
Models can be used to illustrate the interdependence of human activities and their consequences in time, place and space. They can also be used to convey knowledge about relevant system dynamics to policy makers and stakeholders.
A sustainable governance framework organises the relationships, systems and processes within an organisation to ensure accountability, transparency, fairness and compliance.
The ability to use systems theory to approach complex challenges, by being able to:
Recognize and understand relationships between elements that make up a system.
Think of how systems are embedded within different domains and scales
Think holistically, seeing that “the whole is greater than the sum of its parts”
Deal with uncertainty
Characteristics attributed to teachers as change agents pertain to lifelong learning (being eager to learn and reflective), mastery (giving guidance, being accessible, positive, committed, trustful, and self-assured), entrepreneurship (being innovative and feeling responsible), and collaboration (being collegial).They have the power to influence students’ academic, social, and emotional development, as well as their perspectives on various societal issues.
Someone who puts the well-being of the team first, is all about focusing on the whole. Team oriented individuals focus on the team and its goals, putting their effort towards the team instead of themselves.
Independence, curiosity, and resilience are key to long-term thinking
Long-term thinking is the practice of deliberately thinking about what may happen in the future. It requires vision, and it involves asking what impact today's choices and decisions will have on the future. When done right, long-term thinking can help us build a better future.
Tolerating uncertainty means you're able to cope with the fact that you don't know how things will turn out. Signs that you may have a high tolerance to uncertainty include: being willing to take calculated risks. adapting to new environments and processes.
Transcultural management focuses on the competences needed not only to accept cultural differences, but to find ways of creating new commonalities that allow us to cooperate. The term “trans” emphasizes the “beyond”, the connections, entanglements, and relations, the moving beyond existing cultures and the creation of something new out of shared practice.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) defines a Sustainable Healthcare System as a system that improves, maintains or restores health, while minimizing negative impacts on the environment and leveraging opportunities to restore and improve it, to the benefit of the health and well-being of current and future generations.
Trade-offs are situations characterized by conflicts between the desired objectives, where it is impossible to satisfy all criteria simultaneously. Although sustainability trade-offs are common, there is a gap in the existing approaches for sustainability measurements to support trade-off dialogue and decision-making.
The capacity to self-reflect on one's values and actions while:
Critically evaluating how these are aligned with sustainable values, principles, goals and targets, and how they can be negotiated depending on the context, conflict of interest and trade-offs.
Promoting and supporting freedom, equality, solidarity, tolerance, respect for nature, and taking on the responsibility of managing economic and social development globally.
Being a visionary it to have the ability to imagine how a country, society, industry, etc. will develop in the future.
Willingness is the quality of being happy to do something if it is needed.