As part of the project, 13 short documentaries were made of each project done by University of Western Sydney media students. The videos were produced in collaboration with the students and community members of RCE GWS, including HEN. The videos are a fine example of presenting change using the voice of the next generation of leaders. We encourage you all to view the videos and share them widely: http://www.youtube.com/AliveProjectHEN    RCE Lima-Callao hosted the 2nd Regional Conference for RCEs in the Americas in Lima, Peru, from 27 February to 2 March 2013. Presentations from the meeting and a press release are available for download here.  The United Nations University is now calling for applications for new RCEs. Those organizations  interested in becoming an RCE are requested to send expressions of interest to UNU-IAS by Monday, 15 April 2013. RCE candidates are then requested to submit an application and an application summary by Monday, 3 June 2013. The Secretariat will communicate with the applicants in July and August, so that applications can be developed in time for the Ubuntu Committee Meeting in the last quarter of this year. For more information regarding guidelines for applications and for further information, visit our Call for Applications page.   The Honorable George K. Heartwell, Mayor of Grand Rapids, Michigan USA, shared his views on leadership in sustainability on the eve of the 2nd Americas RCE Regional Conference in Lima, Peru. Here is a short excerpt of his speech:"We work for a world we will never see. We must take our satisfaction from the knowledge that our contribution moves the world inexorably closer to a state of pure and perfect sustainability. In that work is our hope. Hope born of a vision and sustained by the certainty that what we do makes ultimate sense even if we do not live to see its final flowering." Read the full speech by clicking here.   A new article and video from the ProSPER.Net Young Researchers' School (YRS) has just been released. The video showcases a group of refugees living in a temporary settlement after the eruption of Mount Merapi in 2010. The shelter serves as an excellent model of a resilient society in the context of post disaster management. Scholars from the 2012 YRS visited the refugees to learn more about the various modes of production they've developed, such as the production of crackers from cassava and sweet potato, as well as the manufacturing of accessories. Watch the video below and access the full article by clicking here.


 

New ProSPER.Net Publication “Developing a New Generation of Leaders” The ProSPER.Net Secretariat is delighted to announce the publication of a new booklet entitled “ProSPER.Net: Developing a New Generation of Leaders 2008-2013”. The publication showcases successful research projects and initiatives that have been launched by ProSPER.Net members. The publication stands as an excellent representation of the work being done by the network as a whole. To download a PDF of the booklet, clickor here.   RCE Srinagar, India is organizing World Wetlands Day 2013 celebrations in the Himalayan State of Uttarakhand on 2 February with its partners CEE Himalaya and AAGAAS Federation. Over 150 students and teachers from 25 schools are expected to attend this annual event. Numerous activities centered on the theme for this year, “Wetlands Take Care of Water”, have been organized for the participants.These include birdwatching and identification, a drawing competition, essay and slogan writing, pledge writing on a large piece of cloth, guest lectures, banner and placard-making, and taking out of a rally with the banners and placards. The day-long celebration will touch upon various issues of wetlands degradation and services provided by wetlands. Like every other year, we hope to spread the message of wetland conservation with full and active participation of the younger citizens of the State.   After more than a year since its acknowledgement by UNU, the Regional Centre of Expertise on ESD in Bohol - RCE Bohol - finally made its formal launching on January 3, 2013 at Bohol Island State University (BISU) main campus in Tagbilaran City, Bohol, Philippines. Though ESD activities and programmes are already well underway, the RCE Bohol team decided to organize an official launch party in order to ensure that the wider public and other cause-oriented organizations would know of RCE-Bohol and the possibilities for greater participation and collaboration. To read more and see pictures from the launch, click here. Regional Centres of Expertise (RCEs) were developed as sites for participatory learning and action within the United Nations Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), opening up more collaborative and inclusive learning spaces towards more just and sustainable ways of life now and in the future. Some of the contours of these emergent education processes of collaborative learning-to-change as they relate to traditional knowledge (TK) and biodiversity are developing in many RCE contexts today. The Education for Sustainable Development Programme at UNU-IAS has worked with RCEs worldwide to create a new publication showcasing a series of case studies in this regard. To download the book click here or visit our Resources page and look under the Case Studies, Training Manuals and Other Resources section.