Education, the Priority !

​Education must boost Opportunities for One and for All

The world has moved on to perceive 'Education' not just as a 'Human right' but as a biggest driver for 'Development'. Education in the recent years has become 'voice' for timid and the voiceless. Perhaps, it has now become a strong bridge between social and economical strata not only in an individual level but also in a community that builds a nation. And no, we no longer aim for 'Development' but for a 'Sustainable Development' for generations and generations to come.

"With partnership, leadership and wise investments in education, we can transform individual lives, national economies and our world," said Ban Ki-Moon, United Nations Secretary-General. He launched Global Education First Initiative in September 2012 to accelerate progress towards the Education for All goals and the education-related Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The three priorities set in this initiative were putting every child in school, improving the quality of learning and fostering global citizenship.

Further, in the post-2015 development framework, Education stood out as the prominent cornerstone and as a result, in the new framework called Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), UN introduced SDG 4 as Quality Education.It is therefore, inevitable that strong collaborations are the vital aspect in the journey of providing education to one and all.

Additionally, when we talk about quality education, we should not overlook the associated issues of inequalities, health and hunger. Education will hold no meaning if the children and youth are inadequate of the basic daily needs and rights. The existing, rather growing poverty due to population rise, lack of education and insubstantial job opportunities ends up leaving at least half of the youth unskilled to make a quality living.

Reflecting upon these global concerns which must be first looked upon locally and nationally, TERRE Policy Centre is now creating network of campuses to align the educational institutes with the SDGs through its project called 'Smart Campus Cloud Network - SCCN'. SCCN provides hands-on knowledge and training to students in understanding the resource consumption and management through 'learning by doing'. This includes practical activities and exposure to IOT and Big Data (BD) Analytics.

Where every child has a right to education, every youth must have an access to the new technologies and innovations. It is important to provide platforms to students to broaden their scope of learning and creativity. It is essential to empower our youth with confidence to explore and draw out their say in concepts of minimalistic life, eco-friendly lifestyle and sustainable development. SCCN therefore, through IOT and BD based platform contributes in bridging the gap between education and preparedness for future, in terms of employability and reduced poverty.