The SSATL-ESD Teacher Leaders Course is centred around the development of an ESD Teacher Leaders Change Project. These Change Projects are the practical heart of the programme, creating opportunities for transformational learning, collaborative leadership, and institutional innovation. As a facilitator, your role is to guide participants in understanding the purpose of a Change Project, support them as they work through the pathway, and help them link their ideas to broader institutional and societal sustainability priorities.

An ESD Teacher Leaders Change Project is not a personal project, but an institutional change initiative developed collectively within a Community of Practice. The aim is to develop exemplary ESD practices that strengthen teacher education, respond to African sustainability concerns, and contribute to national, regional, and international frameworks such as the AU Teacher Competences, the UNESCO Education 2030 agenda, and the Sustainable Development Goals.

Watch the narrated PowerPoint Presentation on the qualities of a good ESD Change Project presented by Prof Heila Lotz-Sisitka in 2021. This video is a great introduction to understanding ESD Change Project development.

As a facilitator, you are responsible for helping participants:

• Understand what an ESD Change Project is and why it matters in teacher education
• Work through the five-part Change Project Pathway
• Develop a collaborative Community of Practice within their institution
• Think systemically about how their Change Project links to curriculum, professional practice, governance, or community partnerships
• Start small, think big, and act now, modelling distributed and inclusive leadership
• Connect participants’ ideas to the broader goals of ESD and sustainable development

You do not need to design participants’ projects for them. Your role is to mentor, guide, question, scaffold, and support their leadership and thinking.

During the Teacher Leaders Course, participants will work through a structured five-part learning pathway:

• Preparing Your ESD Teacher Leaders Change Project
• Developing a Collaborative and Context-Relevant Concept
• Leading with Transformative and Participatory Learning
• Leading with ESD Assessment for Flourishing
• Monitoring, Evaluating, and Scaling the Change Project

Your task in the ToT is to understand this pathway well enough to explain it clearly, guide participants through each stage, and recognise where they may need additional support.