Lesotho

National Policy

Environmental education in Lesotho is underpinned at the policy level by the National Environmental Policy of 1998 and through legislation by the Environment Act of 2008.  The National Environmental Policy sets out Lesotho’s policies for protecting and conserving the environment and includes promoting environmental education and awareness through formal and informal channels as one of its policy objectives. The policy calls for introducing environmental education through working with the National Curriculum Development Centre and Lesotho Distance Training Centre. The Environment Act establishes the Department of the Environment and mandates the Director of the department to carry out public awareness and education campaigns on the environment and calls for integration of environmental education at all education levels. 

EE in K-12 Education

Environmental education is integrated in Lesotho’s primary and secondary education curriculums across various subjects such as Geography, Development Studies, and Social Science. Aims of the curriculum include ensuring that students develop an appreciation of their environment and contribute to its sustainability. Environmental education topics are also integrated into the Science and Technology curriculum with the aim of equipping students to understand the physical, socio-economic, and technological dimensions of environmental issues.

Professional Development

The Lesotho College of Education provides initial pre-service and in-service training for educators in Lesotho. Additional in-service training leading up to a diploma credential is offered through the Distance Teacher Education Programme of the college. The National University of Lesotho offers degree level training in education generally, as well as an environmental science focused degree program.

Special donor funded projects have also focused on building environmental education capacity among educators. For example, the Lesotho Environmental Education Support Project was a donor funded project from 2001 to 2004 that sought to integrate environmental education concepts in the curriculum and included engaging educators. More recent efforts include the Capacity Building Programme for Teacher Educators on Education for Sustainable Development (CAP-ESD) coordinated by UNESCO. The programme engages teachers and teacher institutions in initiatives such as curriculum reviews and training workshops for educators.