GREEN EDUCATION IN THE 21ST CENTURY: A SYSTEMATIC LITERATURE REVIEW OF ITS IMPLEMENTATION IN THE PAKISTANI SCHOOL SYSTEM

Abstract

Green education has gained increasing relevance in the 21st century as nations confront escalating environmental challenges and pursue the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this context, Pakistan, a country highly vulnerable to climate change, needs to foster environmental literacy and sustainable thinking among its younger generations through its formal education system. This study reviews scholarly literature published between 2006 and 2024 to assess how green education has been conceptualized and implemented within Pakistan’s school system. The review highlights international best practices, national education policies, curriculum innovations, teacher training programs, and the role of community and private actors. While global frameworks such as UNESCO’s ESD initiatives have inspired national discourse, the translation of these ideals into actionable strategies within Pakistan has been limited. Using a systematic literature review approach, this research synthesizes findings from peer-reviewed journal articles, policy documents, NGO reports, and institutional studies. Sources were selected based on relevance, publication date (2006–2024), and thematic focus on environmental and green education in Pakistan and comparative global contexts. Thematic analysis was used to categorize literature into five core dimensions: policy context, curriculum and pedagogy, teacher training, institutional support, and community engagement. The findings reveal a fragmented implementation of green education in Pakistan. While private and elite schools often integrate sustainability themes through extracurricular programs and international curricula, public sector schools suffer from outdated textbooks, lack of teacher capacity, and inadequate government oversight. Few institutional mechanisms exist to monitor or scale green education practices. Moreover, environmental themes are inconsistently embedded in the national curriculum, and policy documents offer minimal operational guidance. The study concludes that green education in Pakistan remains underdeveloped despite its strategic importance. For meaningful integration, national education policies must incorporate sustainability as a cross-cutting theme, supported by curriculum reform, teacher training, and cross-sectoral collaboration. The development of localized green education models and increased community engagement are also essential for fostering an environmentally responsible citizenry. The review offers recommendations to policymakers, educators, and stakeholders to bridge the policy-practice gap and enhance environmental education across Pakistan’s school system.