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Sustainability, green IT and education strategies in the 21st century
Issa T., Isaias P., Issa T., Springer International Publishing, New York, NY, 2017. 603 pp. Type: Book (978-3-319570-68-6)
Date Reviewed: May 15 2018

Because many definitions of the term “sustainable development” lack some element to make it objective and acceptable on a global basis, many authors accept something close to the term defined in the 1987 Our Common Future report from the United Nations World Commission on Environment and Development [1] that states, “Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Technology and information are the key enablers of economic and social growth and development, and they must be taken into account in every national and regional policy on sustainability development. The consequential environmental revolution has led to new approaches and thinking within business about the environment, and today business steadily accepts its responsibility in preserving the environment. These issues ask for green technology and green information technology as well. The success and the boundaries of green IT’s impact on sustainability are predominantly converging with the education system where universities should incorporate sustainable development approaches and thinking into their curricula and research and management activities. Thus, education becomes the key enabler of transformation toward sustainable development, providing scientific and technical skills.

All of these issues are the basis for this title, covering the process of integrating sustainable development, green IT, and education. It is a compilation of texts dealing with the mission of sustainability. Integration of texts from various authors into one edition is always hard work, and the editor plays a crucial role in this process. This collection shows that green technology, including information technology, is a crucial factor in sustainability development, and it asks for more attention in the education system on preparing students for their responsibility in a society that is under constant change. It also introduces readers to the fact that green is not only a trend, but it has been continuously maturing over the last decade.

This is another work compounded into a hardcover book with the key theme of relying on green technology and the impact on the education system. Issa, Isaias, and Issa are well known editors of conference proceedings on sustainability, technology, and education (for example, STE 2014 [2], STE 2015 [3], and STE 2016 [4], organized by the International Association for the Development of the Information Society (IADIS)), so they have experience in editorial activities in the field of sustainability. However, a book needs other forms of editorial support. I was suspicious of this composition of various authors’ texts since there are many different attitudes and approaches to sustainability in the context of new information technology (green IT) and education’s role in the process of new thinking development. However, this compilation of various approaches to sustainability and its correlation with the IT and education environment provides insights on current national policies around the globe. Focusing on the role of education, the editors maintain that information technology transforms society to the sustainability revolution through education. Thus, green IT is essential in the process of this transformation where students need to cope with and understand the potential of green IT. The process of transformation asks for a validated national policy regarding transforming the educational process toward thinking and understanding sustainability using green IT. Aiming to present such policies on a global scale, the editors integrated several national environmental policy approaches for France, China, the UK, Thailand, Vietnam, India, and other countries, showing how green IT is integrated into the education system within national universities. Further, their editorial work is intended to present how IT has an environmental impact, which comes mainly in its production, use, and removal. The included chapters show the premise that universities have a responsibility to offer learning modules that would teach students about sustainability and green IT awareness. Consequently, all of these facets should have been integrated into a unique presentation that could help readers to better understand the common ideas presented within individual chapters. Because it is a collection of works by various authors, some sort of such a presentation would be acceptable for more readers to show all of the potential that the convergence of green IT and education has.

This edition shows us clearly that universities have a key role in developing the principles, qualities, and awareness needed to achieve sustainable development, creating the proper education environment for the 21st century. Thus, it is strongly recommended to universities and the IT community, who should understand the premise that businesses and universities should work together in green IT deployment.

Reviewer:  F. J. Ruzic Review #: CR146032 (1807-0376)
1) Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development: Our Common Future; UNGA 285; A/RES/42/187; Chapter 2: Towards Sustainable Development. Annex to document A/42/427 - Development and International Cooperation: Environment. United Nations General Assembly - 42nd session. 96th plenary meeting, 11 December, 1987; New York: Oxford University Press, 1987.
2) Proceedings of the International Conferences on Education Technologies (ICEduTech) and Sustainability, Technology and Education (STE), 10 - 12 December, 2014; New Taipei City, Taiwan.Edited by Issa, T., Kommers, P., Issa, T., Chang, D., Isaias, P. IADIS Press, 2014.
3) Proceedings of the International Conferences on Sustainability, Technology and Education. 30 November - 2 December, 2015; Florianópolis, Santa Catarina, Brazil. Edited by Kommers, P., Issa, T., Issa, T., Dantas, M., Costa, C., Isaías, P. IADIS Press, 2015.
4) Proceedings of the 5th International Conferences on Internet Technologies & Society (ITS), Education Technologies (ICEduTECH), and Sustainability, Technology and Education (STE). 6 - 8 December, 2016; Melbourne, Australia. Edited by Kommers, P., Issa, T., Issa, T., McKay, E., Isaias, P. IADIS Press, 2016.
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