Social Sustainability in Early Childhood – are you happy?

We talk a lot about “sustainability” in our early childhood settings and I think for the most part we are doing environmental sustainability well. However we often focus so much on this and fail to discuss “social sustainability”.

Social Sustainability is probably the least defined and least understood of all the different ways of approaching “sustainability”.

In a nut shell, social sustainability is about well-being, equity, social justice, cultural competence, adaptability and being socially responsible. So, obviously very relevant to our work with children and families. Being socially sustainable is therefore relevant to all stakeholders in an early childhood service and we can see these recommended practices and desired outcomes throughout the EYLF.

So what can it look like?  Here are some examples;

Well-being is an important thing. The way we feel influences our interactions with others… so as educators it is important to take time for yourself, stay inspired and nurture your well-being. Here is a great poster for the staff room!

We often say “we must treat people equally”… Well, I disagree…. I believe we treat people “equitably”… and the two illustrations below demonstrates this nicely! 

Social sustainability is providing people with the strategies, resources, time etc. that THEY need to be successful, to participate.  This therefore has implications for educators when we are meeting the needs of children (and others)  based on the age, learning style, additional needs, language, culture and so on!

Social sustainability is also about being inclusive and culturally competent. It is about understanding that you are not always right or know what is best…. others may disagree or have different perspectives based on their experiences or culture and this is OK! So it is not about trying to change others BUT  changing the way we see situations.. being flexible and adaptable!

So, at your next staff meeting talk about “social sustainability” and what this looks like or means to all educators, children and families!  I think we do this well for children however what can we do to support this for the adults in our environment?