RCE Presentations - Summary Dr. Fumiko Noguchi, UNU-IAS 13th Asia-Pacific Regional RCE Meeting 2nd Online Session, 24 September, 2020

1. RCE
Presentations -
Summary
FUMIKO NOGUCHI
RESEARCH FELLOW
ESD PROGRAMME, UNU-IAS

2. COVID-19
Impact to the
Local
Community in
the Region
•Social and economic impact: No market, disruption in supply chain and
import/export due to boarder closure and travel restrictions. Helath care
system.
•Education and learning opportunities: Schools, universities, public space
closure and no social gatherings - less/no face-to-face, hands-on and practice
based training and learning opportunities through formal, non-formal and
informal educationl channels.
•Shift to oline: Lack of capacity and infrastructure to support online education
and working mode. More networking and learning opportunities to those who
can access internet. Otherwise those without it get more isolated.
• Widening gaps: The vulnerables are left behind (migrants, indigenous
peoples, youths and women, small industries, small–scale farmers, people in
informal sector are getting the hardest hit socially, economically and
educationally, - isolation, violence, learning, economic medical access gaps,
mental and health issues, unemployment and jobless… The existing problems
got worsened.
• Policy support: Lack of evidence-based information and policy guidance.
Reduced or cancelled the fund or subsidies. Government started the new fund
for COVID-19.
• Environmental impact: Less pollution due to less traffic.
• More time to spend with family and local community.

3. COVID-19
Impact to RCEs
in the Region
• RCE centre, meeting spaces and activity site
closures.
•Cancellation and/or postponment of activities
(events, workshops, trainings, meetings, field-
based, hands-on and practice-based
activities)
• Struggling in learning and developing new
learning and teaching approaches technically
(degitally) and pedagogically.
•Losing the economic opportunities – less
revenue and cancellation of fund and
governmental subsidies.

4. RCEs Response
to the Pandemic
• Conducted survey and needs analysis
• Shift to online – training, workshops, meetings, conference,
networking and information sharing (developing online home-based
activity, online tools, training programme for hygine, sustainable
agriclture and rural community outreach).
• Connecting stakeholders and developing partnerships: Amongst
community members and diverse stakeholders. Training and sending
youth and jobless workers to rural communities.
• Fund support: Established new funding scheme for the local
stakeholders. Developed training programmes in which the
participants can get the governmental micro-credential while they are
working on a particular community projects.
• Outreach to the vulnerable groups: Working for rural farmers,
youths, women, migrants, indigenous peoples) by creating jobs (mask
making), food distribution, and continuing educaiton and training
program.
• Responding natural disasters while responding the COVID-19.
•Getting support and learning from other RCEs.
• Policy advocacies - Participating in government process for COVID-
19 and working with government for the governmental initiatives

5. Necessary
supporting
mechanism
• Need clear governmental guideline and priority for
local community activities under the pandemic.
• Financial support from local and national
government and global agencies.
• UN agencies should link to RCEs
• SDGs is at early stage at national level so that it is
difficult to get involved in the proce.
• Need a network to share information and
community practices, at national and regional levels.
• Enhancing multistakeholder approach which is
effective.
• Capacity building and emotional/spritual support
• Policy advocacies from real actions.
• Research to support RCE activities

6. Discussion
will
continue…
• Digitalisation and role of ESD. Online shift has brought:
Benefits
◦ More opportunities to discuss and learn from the others (RCEs and stakeholders
overseas)
◦ Effective to reach out to diverse stakeholders
◦ Practice: More localisation and decentralisation, rather than expert in the urban areas
and/or international expert
◦ Information: More globalisation? – more oportunities for webinars
Challenges
◦ There are peoples, knowledges and learning approaches that cannot be ‘onlined’ –
those who are not familiar with digial divices and do not have infrastructure
(generation, gender, economic and educational gaps,
local/traditional/indigneous/practical knowledges, hands-on and experiential
learnings).
• Youth empowerment during the pandemic. (not tokeninsm but proactive participation)
• DRR during the pandemic
• Need more capacity building opportunities for new normal, in particular the vulnerable
groups. Emotional and spritual support.
• Build back better? Do we want V-shaped recovery to where we were before COVID-19?
Or is this an opportunity for the paradigm shift? Then what is the role of ESD and
leadership for SD? – in terms of education, economy, social system, value system.
• Making linkage of all SDGs to ESD and the pandemic.
• Developing research to support community-based ESD.