BEGIN:VCALENDAR
VERSION:2.0
PRODID:-//wp-events-plugin.com//7.2.3.1//EN
BEGIN:VEVENT
UID:852@ukfiet.org
DTSTART:20260311T100000Z
DTEND:20260311T110000Z
DTSTAMP:20260202T091318Z
URL:https://www.ukfiet.org/events/refusing-sustainable-development-decolon
 ial-curriculum-making/
SUMMARY:Refusing Sustainable Development: Decolonial Curriculum Making
DESCRIPTION:11 March 2026\, 10:00-11:00 GMT\nREGISTER HERE\nThis event is p
 art of the School of Education's Bristol Conversations in Education resear
 ch seminar series. These seminars are free and open to the public.\nHosted
  by the Education in Small States Research Group (ESSRG)and the Centre for
  Comparative and International Research in Education (CIRE)\nSpeaker: Kate
  Matzopoulos (Doctoral Researcher\, University of Bath\, UK)\nRefusing “
 Sustainable Development”: A Relational\, Decolonial Approach to Curricul
 um-Making with the Ju/’hoansi of Nhoma\, Namibia \nInternational educati
 on discourse often centres the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) as the
  default framework for strengthening education systems\, especially within
  small states. Yet the dominance of “sustainable development” risks fl
 attening difference and universalising a singular trajectory of progress g
 rounded in colonial histories of measurement\, modernisation and intervent
 ion. This presentation draws from ongoing curriculum co-development with t
 he Ju/’hoansi community of Nhoma\, Namibia\, to explore what becomes pos
 sible when education is approached through relation rather than developmen
 t. \nWorking with Ju/’hoansi Elders\, teachers and knowledge keepers ha
 s required refusing development as the assumed horizon of educational chan
 ge. Instead of fitting Indigenous knowledge into SDG indicators—indicato
 rs that continue to position communities as lacking or “on the way” to
 ward externally-defined ideals\, much like earlier policy regimes in Namib
 ia—this work asks what education becomes when local philosophies determi
 ne purpose\, content and method. In this relational\, land based approach\
 , sustainability is not a target to be achieved but a way of living practi
 ced over millennia\, embedded in reciprocity\, ethical interdependence and
  deep ecological practices that refuses being mapped onto bordered sustain
 able development metrics. \nFor small states navigating the pressure to a
 lign with global development agendas\, this raises generative questions: W
 hat forms of learning emerge when sustainability is not tied to developmen
 t? What possibilities open when education is grounded in reciprocity rathe
 r than reform? And how might decolonial\, community-rooted approaches unse
 ttle the assumed universality of “sustainable development” itself? \n
 Biographical details: \nKate Matzopoulos is a PhD student in the Departme
 nt of Education at the University of Bath. Her research explores decolonis
 ing education through Indigenous knowledge systems. She is currently worki
 ng in collaboration with a Ju/’hoansi community in Nhoma\, Namibia\, to 
 co-create a curriculum rooted in their onto-epistemologies. With a backgro
 und in theatre education\, Kate is passionate about creative and unconvent
 ional research dissemination\, using artistic and participatory methods to
  challenge traditional academic structures. Alongside her research\, she s
 erves as co-chair of the Decolonising Education Collective (DEC) at the un
 iversity\, working to bridge theory and practice\, foster critical dialogu
 e\, and drive institutional change. Her academic\, professional\, and advo
 cacy work centre on Indigenous rights\, educational equity and the role of
  the arts in social transformation. \n&nbsp\;
ATTACH;FMTTYPE=image/jpeg:https://www.ukfiet.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/0
 1/Bristol-Conversations-in-Education-logo.jpg
CATEGORIES:Seminar
END:VEVENT
END:VCALENDAR