Human capacities and cross-cutting competencies in education for sustainable development

Capacidades humanas y las competencias transversales en educación para el desarrollo sostenible

In the face of global socio-environmental challenges, education with a human capabilities approach, which recognizes the human being as an end in itself, contributes to education for sustainability and finds elements for its application in transversal competencies for sustainability. In this sense, new possibilities open up for university education in the formation of global citizens. The objective was to understand the articulation between human capabilities and transversal competencies in education for sustainable development at the university level. The methodology was qualitative with an interpretive approach and was developed in two phases: content analysis and categorical organization; and comparison. Experiences that fostered the expansion of human capabilities and their application in education that contributes to environmental sustainability were critically analyzed, with the participation of 12 professors at the case study university. The results show that the capabilities expanded in these processes are affiliation, control of one's own environment, and imagination and critical thinking. Likewise, the connections with transversal skills were identified, among which critical thinking, systemic thinking and anticipation stand out, since they can combine other skills and be present in the deployment of various human capacities.