A special collection of the Frontiers in Sustainability Journal was dedicated to the theme "The Role of the Human Dimension in Promoting Education for Sustainable Development at the Regional Level". It features ten articles by 32 authors in total. Members of the CA Team and CA Advisory Board have been involved as editors and reviewers. The aim of the research topic is to reflect on sustainability transitions on a regional level, the diverse actors and learning processes and how this impacts reaching a complex but common goal. The articles draw on experiences from the international network of Regional Centres of Expertise.
In August 2023, the Frontiers special collection of articles under the theme "The Role of the Human Dimension in Promoting Education for Sustainable Development at the Regional Level" was completed with the editorial summarizing its contents. The main objective was to reflect the role of the Regional Centres of Expertise and their regional impact. This result has also been achieved with the substantial contribution of CA members: Jana Dlouhá (editor), Rodrigo Lozano (editor), Clemens Mader and Mario Diethart (reviewiers of articles). The collective efforts have recently been acknowledged by the RCE UNU and were rewarded with an Honourable Recognition Award from the United Nations University, mentioning the contribution to the shared pool of knowledge and experience that Regional Centres of Expertise around the world can use to engage with local communities and initiate sustainability transitions in higher education institutions.
In this collection, the Czech CUNI team presented their project on "Localising the SDGs", developed in collaboration with the Local Action Groups Network. The two articles explored local and regional actors, strategies and experiences related to the implementation of the SDGs (as a globally set strategy). The gap between global and regional strategies was identified, which universities can help to bridge if they engage with local and regional communities. This is an opportunity to further develop CA members' relationships, based on similar CA values that should support societal transformation and their practical engagement in its processes. Several CA members are already linked to RCEs in their regions, and their cooperation with local actors can also bring about institutional change in universities – so that they are better equipped to solve practical problems in society.
