What is sustainable development?
I jet-setted over to Morocco to research water usage, scarcity and general availability. Morocco has a Mediterranean climate and there are regions where annual rainfall is less than that in Phoenix. Additionally, Morocco has suffers from inconsistent rainfall and several years of drought. With that in mind, and the fact water is such a valuable resource, I wanted to see how water as perceived and what they were doing to solve this problem.
On day one, we sat and talked with the MENA Policy Hub, a motivated group of young and inspired Moroccans who are interested in policy analysis and sustainable development. I immediately realized that to them, water was not a primary, secondary nor tertiary issue. Their main sustainable development concern was directed towards education and employability. They analyze policies associated with social change and advocate for improved quality of lives. In fact, members of the MENA Hub have created a vocational school that gives people marketable job skills in response to Morocco’s high unemployment rate.
One discussion topic centered around education. It was interesting to see the cultural difference and perception on education and sustainability. The American students’ perception of education was centered around adding sustainable education (i.e. recycling, deforestation, water conservation) into school curriculums. However, the Moroccans perceived education as a sustainable issue in itself. They firmly believe education is necessary to create job skills that will make an individual marketable and employable. The ultimate goal is to create a sustainable life: have a skill, get a job, make money, buy food, contribute to society.
I want to go into the international development field after graduation, so the conversation and discussion with the MENA Policy Hub opened my eyes to the varying cultural priorities within sustainable development. In the west we tend to correlate sustainability with environmental issues, but here, sustainability is centered more around human rights and social development. I need to be sensitive and aware to different priorities and viewpoints in other countries and not go into a situation taking the wellbeing in the U.S for granted.