The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by the United Nations, represents a global commitment to addressing inequalities, environmental challenges, and social transformation. At GET Bulgaria, we believe that Bulgaria’s Second Voluntary National Review (SNVR) is a key opportunity for analyzing and improving the country’s strategies for sustainable development.
According to the latest SVNR (for the period 2015-2020), Bulgaria has made notable progress in education, including an increase in higher education graduates and a reduction in early school dropouts. The share of early school leavers decreased by 30% from 2015 to 2023. This decline reflects the positive effects of measures and programs to retain students and prevent early dropout. However, we believe that true transformation in education is achieved through the integration of global citizenship education—an approach that fosters critical thinking, digital skills, and an understanding of global challenges. Incorporating topics such as climate literacy, social justice, and international cooperation in both formal and non-formal education will ensure that future generations become active and responsible citizens. Amendments to the Law on Preschool and School Education in Bulgaria from 2016 provide opportunities to study subjects in the fields of global, civic, and intercultural education, which foster national identity, empathy, solidarity, and an understanding of global citizenship, while expanding and complementing content already integrated into other subjects.
Despite ongoing efforts, Bulgaria continues to face challenges in meeting Goal 13 – Climate Action. Rising urbanization, industrial growth, and the accelerating impacts of climate change have increased the country’s vulnerability to natural disasters. Moreover, greenhouse gas emissions per capita rose to 9.1 tons of CO₂ equivalent in 2022, up from 8.5 tons in 2015. Other concerns include the insufficient use of alternative energy sources and reduced funding for environmental protection measures.
At GET Bulgaria, we share the conclusions of the Second Voluntary National Review, which emphasize that a sustainable future requires educational reforms that place climate issues at the core of education for children and young people. Only by cultivating a strong culture of environmental responsibility can significant progress be made in reducing greenhouse gas emissions and developing green technologies.
Bulgaria has made significant progress in sustainable development, but efforts in this direction can be further strengthened. We believe that achieving real social transformation requires deep integration of global citizenship education into national development strategies. For long-term sustainable success, it is essential to provide targeted specialized training for educators and students, the development of new content and state educational standards that are more widely incorporated into preschool and school education, active information campaigns to promote global and civic education with a focus on sustainable development, and stronger cooperation between educational institutions, local communities, teachers, and students.
Through the GET project, we bring global citizenship education to European schools by developing educational initiatives, training sessions for teachers, and free downloadable resources. Discover our GET Big Ideas on Climate Change and use them in your classroom to enhance students’ environmental awareness.
