Rights of Nature and Decolonial Pedagogies in Sustainable STEM Education: Policy Pathways for Environmental Justice in Europe and the Global South

Abstract

Growing ecological crises demand a fundamental rethink of how STEM education teaches students to relate to nature. In order to bridge the gap between ecological knowledge and pro-environmental action, this review explores the relationship between Rights of Nature (RoN) legal frameworks, decolonial pedagogy, and sustainable STEM education throughout the Global South and Europe. The review article highlights that policy-driven integration of RoN principles is crucial. The doctrinal analysis triangulated with secondary empirical evidence has been used for this review. It applies three analytical lenses – legal positivism, critical legal theory, and decolonial frameworks rooted in Indigenous Buen Vivir traditions, to about fifty Scopus-indexed studies, constitutions, and legal texts published between 2020 and 2025. Findings show that despite RoN recognition in 66 countries and over 688 programmes globally, fewer than 28% of Global South curricula integrate RoN, and engagement in Europe remains equally fragmented. Yet Buen Vivir-inspired interventions produce 53-63% improvements in students’ sustained behavioural engagement and SDG-aligned competencies. This review article recommends transdisciplinary curricula, decolonial teacher training, and formal integration of RoN literacy into GreenComp and Erasmus+ frameworks, offering an evidence-based roadmap for social transformation through sustainable STEM education.