Everyone knows today that the curriculum includes both traditional textbooks and modern educational resources, such as e-books, computers and the Internet, with all the scientific and literary information and concepts that represent the main pillar of every educational activity, regardless of its degree or level. From primary school to PhD thesis, all stages are pouring into the crucible of culture and knowledge. However, the global environmental and economic challenges we are witnessing today require schools and educational institutions to play a new role that goes beyond their traditional role of transferring knowledge, that is, they must today transform from mere educational oases concerned with knowledge and expertise to major institutions working on the front lines in order to achieve sustainability and enhance the well-being of people and societies.

Hence, the question arises about the steps that educational institutions must adopt in order to achieve a greener future. Perhaps the answer to this is first to instill a sense of responsibility among students, and then to enable them to translate the theoretical concepts they receive into tangible change. Schools today are required to work to achieve the most important behavioral transformation by expanding the concept of sustainability to include, in addition to the environment, both social and economic aspects. In other words, students must understand sustainability as a comprehensive concept that transcends all other environmental dimensions. Since curricula are the backbone of any educational institution, they must start the journey through them, and all of them must integrate their paths with sustainable development paths, that is, helping students to understand the interconnectedness between global challenges and sustainable practices, especially as these challenges intensify, such as climate change and the depletion of resources and the resulting social and economic problems.

Hence, sustainable practices offer comprehensive solutions that address root causes rather than treating symptoms, and also emphasize that a harmonious balance between economic growth and environmental protection is the only way to ensure the happiness of future generations. For example, schools can promote environmentally friendly behaviors by focusing on some simple actions entrusted to students and learners, such as issues related to recycling, water conservation and energy conservation, in addition to encouraging the use of sustainable transportation. Schools can also set an example by themselves by adopting green infrastructure projects and applying them to school buildings, such as solar panels and rainwater harvesting systems, and even playgrounds and sports facilities for those schools can be designed with an environmentally friendly perspective, using recycled materials that ensure minimal environmental disturbance. Schools can also establish environmental clubs that work away from actual school times, so that those clubs work to push towards environmentally friendly initiatives such as sustainable projects and community awareness campaigns, along with the possibility of training students in cooperation with government agencies and private institutions on all sustainability issues specific to the individual, family and society as a whole.

Because they are the torchbearers of change, teachers are at the forefront of the elements that school administrations must focus on. The processes of strengthening infrastructure and developing curricula must be accompanied by an integrated set of regular training courses and workshops for teachers. These sessions, conducted in cooperation with specialists and university professors, include a rich increase that provides teachers with the latest knowledge and innovative teaching methodologies that help them integrate sustainability concepts into all their educational practices easily and smoothly.

There is no doubt that the journey towards comprehensive sustainability is an arduous and challenging one, especially since today's world stands on the cusp of environmental changes whose extent and stability are unknown. However, hope always remains with the young people of our children and grandchildren, and with them, of course, the role of schools is evident in refining them and preparing them for the world of the future and its turbulent sea, which will not reduce the roar of its waves except at the helm of sustainability.

• Global environmental and economic challenges that require educational institutions to play a new role beyond their traditional role.

Founder of Suhail Smart Solutions