Sustainability Assessment of Public Schools in the Palestinian Territory

Sustainability is a critical issue that affects the education sector in multiple ways. We argue that adopting sustainable practices can reduce the environmental impact of schools, provide valuable educational opportunities for students, promote social responsibility, and deliver economic benefits to educational institutions. Therefore, this paper presents a framework for assessing the sustainability of schools in Palestine, which can help identify areas for improvement and enhance the quality of education. The framework aims to establish a comprehensive set of indicators that cover the environmental, social, and economic dimensions of sustainability for public schools. It is based on the literature review, the Palestinian context, and the opinion of a panel of experts. The paper presents the methodology to identify these indicators and uses the Stepwise Weight Assessment Ratio Analysis method (SWARA) for their ranking and weighting. These indicators include: Social Equity, Indoor Quality, Health and Comfort, Social Cohesion, Accessibility, Energy Use Efficiency, Water Use Efficiency, Site Development, Influence on Local Economy, Annual Operating Costs, and Teaching Quality.