Leif Östman is affiliated to the Centre for Sustainable Development as a visiting professor with research focus. He holds a PhD in educational sciences. As a professor of curriculum studies at Uppsala University (Sweden), he is the director of the research group SMED (Studies of Meaning-making in Educational Discourses). In his research in science education and environmental and sustainability education he has developed theoretical models and analytical methods based on pragmatist philosophy and the work of Wittgenstein. He has a background as a science teacher in a lower secondary school. Since 1987 he has been involved in teacher training as well as different forms of cooperation with teachers, schools, NGOs and governmental departments in Sweden and internationally.