This theme focuses on the inclusion of sustainability as a factor in the design, production, appropriate use, distribution, maintenance and disposal of technologies and infrastructure. Which technologies are appropriate for Africa's sustainable development and why would they be appropriate for eLearning? How energy efficient and environmentally friendly are the technology products we use to support eLearning?

What new developments are emerging to build sustainable infrastructure in Africa?

How sustainable, cost-efficient and pedagogically appropriate are emerging mobile technologies and their integration in eLearning programmes?

What green open source solutions have emerged in recent years? How are they applied to support eLearning and with what degree of success?

What are our plans to stem the tide of rapid e-waste production? How are we taking advantage of eLearning to raise awareness and change behaviour towards responsible production, use and disposal of electronic products?

How are we going about creating a sustainable future? What are the new trends in eLearning innovation in Africa and how do they integrate sustainability factors? How effective have game-based learning technologies been in Africa? Is cloud computing a sustainable solution for an African eLearning context?

This theme address concrete experience and grassroots practice in classrooms, learning institutions, farms, hospitals, clinics, villages and communities, both rural and urban.

How has eLearning supported better farming methods, more productive agricultural production  and food security? What role has eLearning played in promoting bio-diversity?

How has eLearning raised awareness about climate change, pollution and their impact on our environmental, economic and social systems? What behavioural changes are encouraged through eLearning to manage climate change and natural disasters?

What eLearning programmes have been applied to disaster management? Threats to natural resources also lead to political struggles, conflict and even war. How has eLearning played a role in promoting co-operation, peace-building and reconstruction?

What sustainable livelihoods programmes, especially for youth, have made effective use of eLearning? To what extent are women and girls empowered to make their own decisions and choices in these programmes?

How is the challenge of extending Africa's reach to secondary education for young learners being addressed? How can eLearning sustainably support the extension to early childhood development, primary education and adult education?

How does eLearning support professional development for sustainable health care and delivery systems?

High levels of teacher attrition threaten the viability and sustainability of teaching communities across the world. How can eLearning support sustainable teacher professional development and training?

How can eLearning Africa as an enabler of an evolving African eLearning community become more sustainable? What more could eLearning Africa do to help promote sustainability?

This theme is about how eLearning can support the management of change, including rapid and disruptive change, and the role of eLearning policy, planning and partnerships in promoting sustainable change.  

By now many African countries have some form of national eLearning policy that guides basic education.  Some countries have eLearning policies for their national higher education and TVET systems.  In some countries schools and institutions have developed eLearning policies.  How have these policies taken account of sustainability and change? 2012 has been labelled as the UN International Year of Sustainable Energy for All. What energy-efficient policies are being promoted to support eLearning delivery? What examples are there of alternative and renewable energy sources that have been tried in Africa?

Poor planning has been one of the key reasons for the failure of eLearning projects. What are sustainable planning methodologies for eLearning projects? How do eLearning plans consider change management? What are the sustainable challenges experienced by scaling up eLearning initiatives?  

How does sustainable eLearning design support sustainable life-long learning, skill and competency development and employability in 21st century labour markets?

What conceptual frameworks and emerging theories are we drawing on for the design of sustainable eLearning programmes? Would such frameworks apply in varying contexts in the economies of both developed and developing countries?

eLearning research, knowledge sharing, learning through practice and continuous monitoring and evaluation have increased in recent years and are beginning to show signs of improving practice.  How are these eLearning research processes addressing the sustainability challenge and what are we learning from them?

At the heart of our sustainability challenge are the constraints we face with human, intellectual, educational and financial resources across the world.

There are dynamic shifts happening with educational resources. What sustainable learning platforms, content management systems and open education resources are emerging to advance sustainable education access, equity and quality? Is there a dialogue emerging between OERs and proprietary learning platforms?  How are intellectual property rights (IPR) regimes engaging with the movement towards open access and open content?

How are quality assurance, assessment and qualifications evolving in our challenge to deliver education sustainably?

Africa's sustainability is challenged by a growing 'brain drain' of intellectual resources. How can the ‘brain drain’ be turned into a ‘brain gain’ for Africa and the rest of the world?

A number of countries have experienced struggles over education financing in recent years. Whilst teachers are demanding higher salaries, learners and parents are demanding lower education fees. eLearning budgets have been cut. How are decision-makers approaching education financing and how are sustainability factors taken into account? eLearning projects always work within budgetary constraints. What effective budgeting methodologies have been tried? Have total cost of ownership models considered sustainability concerns?

Recent research suggests that investment in new information and communication technologies is beginning to show positive effects on productivity and long term macro-economic growth.   We invite discussion on the experience and evidence of ICT integration and investment on economic growth in Africa and across the world.

These macro-economic effects are often a feature of the integration of digital technologies and eLearning within an enterprise, whether a local subsistence enterprise, a small or medium-sized enterprise, a multinational corporation, a public sector organisation or a non- government organisation (NGO).  How has e-learning enabled improved performance and growth within these sectors? How sustainable is such growth proving to be?

This topic is closely linked to the effects that digital technologies are having on the sustainability of local culture and cultural change. How can eLearning enable the growth and preservation of indigenous cultures and accommodate the changes that 'modernisation' has on local cultures? How are local languages integrated in eLearning programmes and with what degree of success? 

How do we interpret the effect of social media on African society? What role can social media play in promoting positive social change? What are the negative effects of social media, particularly on youth, and how can these be countered? What role is there for eLearning within this?