10 11 Introduction With the symposium "sustainability and religion(s) - a pilgrimage" in May 2003, the institutes for religious education in Austria took a bold step towards Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). By including spirituality in ESD, it has been scientifically proven that the courses of action have been expanded to include this dimension. In the spirit of the European Ecumenical Assembly held in Basel in 1989 and parallel to the Ecumenical Social Word of Austria's 14 Christian churches in 2003, PILGRIM saw itself as a kind of pedagogical realisation. The fact that the results of the research project are still relevant 20 years later can be attributed to human inertia for serious debate. Now, in 2023, climate activists are calling for more intensive implementation in the political arena. ESD in the sense of PILGRIM remains undisputedly in line with the positively motivated implementation of sustainable projects in the educational field. Over the past 20 years, PILGRIM has undergone a development that becomes recognisable in this publication – like the waves of water over time. The first section deals with the content of the exposé, from ESD to the forms of spirituality. This is followed by the organisational section with the framework conditions for the actual work. The third section lists the relevant thematic texts in summarised form. Spiritual texts from different religions and Christian denominations form the fourth and final section. These were presented by representatives of the churches and religious communities at the certification events, so that a more precise origin cannot be given. The vision of PILGRIM has received a lot of impetus over the years, primarily through cooperation with state and private teacher training colleges, both in Austria and internationally. The many organisations, NGOs and individuals have also contributed to the diversity and spiritual depth. For PILGRIM, cooperation is a living practice and a reason for a big and heartfelt THANK YOU to all institutions. " In life one cannot awaken often enough the sense of a beginning within oneself. There is so little external change needed for that since we actually transform the world from within our hearts. If the heart longs for nothing but to be new and unlimited, the world is instantly the same as on the day of its creation and infinite." Rainer Maria Rilke In line with PILGRIM's motto "Living Consciously – Giving Future", the aim is to raise awareness of creation. The actions themselves should be characterised by the slogan "Save the earth – Serve the creation" in all its complexity. This is also the reason behind the title of this publication. In general, PILGRIM sees itself as a low-threshold introduction to ESD, as an additional approach that would otherwise not exist. PILGRIM develops as a continuous process as a sustainable development of itself, especially through the experiences of the diverse people and institutions that come to PILGRIM. Just as the water of the Danube's many tributaries makes the diversity clearly recognisable at the beginning, at the end the river has become a comprehensive unity at its mouth to the sea ... May the texts speak for themselves and invite you to join PILGRIM ... Johann Hisch, Piotr Kubiak, Christine Wogowitsch Eds Image © J. Hisch
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