This article examines the relationship between the Earth Charter and education for sustainable development (ESD), as part of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. The areas of shared interest between the two are assessed and the invaluable nature of the Earth Charter as a resource outlining global values and principles for a sustainable, peaceful Earth asserted. Through an examination of the traditional Chinese philosophies of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism, symmetries with the Earth Charter principles are explored and the importance of linking the Earth Charter and ESD with local culture, belief systems and indigenous knowledge is emphasised. Methods for infusing these values and principles in education are proposed and the role of the Earth Charter as a base for linking the local and global in order to foster knowledge, values and skills for sustainable development at the individual, institutional and societal levels through formal, nonformal and informal learning settings is highlighted. (Contains 2 notes.)