Over the last 20 years, international organisations and national governments have stressed the need for education policies to be (re)oriented towards social change, sustainability and preparing students for life in a global society. This area of pedagogy is not problem free. When policy is turned into practice teachers need to take a number of factors into account, especially when global sustainability issues are complex. In this article I investigate how six teachers with experience of international professional development reflect on and incorporate global sustainability issues in their teaching. These teachers articulated different ways of utilising the curriculum and enacting pedagogies relating to colonialism and complex global issues. The conclusion is that these teachers' experiences can help us to understand this work and how it can be developed.