Digitalization and Artificial Intelligence (AI) are reshaping Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) by enabling personalized learning, adaptive feedback, and data-driven competency assessment. Although Vietnam is advancing its national digital transformation agenda, the integration of AI into vocational and higher education remains uneven, particularly in rural regions where infrastructure, digital skills, and faculty readiness vary considerably.

This study develops a contextualized AI-enabled ESD framework using a design-based research (DBR) methodology. The proposed framework is structured around four core constructs of Digital Sustainability Competence, Ecological Value Orientation, Institutional Adaptation Capacity, and AI-Enabled ESD Implementation. These constructs are operationalized through 21 variables, comprising 14 observed variables across the first three constructs and 7 operational variables describing AI-enabled ESD practices in pedagogical, technological, and governance domains. Together, they form an integrated model that explains how AI can enhance ESD adoption within Vietnam’s diverse educational contexts.

The framework provides actionable guidance for curriculum redesign, faculty digital upskilling, and institutional readiness, supporting alignment between digital transformation policies and national sustainability goals. Future research should validate the 4-construct, 21-variable model using structured measurement instruments and PLS-SEM techniques to empirically test the hypothesized relationships.