The stewardship of resources for the good of the people is an ancient concept in India, practiced by revered kingdoms. This chapter discusses the original ideals of stewardship and how colonization caused a deterioration of this philosophy in favor of materialistic wealth generation. Colonization followed by the development of an industrialized and capitalistic leaning in the economy brought wealth and increased consumption for Indian people and also created multiple waste-related issues. These issues require a drastic overhaul of waste management practices, with particular attention to industrial ecology. Modern stewardship by India's CSR community is essential to prevent further environmental degradation due to poor waste management practices. The circular economy holds promise as a new economic system and philosophy that can refocus society towards the values of stewardship espoused by the nation's ancestors, while transitioning to a circular economy.
The objective of this chapter is to narrate the realizations while developing sustainability lessons by Action Learning (AL) for inclusion within an MBA-IT Business Management curriculum. This process is elucidated in a narrative style. The premise was set by ALs of earlier cohorts' trials, errors, improvisations, and reflections. In the year 2015, the Institutional Social Responsibility (ISR) team attempted scaling up ‘Learning by Doing.' In 2016, a ‘Consolidate and Optimize' approach was adopted. Each activity used a reflexive approach during AL evaluations. Together, AL practitioner and learners developed incrementally maturing sustainability lessons for the subsequent cohort. The chapter aims to share experiential learning with all stakeholders in higher education. An overall shift from apathy to empathy by virtue of AL to implement sustainability lessons is the highlight of this chapter.
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