Putting sustainability research into practice on the university campus

Abstract

Purpose Despite increasing efforts to incorporate sustainability in curricula and practices of institutions of higher education, effective implementation remains challenging. The purpose of this study is to present an approach to incorporate sustainability into a practice-oriented research skills course, which was implemented at a small island state university in the Caribbean. Design/methodology/approach First-year university students followed a four-week course module, starting with the introduction of the sustainable development goals, and culminating in a symposium in which the students present the findings of their research projects to the campus community. Pre-course module and post-course module surveys measured the students’ knowledge and perceptions regarding sustainability. These survey results were also compared with the result of a similar survey held for the university’s employees. Findings The survey results suggested that following the course module increased students’ knowledge about sustainable development, as well as their support for the university campus and its community putting more emphasis on teaching, practicing and encouraging sustainability. Interestingly, university employees scored significantly higher on the latter component than students, suggesting that in this case a lack of interest of the staff is not a barrier toward a sustainable campus. Originality/value The presented course module offers a novel and low-cost approach to introducing sustainability into a broad range of academic curricula, specifically tailored to the needs of institutes of higher education in small island states. The survey results suggest that this type of education may not only ensure reaching academic goals but also increase students’ interest in sustainable development within their local environment.

Ranking the sustainable development goals: perceived sustainability priorities in small island states

“…7). The current study considered the potential of the SDGs as a communication tool in ESD, for which the SDGs are increasingly considered (Annan-Diab and Molinari 2017; Agirreazkuenaga 2019; Eppinga et al 2020;Kopnina 2020a, b). As the SDGs were originally designed to mobilize simultaneous action across Sustainability Domains (Fukuda-Parr 2019), it is of interest to assess the extent to which young learners operationalize this notion when briefly introduced to and subsequently invited to rank the SDGs according to their own perception of relative importance (Fig.…”

“…In addition to mobilizing efforts to implement the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, the SDGs also provide a means to support Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) programs (Annan-Diab and Molinari 2017; Agirreazkuenaga 2019; Eppinga et al 2020;Kopnina 2020a, b). This interconnection between ESD and the SDGs is reflected within SDG target 4.7, which aims: 'to ensure (by 2030) that all learners acquire the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development' (UN 2015).…”

“…Other examples of this interconnection can be found in the recognition within the SDGs of the need for education on issues such as climate change mitigation and adaptation (Eppinga et al 2019). Furthermore, the presented vision that no one should be left behind (UN 2015) also implies that no citizen should be denied the opportunity to take ownership of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and be empowered to become agents of change realizing its SDGs (Chin and Jacobsson 2016;Eppinga et al 2019Eppinga et al , 2020.…”

“…The former perspective may be dominant when ESD is confined to specific courses emphasizing a particular domain of sustainability, or when it is offered through add-on electives to learners already interested in specific aspects of sustainability (Moore 2005;Guerra 2017). Such an isolated treatment is unfortunate, as sustainability is best taught not as a management problem within a single domain (DeLind and Link 2004;Wiek et al 2015;Eppinga et al 2020). When using the SDGs within ESD, learning plans that introduce SDGs in a way that communicates to learners the need for an integrated approach to sustainability, which cuts across traditional domains, would likely be conducive to learners developing a holistic view on sustainability (Wiek et al 2015;Lozano et al 2017Lozano et al , 2019.…”

Prospect of Sustainability Course for Student’s Engagement in ESD

“…Despite increasing efforts to incorporate sustainability in curricula and practices of institutions of higher education, effective implementation remains challenging. [12].…”