Sustainability in the undergraduate and postgraduate business curriculum of a regional university: A critical perspective

Heidt, Tania von der; Lamberton, Geoff

doi:10.5172/jmo.2011.17.5.670

Cited by 37 publications

(26 citation statements)

References 24 publications

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“…Business disciplines such as economics, accounting and management are located towards the A vertex, being predisposed to emphasise the economic dimensions of sustainability (Stubbs & Cocklin, 2008; von der Heidt & Lamberton, 2011). Arguably, neoclassical economics is the currently dominant theoretical framework in these disciplines, deploying a rational-deductive approach to knowledge founded on some fundamental assumptions about the nature of social reality: namely, instrumental rationality, market efficiency, and capital substitutability.…”

Section: Impediment I: Conceptual Multiplicitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Four Impediments to Embedding Education for Sustainability in Higher Education

Gale

Davison

Wood

et al. 2015

Aust. J. environ. educ.

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Higher education institutions have an unavoidable responsibility to address the looming economic, environmental and social crises imperilling humans and ecosystems by placing 'education for sustainability' at the heart of their concerns. Yet, for over three decades, the practice of 'higher education for sustainability' (HEfS) has encountered significant barriers to implementation, begging the question as to why. Drawing on a diverse, interdisciplinary literature, we identify four structural impediments to implementing HEfS: (1) disciplinary contestation, which creates confusion over what 'sustainability' means; (2) institutional fragmentation, which prevents the interdisciplinary dialogue that sustainability demands; (3) economic globalisation, which transforms higher education into just another market opportunity; and (4) 'fast and frugal' habits of reasoning, which steer time-pressed academics towards poorly integrated decisions and unsustainable positions. Our analysis highlights that wider structural change within and beyond the academy will be required if higher education institutions are to meet their responsibilities and drive the necessary social transformation. 29Higher education institutions have a responsibility to address a nexus of systemic eco-30 nomic, environmental and social problems that imperil human and non-human futures 31 by placing 'education for sustainability' (EfS) at the centre of their concerns. This 32 responsibility is grounded in the role of these institutions in providing independent crit-33 ical analysis, educating professionals, creating new knowledge, and fostering informed

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Section: Impediment I: Conceptual Multiplicitymentioning

confidence: 99%

Four Impediments to Embedding Education for Sustainability in Higher Education

Gale

Davison

Wood

et al. 2015

Aust. J. environ. educ.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Most of the published empirical studies focused on single institutions’ initiatives and case studies related to single courses or subjects (the components that form a course). See, for example, Benn & Dunphy (2009); Bridges and Wilhelm (2008); Persons (2012); Stubbs (2011); von der Heidt and Lamberton (2011). Only a limited number of empirical studies have investigated the degree to which sustainability had been integrated into the overall business or management curricula.…”

Section: Sustainability In Management Educationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In order to meet the challenges of sustainability management, students will need to develop an understanding of the long-term consequences and implications of business decisions, be knowledgeable about sustainability issues, and have the skills to develop, evaluate, and implement sustainability initiatives (Forum for the Future, 2004; Stubbs, 2011; Waddock, 2007). Students with these attributes will have enhanced graduate employment opportunities (Persons, 2011), and they will have the potential to profoundly affect the long-term sustainability of businesses (Setó-Pamies & Papaoikonomou, 2015; von der Heidt & Lamberton, 2011).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

Sustainability and Undergraduate Management Curricula: Changes Over a 5-Year Period

Fisher

Bonn

2017

Aust. J. environ. educ.

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Global initiatives and a rapidly expanding academic literature identify the responsibility that universities have to incorporate sustainability education into their curricula. This study had two aims: first, to investigate the extent to which Australian undergraduate management curricula explicitly identified a focus on sustainability and, second, to examine the changes that had occurred between 2009 and 2014. A web-based content analysis was undertaken to gain a snapshot view of the emphasis placed on sustainability in all 40 Australian universities’ business/management courses. Our findings showed that in 2014, three-quarters of the courses identified failed to include even one subject that all students must study that mentioned sustainability. This finding was only marginally different from the 2009 findings, suggesting that there is a long way to go before sustainability education in Australian universities’ undergraduate management curricula could be claimed to be fulfilling the needs of students, businesses, and the broader society.

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“…(Seto-Pamies et al,2011, p.604). Different types of CSR-related courses are also available in state universities in the USA (Navarro, P.,2008;Bruce, G., Edgington, R., 2008), Czech Republic (Adamek, P. 2013), Australia (Heidt and Lamberton, (2011);Australia and New Zealand, (Rundle-Thiele and Wymer (2010); China and India (Jacob Park, J., Sarkar, R., Bunch, R., 2012) and other countries.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…et al (2007). The greatest challenge faced by universities, and the one which is most difficult to resolve, is the necessity to incorporate sustainability/CSR in the official curriculum of business sciences (Heidt and Lamberton, 2011;Matten and Moon, 2004). This necessity stems from the understanding that has been established in academic literature and practice for more than a decade (White, 2005) that CSR can create benefits for the companies when incorporated in their operations and corporate social activities are part of the organization's strategy and related to its goals (Porter, M., & Kramer, M.,2006.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Corporate Social Responsibility in Business and Management University Education: The Relevancy to the Business Practices in Bulgaria

Slavova

Bankova

2015

EJBE

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In the last decades corporate social responsibility (CSR) has forcefully and irreversibly become a part of the corporate actions of a growing number of companies and continues to provoke the interest of governments, international institutions, scientists and researchers. The new imperatives on CSR have increased the requirements of companies towards the education and preparation of experts with the requisite skills and competences.The objective of the paper is to discuss how business universities meet the demand for new business models and management skills in order to help companies in Bulgaria to develop socially responsible practices.The study is based on a web-content analysis of the curricula and study programs of all Bulgarian universities training business and management students in Bachelor and Master programs. The obtained results regarding the current status of CSR education are interpreted in the context of CSR in businesses in Bulgaria. To this end, results were used from a large-scale study by the authors on the status and trends of development of CSR in Bulgaria, thus uncovering the needs of companies operating on the Bulgarian market in terms of employees with CSR skills and competences, and showing the gap between the demand and supply of CSR education for business and management graduates in Bulgarian universities (Bachelor and Master programs). The conclusions delineate the directions in which teaching CSR-related issues should develop in higher education institutions in Bulgaria.

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Sustainability in the undergraduate and postgraduate business curriculum of a regional university: A critical perspective

Abstract: A B S T R A C TThe challenge to embed sustainability in the formal curriculum has been greatest for the business studies curriculum. Schools

Cited by 37 publications

References 24 publications

Four Impediments to Embedding Education for Sustainability in Higher Education

Four Impediments to Embedding Education for Sustainability in Higher Education

Sustainability and Undergraduate Management Curricula: Changes Over a 5-Year Period

Corporate Social Responsibility in Business and Management University Education: The Relevancy to the Business Practices in Bulgaria

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