The
relationship between higher education and sustainability is one of tension.
Universities
are sometimes seen as leading the way in accelerating un-sustainability through
their thinking, teaching and research (e.g. Wals, 2008). Therefore, a growing
number of scholars (e.g. Wiek et al, 2012) propose that addressing sustainability
requires a different approach to education and research in higher education.
This
indicates that, in order to address sustainability effectively, universities
themselves should change – a view that is common among a number of
international consultations and declarations that many universities have
subscribed to (e.g. Talloires 1990, Copernicus 1994 and Luneburg 2001) (Scott
and Gough 2007).
The
issues that universities would confront when addressing sustainability are of
two types (Ferrer-Balas et al 2010): (1) harder issues: making changes in
operations, courses, curricula and research, (2) softer issues: making changes
in values, attitudes, motivations and societal interactions. Confronting these
issues, many universities worldwide have progressed along different pathways
towards ‘Sustainable University’.
Research
into sustainability in higher education has generated a number of sustainable
university models. One of the most widely recognised is the 4C model, which
comprises: (1) Curriculum – learning and teaching (and related research) (2)
Campus change (3) Community engagement (4) Culture – encircling the other three
(Blake and Sterling 2011).
The
literature charts four pathways to a Sustainable University:
- Reorient core functions of universities – e.g. education, research, outreach – around the concept of sustainability
- Minimise adverse environmental and social impacts of universities through greening operations
- Develop of an institution-wide sustainability culture in within universities and beyond
- Develop a pro-sustainability institutional framework
The
pathways and their corresponding purposes as indicated in the literature could
be summed up as follows:
|
Pathways
|
Purpose
|
|
Education
|
To
produce sustainability-oriented/ competent graduates ready to work in green
economies and to live (and lead) in increasingly diverse communities
|
|
Research
|
To
generate new knowledge (and to learn from the existing but lesser known
sustainability-rich knowledge systems) to address wider community’s
sustainability issues
|
|
Outreach
|
To
lead, partner with and contribute to the sustainability endeavours of the
wider community – local to global
|
|
Operations
|
To
minimise universities’ environmental and social impacts at all levels – local
to global
|
|
Culture
|
To
develop a sustainability culture within the university community and beyond
|
|
Institution
|
To
develop a pro-sustainability institutional framework that would nurture not
hinder pro-sustainability developments in the other five pathways
|
According
to the literature, when considering the universities that are working to become
more sustainable, most show significant progress in one or two pathways only, usually
in operations.
Useful Resources
2013
Higher education, sustainability, and London buses
Sustainable University News and Information website
Sustainable University Good Practice website (a visual celebration of sustainability practice at UK universities)
Greening Universities Toolkit (draft) (UNEP)Sustainable University Good Practice website (a visual celebration of sustainability practice at UK universities)
2012
Guide to Quality and Education for Sustainability in Higher Education
Rio+20 Treaty on Higher Education
Why and How Higher Education is Embracing Sustainability (Triple Pundit)
2011
Higher Education in the World 4 Higher Education’s Commitment to Sustainability: from Understanding to Action (Global University Network for Innovation GUNI report)
Assessing the sustainability of higher education institutions
How can higher education institutions become more sustainable? (The Guardian)
2008
Greeningspires / Universities and the green agenda (UUK)
2009
Sustainable development in higher education: 2008 update to strategic statement and action plan (HEFCE)2005
Sustainable Development in Higher Education: CurrentPractice and Future Developments (The Sustainability Information Teaching Exchange)
1996
Sustainable Development on Campus (International Institute for Sustainable Development IISD)1990
Talloires Declaration
Date not clear
Declarations for Sustainable Development: the Response of Universities (IISD)
Declarations on higher education and sustainable development (1972-2008)
Second Nature (‘…to create a sustainable society by transforming higher
education’)
The Role of Higher Education Institutions in Promoting Sustainable Development (UN University)Environmental Association for Universities and Colleges (EAUC)
Education for sustainable development (HEA)
People and Planet Green League
The Sustainable University One-stop Shop
The Sustainability Exchange
Sustainable Development (HEFCE)
Education for sustainable development and globalcitizenship (ESDGC) (HEFCW)
Sustainable Development (SFC)
Sustainabilityin Higher Education Developers (SHED) (HEA)
GreenerNUS
The Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE)
COPERNICUS Alliance
Learningin Future Environments (LiFE)
London Universities Environmental Group (LUEG)
Sustainability Leaders Programme (EAUC)
International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education
Higher Education Environment Performance Improvement (HEEPI)
References & Bibliography
Beringer,
A. and Adomssent, M. (2008) Sustainable university research and development:
inspecting sustainability in higher education research. Environmental
Education Research, 14(6),
pp.607-623.
Blake,
J. and Sterling, S. (2011) Tensions and transitions: effecting change towards
sustainability at a mainstream university through staff living and learning at
an alternative, civil society college. Environmental Education Research,
17(1), pp.125-144.
Brinkhurst, M., Rose, P., Maurice, G. and Ackerman, J.D.
(2011) Achieving campus sustainability: top-down, bottom-up, or neither? International Journal of Sustainability in
Higher Education, 12(4), pp.
338-354.
Chalkley,
B. and Sterling, S. (2011) Hard times in higher education: the closure of
subject centres and the implications for education for sustainable development
(ESD). Sustainability, 3, pp. 666-677.
Djordjevic, A. and Cotton, D.R.E. (2011) Communicating the sustainability message in
higher education institutions. International
Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, 12(4), pp. 381-394.
Ferrer-Balas, D; Lozano, R; Huisingh, D; Buckland, H;
Ysern, P; Zilahy, G (2010) Going beyond the rhetoric: system-wide changes in
universities for sustainable societies, Journal of Cleaner Production, 18, pp.607-610
Lozano, R. (2010) Diffusion of sustainable development in
universities' curricula: an empirical example from Cardiff University, Journal
of Cleaner Production, 18, pp.637-644.
Minguet,
P.A., Martinez-Agut, M.P., Palacios, B., Pinero, A. and Ull, M.A. (2011)
Introducing sustainability into university curricula: an indicator and
baselines survey of the views of university teachers at the University of
Valencia. Environmental Education
Research, 17(2), pp. 145-166.
Rieckmann,
M. (2012) Future-oriented higher education: Which key competencies should be
fostered through university teaching and learning? Futures, 44, pp.
127-135.
Savelyeva,
T. and McKenna, J.R. (2011) Campus sustainability: emerging curricula models in
higher education. International Journal
of Sustainability in Higher Education, 12(1),
pp.55-66.
Scott,
W. and Gough, S. (2007) Universities and sustainable development: the necessity
for barriers to change. Perspectives: Policy and Practice in Higher
Education, 11 (4), pp. 107-115.
Waas,
T., Verbruggen, A. and Wright, T. (2010) University research for sustainable
development: definition and characteristics explored. Journal of Cleaner Production, 18,
pp. 629-636.
Wals,
A.E.J. (ed.) (2008) From cosmetic reform
to meaningful integration: Implementing Education for Sustainable Development
in higher education institutes – The state of affairs in six European countries.
Amsterdam: DHO.
Wiek,
A., Farioli, F. and Fukushi, K. (2012) Sustainability science: bridging the gap
between science and society, Sustainability
Science, 7 (Supplement 1),
pp.1-4.
Yarime,
M., Trencher, G, Mino, T., Scholz, R.W., Olsson, L., Ness, B., Frantzeskaki, N.
and Rotmans, J. (2012) Establishing sustainability science in higher education
institutions: towards an integration of academic development,
institutionalization, and stakeholder collaborations. Sustainability Science, 7
(Supplement 1), pp. 101-113.
The Sustainable University One-stop Shop:
Satellite websites: News and Information | Research | Good Practice | Quotes | Blog | Diary | Micro-blog (Twitter)
