Abstract
Purpose This paper aims to describe an innovative approach of integrating sustainability into the structures and processes of a business school without creating resistance. Design/methodology/approach A sustainable entrepreneurship competition was embedded as an independent programme in an already existing business plan competition at the School of Business FHNW. The paper shows, which structural elements of the competition had to be adapted to the needs of sustainable entrepreneurs. Findings The paper outlines aspects that need to be considered and steps that need to be taken to run a sustainable entrepreneurship competition supporting as many high-quality projects as possible. It describes the importance of developing an independent instrument that meets the specific needs of sustainable entrepreneurs in project planning. The sustainable innovation plan is explained. Social implications The student projects are developed at the School of Business FHNW as part of the entrepreneurship competition, which has been successfully carried out twice. They have numerous measurable positive social and ecological effects, which are described by the students in their sustainable innovation plans and are subsequently reflected in the realization of the projects. Originality/value Using the example of the Swiss Student Sustainability Challenge, the paper demonstrates under which conditions a sustainability project can be successfully integrated into the existing structures of an institution of higher education and develop into a beacon project of the university. Other universities can make use of these findings to launch comparable projects at their institutions.
Highlights
Institutions of higher education are linked to sustainability issues in a variety of ways
Setting up the jury with experts in sustainability, sustainable entrepreneurship and from the non-profit sector allows for the right deep-dive questions and a better selection The need to have a designated prize for sustainable startups and not just a special price in a conventional startup competition allows for quality, interesting cases and real benefits for participating project teams Inviting social or sustainable entrepreneurs to an interactive dinner with programme participants where exchange on experiences is the key Making sure to create a unique event setup that fits the audience challenges, which are related to the solution, should be explicitly described of the plan
Experiences from numerous projects and programmes at institutions of higher education have shown that attempts to integrate the topic of sustainability into teaching, research and operations often encounter resistance (Barber et al, 2014; Quian, 2013; Peet et al, 2004; Holmberg et al, 2008; Pesonen, 2003)
Summary
Institutions of higher education are linked to sustainability issues in a variety of ways. Academic literature agrees that the topic of sustainability is rarely systematically integrated into teaching, research and operations at universities or schools There are concepts such as the Whole-of-University Approach to Educating for Sustainability developed and published by Mcmillin and Dyball (2009). One possible way forward could be to develop and implement projects that promise immediate benefits for universities in one of their core areas of teaching and research, while at the same time contributing to sustainable development as a side effect This insight is based on considerations developed within the academic debate on corporate social responsibility and corporate sustainability (Schaltegger, 2014; Salzmann et al, 2005; Marrewijk, 2003; Carroll, 1999). This has already generated various successful student projects in the field of sustainability and is regarded by the university as a beacon project with which it can evidence its commitment to sustainability
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