Key Competencies In Sustainability Research Articles

Sustainability in project-based learning: Project themes and self-perceived competencies

Project-based learning can be a suitable arena in which to integrate sustainability. In this work, we study what effect choosing a project theme related to sustainability has on the students’ own assessment of integration of sustainability aspects in their projects, and their development of the normative, critical thinking, and self-awareness competencies from UNESCO’s key competencies for sustainability. It is found that while having sustainability-related project themes does have some effect, the effect is limited compared to the development of other competencies in the course.

Ways of developing key sustainability competencies of university students at foreign language classes

Ways of developing key sustainability competencies of university students at foreign language classes

Pushing the boundaries: experience-based learning in early phases of graduate sustainability curricula

PurposeThis paper aims to investigate student experiences and the potential impact of experience-based learning (EBL) in the early phase of graduate sustainability programs through the lens of key competencies. The goal is to provide evidence for the improvement of existing and the thorough design of new EBL formats in sustainability programs.Design/methodology/approachThis comparative case study focuses on the first semester of three graduate sustainability programs at Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Germany and Arizona State University, USA, for two of which EBL was a core feature. The study compares the curricula, the teaching and learning environments and the reported experiences of one student cohort from each of three programs and synthesizes the resulting insights. Student interviews were combined with student self-assessments and supported by in-vivo observations, curriculum designer input, instructor interviews and course materials. MAXQDA was used for data analysis following a grounded theory approach.FindingsEBL influences students’ reflective capacity, which impacts the development of key competencies in sustainability. Qualitative analysis found four key themes in relation to the students’ learning in EBL settings, namely, discomfort, time-attention relationship, student expectations of instructors and exchange. The intersection of these themes with curricular structure, student dispositions and differing instructor approaches shows how curriculum can either support or interrupt the reflective cycle and thus, holistic learning.Research limitations/implicationsWith the focus on the first semester only, the students’ competence development over the course of the entire program cannot be demonstrated. Learning processes within EBL settings are complex and include aspects outside the control of instructors and curriculum designers. This study addresses only a select number of factors influencing students’ learning in EBL settings.Practical implicationsEarly engagement with EBL activities can push students to leave their comfort zones and question previous assumptions. Designing curricula to include EBL while encouraging strong intra-cohort connections and creating space for reflection seems to be an effective approach to enable the development of key competencies in sustainability.Originality/valueThis paper investigates the experiences of students in EBL through a key competence lens. The study combines student self-perceptions, instructor reflections and in-vivo observations. Data collection and analysis were conducted by a researcher not affiliated with the programs. These factors make for a unique study design and with data-driven insights on the seldom researched competence-pedagogy-curriculum connection.

Using Group Model Building to Foster Learning for Strategic Sustainable Development

Capability for strategic planning and decision-making toward sustainability requires both individuals and organizations from different sectors and disciplines to develop necessary skills and competencies. Therefore, a growing discussion has emerged within academia and practice around how pedagogical methods and tools can be utilized for this purpose. This paper seeks to contribute to this discussion by asking ‘in which way may group model building be used to foster learning that leads to competency for strategic sustainable development?’. The potential of the group model building (GMB) process’ steps and associated modeling to foster learning for strategic sustainable development (SSD) was analyzed using four case examples. Theory on learning for sustainability and key sustainability competencies were linked to elements of a process for strategic planning toward sustainability within the framework for strategic sustainable development (FSSD) as a reference model. The results provide a discussion on how GMB can be utilized to foster sustainability competencies and learning for sustainability that can contribute to SSD, hence a basis for continued research and ideas for course and curriculum development.

대학의 지속가능발전교육(ESD)과 SDGs 교육의 필요성과 과제

초록 · 키워드 목차 오류제보하기 The SDG"s, which had been planned as the behavioral canons and the ethical canons in the global environment era, include a lot of the precious guidelines regarding the administration on the global level and on the national dimension. However, when intending to utilize the SDG"s as the solution of the problems on the level of each country or city, the situation in which it is difficult to use them just the way they are takes place. Because of this, regarding the SDG"s keynote, the reinterpretation and the reorganization that consider the special situations, the conditions, the cultures, the capabilities, and the level of the preparations of the countries and the regions are needed. This research had been carried out on the level of triggering a discussion for the innovation of the liberal education of the universities. This research intends to propose the need for the ESD and SDG"s education at the universities and the communities, the effects and the implications that are given by the SDG"s education, and a task for the spreading of the university SDG"s. #Sustainable development goals (SDG's) #SDG's localization #sustainable development education (ESD) #the key competencies in sustainability #the whole-system approach 1. 서론2. 이론적 배경3. SDGs와 ESD 교육의 필요성4. 대학 SDGs 교육 정착을 위한 과제5. 결론 및 시사점참고문헌Abstract

Key competencies in sustainability in higher education—toward an agreed-upon reference framework

Hundreds of sustainability programs have emerged at universities and colleges around the world over the past 2 decades. A prime question for employers, students, educators, and program administrators is what competencies these programs develop in students. This study explores convergence on competencies for sustainability programs. We conducted a Delphi study with 14 international experts in sustainability education on the framework of key competencies in sustainability by Wiek et al. (Sustain Sci 6: 203–218, 2011), the most frequently cited framework to date. While experts generally agreed with the framework, they propose two additional competencies, suggest a hierarchy of competencies, and specify learning objectives for students interested in a career as sustainability researcher. The refined framework can inform program development, implementation, and evaluation to enhance employability of graduates and facilitate comparison of sustainability programs worldwide.

Sustainability Inclusion in Informatics Curriculum Development

(1) Background: Presently, sustainability is a crucial issue for human beings due to many disasters owing to climate change. Information Technology (IT) is now part of everyday life in society due to the proliferation of gadgets such as mobile phones, apps, computers, information systems, web-based systems, etc. (2) Methods: The analysis is based on recent ACM/IEEE curriculum guidelines for IT, a rigorous literature review as well as various viewpoints and their relevance for sustainability-oriented curriculum development; it also includes an assessment of key competencies in sustainability for proposed units in the IT curriculum. (3) Results: Sustainability is a critical subject for prospective IT professionals. Therefore, it is imperative to motivate and raise awareness among students and the faculty community regarding sustainability through its inclusion in the Informatics curriculum. This paper focuses on how sustainability can be included in various courses of the Informatics curriculum. It also considers recent ACM/IEEE curriculum guidelines for IT professionals, which assert that IT students should explore IT strategies required for developing a culture of green and sustainable IT. (4) Conclusions: This paper provides guidelines for IT curriculum development by incorporating sustainable elements in courses, so that future IT professionals can learn and practice sustainability in order to develop a sustainable society.

Finding a point of reference to inspire a sustainability consciousness

An educated workforce armed with sustainability-savvy worldviews, competencies and actions to counter our industry’s waste output and resource use are assets for future businesses poised to respond to the sustainability call. The newcomer workforce released into industry every year offer hope, and a space to intervene and inject change. This article reports findings on a study designed to acquire the knowledge needed to inspire sustainability consciousness in staff and students at a hospitality and tourism tertiary education facility. It was encouraging to discover that the people who chose to participate in the study possessed promising skills valuable in the move towards sustainability.
 This article reports on Phase 1 of a three-phase study with the final goal of imbedding sustainability practice and consciousness into the tertiary education research site. The study responds to the industry’s lack of sustainability education and the workplace demand for this knowledge [1]. Frameworks to help progress sustainable change require settings in which to test and refine their design and worth; places of education have been recommended [2].
 Phase 1 responds to research recommendations (e.g. [3]) and considers an individual’s sustainability-focused worldview, competency level and self-reported actions. As such, a questionnaire was tailored to identify a snapshot of the research participants’ ideas and actions around sustainability. The findings provide information to help prepare the design of Phase 2 and to plan for change.
 The findings detail four themes that divide the respondents into four groups according to the traits they exhibited. The range of skill sets now identified can be tapped into, enhanced, encouraged and stimulated in the next two phases.
 Theme 1 participants are value-laden and action-orientated collaborators who envision the future based on a reasonable knowledge base. They subscribe to intergenerational equity, understand cause and effect and will act in accord with an internal locus of control. These individuals have the capacity to reflect, process ideas and offer solutions. They offer promise as leaders and knowledge sharers.
 Theme 2 individuals want to be involved, find solutions, and aspire to be part of a progressive sustainability group. Although they showcase unexpected and at times undeveloped thought processing in the face of sustainability-related issues, they are eager, outside-the-box thinkers. Armed with accurate knowledge, Theme 2’s people will generate buy-in amongst peers with their enthusiasm.
 The people that make up Theme 3 respond to influence and stimulus; they can be led and will likely follow. Given the right information, tools and inspiration they represent a good-sized group that may buy-in to positive change. The findings indicate they can make the transition towards sustainability thinking if supported with some well-formed narratives and resources.
 Theme 4 is represented by people who appear disinterested in sustainability. They exhibit an external locus of control and do not contribute beyond the bare minimum. The follow-up research project (Phase 2) will be created to ignite buy-in among this group, and to inspire and educate them, in order to foster them as better informed and active individuals.
 The research team now have a reference point from which to move to Phase 2. The focus groups in Phase 2 will include the participants from Phase 1. The purpose will be to engage the people involved, inform them of Phase 1 findings, and encourage them to offer ideas for crafting a pathway towards sustainability uptake at the research site. Previous research tells us that engaging people to inspire buy-in and providing a space where they become the key players in crafting a new way forward are key factors in a move towards a sustainability-centric future [4]. Critically, the student participants will then enter the hospitality and tourism workforce armed with a sustainability consciousness that can instigate positive change.
 Corresponding author
 Maree Stansfield can be contacted at: reestansfield@nzschooloftourism.co.nz
 References
 (1) Sloan, P.; Legrand, W.; Chen, J. Sustainability in the Hospitality Industry: Principles of Sustainable Operations, 2nd ed.; Routledge: London, 2013.
 (2) Wiek, A.; Withycombe, L.; Redman, C. L. Key Competencies in Sustainability: A Reference Framework for Academic Program Development. Sustainability Science 2011, 6 (2), 203–218. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11625-011-0132-6
 (3) Dunlap, R. E.; Van Liere, K. D. The ‘New Environmental Paradigm’. The Journal of Environmental Education 1978, 9 (4), 10–19.
 (4) Shephard, K. Researching Higher Education for Sustainable Development: Plan A, Plan B and Moving Beyond Thought-Limiting Clichés. In Sustainable Development Research in the Asia-Pacific Region: Education, Cities, Infrastructure and Buildings; Leal Filho, W., Rogers, J., Iyer-Raniga, U., Eds.; Springer International: Cham, Switzerland, 2018, pp 17–30. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-73293-0

Key sustainability competencies for education for sustainability

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to posit that a key sustainability tool can help provide a needed guide for the many forms of new curricula for academic, public and professional learning communities. The authors demonstrate that key sustainability competency (KSC) research can highlight and provide an array of learning outcomes that can be back cast to co-design flexible, detailed curriculum, pedagogy, practice and assessment structures. They also briefly outline the connection of KSC to education for sustainability (EfS) to provide the educational basis for designing and facilitating classrooms that contribute directly to the sustainability movement.Design/methodology/approachThis paper is a review of literature with a specific focus on Glasser's (2018b) promising use of the tree as an analogy and metaphor for KSCs.FindingsSome, for example, Glasser and Hirsh (2016) claim significant progress in identifying a KSC framework (Wiek et al., 2011) However, the authors raise concerns about the impasse that the literature has demonstrated because these stand in the way of the co-creation of sustainable societies by adjusting how we learn and interact with the world. The authors argue that we must realize and disrupt the destructive actions that form their usual approach and replace them with sustainable habits (Glasser, 2018a), and this requires the emergence of a new class of sustainability practitioners with the skills, attitudes and dispositions that are consistent with being wise, future-oriented, interdisciplinary and global decision-makers (Biasutti, 2015; Biasutti and Frate, 2016; Corney and Reid, 2007; McNaughton, 2012; Scoullos, 2013).Research limitations/implicationsUsing Glasser’s metaphor, the authors assert a process through which the future sustainability practitioner might shift their values and understanding such that their habits and norms shift to create a new, sustainable way of being. The practitioner might demonstrate the competencies of implementing transformative change, modelling sustainable behaviour and wise decision-making. The competency of “empathy, mindfulness and social learning” implies critical reflection on one’s actions in comparison to their social context. Thus, reflection at this stage (tree branches and fruits) could create transformation that shifts one’s values and commitments (tree roots); the cyclical process could potentially begin again.Practical implicationsAn adaptive and flexible framework of KSC could provide learning benefits by building the capacity for learners to think critically and tackle complex sustainability problems in novel ways (Brown, 2017; Glasser and Hirsh, 2016; Sterling et al., 2017; United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) 2017; Vare and Scott, 2007). Innovation and knowledge generation are possible since the KSC could teach “students how to think, rather than what to think, while letting [them] apply this thinking to real-world sustainability problems” (Wiek and Kay, 2015, p. 29). Through the KSC, people could also learn how to transform knowledge into action in their communities (Sterling et al., 2017, p. 160) and create real-world change. This is important, since unsustainable habits that comprise the “business-as-usual” case must be replaced with life-affirming actions and facilitate a new way of being in the world. After all, “[g]ood ideas with no ideas on how to implement them are wasted ideas” (Scott, 2013, p. 275).Social implicationsThe authors have asserted that the implementation of the KSC could have social benefits because its associated pedagogies aim to actively involve learners in transforming society. The sequence sees the individuals’ reflecting upon and evaluating one’s growth vis-à-vis KSC and promotes the development of learning and other habits that betters ones’ competencies (Rieckmann, 2012). Such reflection and empathy are more likely to be inherent to people who contribute to their own learning about the need to be truly compassionate for each other and the planet (Glasser and Hirsh, 2016). In achieving this level of empathy, it is a relatively simple matter then to understand that technology and policy alone are not adequately able to facilitate large-scale and positive change; unsustainability is a problem created by human action and therefore must be counteracted with theories of and solutions to unsustainable behaviours. Integrating a responsive KSC tool into higher education could help build the capacities, capabilities, competencies and eventually mastery and habits of mind and body that give rise to sustainable well-being societies.Originality/valueThe authors summarize and critique the KSC literature with an eye to creating a flexible and adaptive tool for individuals to chart their own path towards being a sustainability practitioner. The conceptual work herein is the first of its kind, and it will assist program who wish to accentuate contextual factors and individual learning objectives into their design.

Sustainability science in education: analysis of master\u2019s programmes\u2019 curricula

Sustainability science is an emerging, free-standing scientific discipline. It has introduced a new approach to both sustainability research and educational programmes, while evoking novel perspectives to stronger societal contextualization. Among several other areas of sustainability research, competencies for sustainability have become a focal topic of sustainability education research. This research explores the educational programmes and the representation of the theory-based key competencies for sustainability. Through a qualitative content study of 45 master programmes associated with sustainability science, we aim to understand what kind of sustainability competencies can be found in sustainability science master’s programmes and how they reflect the current discussions of the discipline of sustainability science and possibly drive the future education in the field. The study reveals that commonly suggested competencies including systems thinking, anticipatory, strategic, interpersonal, and normative competencies were frequently mentioned as content and learning outcomes in the curricula and are firmly present and widely employed in sustainability education. Additionally, this study identified three other clusters of competencies: diverse modes of thinking, methodological plurality, and competencies for autonomy. In addition to the contribution to education in the field by suggesting three emerged competencies for sustainability science specifically, we aim to contribute to the ongoing discussion about the discipline by suggesting a process-oriented framing of sustainability science.

Development of Sustainability Competencies for the Labour Market: An Exploratory Qualitative Study

The aim of this paper is to explore the key sustainability competencies increasing the employability of higher education graduates in Poland. Based on the results of a broad literature review on key sustainability competencies, the substantive contribution to a coherent framework of typologies of sustainability competencies will be synthesised. The developed research framework will subsequently be analysed with empirical data, collected by in-depth interviews (IDI) and focus group interviews (FGI) on the relevant employability competencies for the Polish labour market. This enables the elimination of critical gaps in the conceptualisation of the key sustainability competencies of higher education (HE) graduates related to the current and future labour market needs. The results of the analysis can make a contribution to sustainable HE graduate employability literature by exploring the links between employability and sustainability competencies. The results may be relevant to institutional support in the design and review of educational programs and training in order to foster sustainability competencies development.

Sustainable Entrepreneurs as Change Agents: Relevant Key Competencies for Sustainability

This article elaborates on sustainable entrepreneurs acting as change agents with a focus on their relevant key competencies for sustainability. For this purpose, the existing set of key competencies for sustainability by Wiek et al. (2011a) is combined with entrepreneurial competencies. The specific form of required competencies to act as change agents should inspire future design of curricula.
 A literature review regarding key competencies, change agent concepts and sustainable entrepreneurs and their competencies forms the foundation. Ten semi-structured, qualitative expert interviews with entrepreneurs emphasise the relevance that the practitioners assign to each of the different competencies. Applying this framework of different competencies, the entrepreneurs’ change agent behaviour identifies a specific competence profile of sustainable entrepreneurs of two axes: the importance of key competencies and the addition of specific entrepreneurial competencies. This is of high relevance to design specific programs to educate future change agents.
 This research limits its findings to sustainable entrepreneurs. A larger number of interviews and an expansion to other expert groups, such as entrepreneurs without sustainable projects, could strengthen the results. With this article the author contributes to the debate key competencies and entrepreneurial competencies in higher education as well as their practical relevance.
 
 To cite this paper please use the following details: Hagmaier, B. (2019), 'Sustainable Entrepreneurs as Change Agents: Relevant Key Competencies for Sustainability', Reinvention: an International Journal of Undergraduate Research, Volume 12, Issue 1, https://reinventionjournal.org/article/view/431/389. Date accessed [insert date]. If you cite this article or use it in any teaching or other related activities please let us know by e-mailing us at Reinventionjournal@warwick.ac.uk.

Defining Sustainability Core Competencies in Business and Management Studies Based on Multinational Stakeholders’ Perceptions

One of the concerns in our time is the need to integrate economic, social and environmental aspects, which is known as sustainable development. The role of higher education is essential for providing future professionals with the necessary profiles to respond to the sustainability challenges in increasingly complex and global contexts. That is why numerous authors have sought to define key competencies, skills and learning outcomes for sustainability. However, there is still no agreement on what these key competencies for sustainability in higher education really are. For that reason, the objective of this paper is to determine which are the sustainability core competencies, considering three different geographical regions (Europe, Latin America, and Central Asia), and the perspective of four different stakeholders (graduates, employers, students and academics). The framework of the research is the development of the so-called Tuning projects, which aim to design comparable and compatible higher education degrees in different regions of the world, based on student-centered and competency-based learning. Using an exploratory factor analysis (EFA), the results of this study reveal the existence of a factor intimately related to sustainability, which includes competencies such as commitment to the preservation of the environment, social responsibility or respect for diversity and multiculturality, among others.

Competency-oriented education for sustainable development

PurposeEnergy poverty can be seen as a relatively new, but typical sustainability problem in which various dimensions (ecology, society and economy) are interlinked and in part conflict with each other. Moreover, the variety of involved stakeholders (planners, tenants, housing companies, private landlords, energy consultants, etc.) represents conflicting aims for solving this problem. This paper aims to present a systematic linkage between higher education for sustainable development (HESD) and education about energy poverty yet.Design/methodology/approachA qualitative comparative case study approach with a similar didactic approach is used.FindingsBased on the literature about HESD and an overall model in general didactics, ten criteria were identified and used for an overall reflection about similar courses dealing with the topic of energy poverty. The criteria covered the learning goals, the didactical approaches and the institutional support in the forms of organisation in the courses.Research limitations/implicationsThere was no competency measurement of the students in the described courses.Practical implicationsThere was no evaluation of the development of students’ key competencies for sustainability. However, the reflections of students and teachers revealed a positive development regarding the students’ learning process, especially because they worked on a real-world sustainability problem: energy poverty.Originality/valueThis contribution describes how university courses on energy poverty were designed and implemented at five German universities. Against the background of general criteria for HESD, it reflects on the experiences that the use of this concept evoked. Through a comparison of the five courses against these criteria, the paper outlines strengths and weaknesses of the approach and closes with recommendations and requirements for designing further courses.

Evaluating core competencies development in sustainability and environmental master's programs: An empirical analysis

Abstract Interest in and understanding of the various competencies that university sustainability and environmental graduate degree programs should aim for has increased in recent years. Yet empirical efforts that assess the effectiveness of programs from a competency building perspective have visibly lacked—particularly from a macro-perspective examining multiple cases. This study fills this gap in the literature by conducting a novel comparative assessment of different types of master's degrees in a sample of 14 programs from top-performing universities in Europe, Asia and North America. Our study uses quantitative and qualitative approaches to assess the effectiveness of differing types of programs at building key sustainability competencies defined in the literature, and to understand the defining characteristics of programs, innovative competency building approaches, challenges encountered, and potential countermeasures. Using a typological methodology, this study classifies programs into three categories: research-oriented, neutrally-oriented and practice-oriented and then examined the competency building effectiveness of each category through questionnaires administered to faculty (n = 40) and students (n = 205). Results revealed low success in all program types at equipping graduates with anticipatory competencies. Statistically significant differences were also observed between research-oriented and practice-oriented programs, with the latter demonstrating higher success in building interpersonal, strategic and normative competencies. Qualitative questionnaire responses revealed a widespread student demand for more practice-orientated learning and collaborative projects with societal stakeholders. However they also highlight the important role of research-oriented programs at equipping students with theoretical and conceptual knowledge. From a sustainability competency building perspective, the findings point to a need for research-oriented programs to integrate practice-based didactic approaches for building skills and methods via real-world learning projects with external stakeholders. They also prompt a reconsideration of the special importance of research-oriented sustainability and environmental degree programs in a higher education landscape increasingly shaped by vocational and job market expectations.

Social and Solidarity Economy, Sustainable Development Goals, and Community Development: The Mission of Adult Education & Training

A utopia of sustainable development is becoming established on the international stage. To get there, varied and complementary strategies must come into play—among them education. This trend is turning to the “Social and Solidarity Economy” (SSE), especially since the approval by the United Nations (UN) of the 2030 Agenda; the fulfilment of which demands adult education strategies and programs in line with the principles and values of sustainability. This article offers a response to that demand. It aims to carry out a reflective analysis that reveals the similarities between the principles and values of the SSE and those guiding the UN’s 2030 Agenda, with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Based on the results of this analysis, we will argue that training in the competencies for sustainability, essential in achieving the SDGs, is among the main functions of education within the SSE framework. Further, in order to make educational programs more sustainable, such training must be included in their operating objectives. The work uses a hermeneutic methodology based on the existing literature and gives particular attention to UNESCO’s directives on training in key competencies for sustainability. The significant contribution the results make is to show: (a) the emphases of each approach and their similarities; (b) how the two are complementary; and (c) the potential, and need, for creating synergies based on their respective strengths. A further original contribution is a proposed basic guide for the design of training activities geared towards gaining the normative competency that UNESCO has identified as key to sustainability. This innovative proposal will be useful for improving the quality of adult training programs, thereby contributing to the achievement of the SDGs in communities.

Comparing faculty perceptions of sustainability teaching at two US universities

PurposeThis study aims to examine and compare faculty perceptions of the process of institutionalizing sustainability, developing sustainability pedagogy and activating key sustainability competencies between the University of Oklahoma (OU) and Arizona State University (ASU).Design/methodology/approachSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 17 professors in the Department of Geography and Environmental Sustainability at OU and 10 professors in the School of Sustainability at ASU.FindingsThe results highlight the complexity of teaching sustainability in an interdisciplinary manner in both programs. Professors are incorporating many of the key competencies of sustainability teaching, but in a patchwork manner that does not necessary follow the comprehensive frameworks from the literature.Practical implicationsThe comparative analysis leads to recommendations for teaching sustainability in higher education.Originality/valueThis study contributes to theories of sustainability teaching by identifying gaps between what professors are actually doing and experiencing and a set of best practices from the literature.

Experiential learning for sustainability leadership in higher education

Purpose – The purpose of this paper is to compare the program design of a sustainability leadership certificate to participants’ perceptions of their in-program learnings and competencies development. The authors present the results from the analysis of one program evaluation component, a survey, which was delivered before the program start and at the program end. Design/methodology/approach – The authors describe key design elements of a sustainability leadership certificate, which was framed around five key sustainability competencies. Using a pre/post self-assessment, participants (n = 32) selected their level of confidence and competence in each of the key sustainability competencies and completed open-ended questionnaires. Quantitative data were analyzed using a Mann–Whitney U test, and qualitative data were transcribed and coded using a grounded theory approach in NVivo 10. Findings – Based on the survey feedback, the program participants were generally excited by the program’s experiential format and supportive community. They felt that they had improved their confidence and competence in the key sustainability competencies. Three themed clusters, community, future and personal development, emerged from the participants’ open-ended responses. This supports the program design and can inform further program development. Practical implications – The third theme, personal development, is notable, as it is not a typical focus of sustainability in higher education, but held high importance to participants. This strong resonance with participants suggests that sustainability programs should consider the role of the self to foster the development of key sustainability competencies. Originality/value – The program’s focus on “personal” was intentional in the program design. Based on participants’ feedback, the inclusion of personal development exercises was a critical element for successful sustainability leadership development.

Pedagogies of Preparedness: Use of Reflective Journals in the Operationalisation and Development of Anticipatory Competence

In higher education there is a growing demand for graduates with the competence to transform our society toward a sustainable future. Part of this competence in sustainability is anticipatory competence, the ability to engage with multiple futures, manage uncertainty and hold a worldview that the future can and should be steered toward a more just sustainable path. In order to further examine and operationalise anticipatory competence, a course “Sustainability and the Future” was developed and run in the University of Vechta, Germany, as part of an action research cycle exploring key competencies for sustainability in higher education. Reflective journaling was used to explore the competence acquisition process along with focus groups with students after the course. The analysis of this programme shows that while certain subject areas such as values, transport and population models provoke more critical reflection on the future, skills such as the ability to work with emotional aspects of the future, for instance hope, were perceived to be necessary for anticipatory competence.

Variation in sustainability competency development according to age, gender, and disciplinary affiliation

Purpose– The purpose of this paper is to present the results of a classroom assessment aimed at determining the extent to which five key sustainability competencies develop in students during an introductory transdisciplinary sustainability course. University sustainability programs intend to provide integrated education that fosters the key competencies students need to solve real-world sustainability problems. Translating sustainability competencies into effective pedagogical practice in integrated academic programs is not straightforward. This work builds on a previous study by both expanding the competencies evaluated and considering additional demographic characteristics.Design/methodology/approach– The paper summarizes previously identified key sustainability competencies and describes teaching methodologies used to foster these competencies in students. Development of competencies in students during a semester-long course is assessed using a pre-/post-test based on two case studies. The implications of the findings for teaching practice and overall program structure are discussed.Findings– Based on the assessment methods used here, four of the five sustainability competencies evaluated in this study developed differently in students according to gender, disciplinary affiliation and age. Females improved interpersonal competence more than males. Systems thinking competence improved for students associated with the three disciplinary affiliations considered in this study: sustainability major, sustainability minor and business major. Anticipatory competence improved for sustainability and business majors only, but not for students minoring in sustainability and majoring in other disciplines. Finally, normative competence improved for younger students only.Research limitations/implications– Insights for teaching practice and overall program structure are based on assessment of one introductory transdisciplinary sustainability course. Much additional work is needed to draw strong conclusions about general teaching practices and program structure for sustainability education. This study provides a flexible and field-tested rubric for further evaluative work in other sustainability courses or degree programs.Practical implications– Universities incorporate sustainability into their undergraduate curricula in many ways, ranging from certificates to entire degree programs focused on sustainability. The results of this study suggest that educators pay attention to gender diversity, classroom teaching practices, disciplinary perspectives and student attitudes and developmental stages as they figure out how to make sustainability part of undergraduate education. This information may help create more effective sustainability courses and academic programs, which may maintain the viability of current sustainability programs and promote the institutionalization of sustainability in higher education.Originality/value– This research contributes to undergraduate sustainability education by providing insight into how sustainability education might thoughtfully be integrated into academic programs. It also offers an assessment approach for use by other sustainability educators to evaluate effectiveness of teaching practice and overall program structure based on five key sustainability competencies commonly cited in the literature.