Skills For Sustainable Development Research Articles

Benchmarking analysis at establishing a culture of wellness

This article aims to establish trends in motor development through basketball activities as a prerequisite for building a wellness culture, revealing the impact of basketball exercises on motor activity in junior high school. The interests of the research are aimed at following the dynamics in the motor potential and establishing and evaluating the presence of wellness within the framework of school physical education. More specifically, the creation of a culture of wellness in the junior high school stage of the educational degree. A reliable and objective toolkit for diagnosing the level of motor potential in 12–14-year-old students was selected and applied, specifying the empirical data from the conducted research. The purpose of the research is to follow the dynamics of the motor potential in the two stages of research and to establish a wellness culture in the junior high school stage of the educational degree in the lesson of physical education and sports, based on a comparative analysis of the dynamics of motor indicators in the two cognitive stages of the study. Through legislative changes in school education, the direction “school health”, in particular the expected competences, is regulated. Key competence #9 requires knowledge and skills for sustainable development, implementation of a healthy lifestyle, and sports in the Bulgarian school. To achieve the goal, the following research tasks are solved: experimentation of a basketball training program aimed at the development of motor qualities, as a result of which the dynamics in the development of motor qualities of students studying basketball in physical education and sports classes. Based on the benchmarking analysis, it can be concluded that the results achieved at baseline show an improvement in the motor condition of the studied contingent. Motor indicators show intense dynamics in 12–14-year-old students, modeling their motor potential and confirming the presence of a wellness culture in the Bulgarian school. It can be summarized that a benchmarking analysis was carried out to establish dynamics in the indicators and the manifestation of motor skills between the students of the 4th and 5th grade, allowing the individualization of the differences in the motor potential between the empirical data in the cognitive stages of the study.

Sustainability accounting education: challenges and outlook

Purpose This viewpoint aims to discuss the transformative role, the current challenges and the outlook of sustainability accounting education (SAE). Design/methodology/approach Higher education institutions (HEIs) have a “social responsibility” to foster competencies and skills for sustainable development within their student bodies and communities. Previous literature has explored the interplay between HEIs and sustainable development goals (SDGs) by exploring the need to incorporate the SDGs within an institution’s learning and teaching objectives. We conduct a review of previous studies, together with an informative understanding of the role of sustainability accounting education in HEIs. Findings Based on this review, we argue that universities can enhance the SDGs by training skilled young people in sustainability accounting, thus fostering a “transformative role” in society. The authors highlight two directions for expanding SAE: (1) there is an urgent need to improve the accounting curriculum, thus including greater attention to ecological systems, business ethics and values; and (2) new inclusive and constructionist pedagogies should be offered to radically transform the education of future accounting professionals. Practical implications Accounting and business educators in HEIs need to consider updating and upgrading systematically the existing curricula with pertinent learning outcomes and competency development relevant to SDGs and sustainability accounting. This transformative opportunity also requires engagement with the professional bodies to determine the professional curriculum. Engagement with professional accounting bodies could be challenging to transform the accountancy professions in two directions – employability and lifelong learning. New accounting professions will emerge in the future and the interplay with the current HEI model and program is crucial. Originality/value This paper fulfils an identified need to discuss, support and move sustainability accounting education forward.

Sustainable community development through peer-to-peer learning in the online and in-person classroom

Purpose Prior research suggests that collaboration is key to sustainable community development and environmental management, and peer-to-peer learning (P2PL) may facilitate community building and collaborative learning skills. This study aims to examine the effect of P2PL on the enhancement of environmental management and sustainable development skills, community building and social capital (i.e. connectedness) and understanding of course learning objectives. Design/methodology/approach Quantitative and qualitative longitudinal survey data was collected in a sustainable development focused course offered at a large American public university that uses P2PL to explicitly facilitate community building and collaborative skills. Safety precautions and changing locational course offerings due to the COVID-19 pandemic in years 2020, 2021 and 2022 provided an opportunity to evaluate the impact of P2PL on these skills during both virtual and in-person formats. Additionally, this study compared in-course student evaluations with students taking other sustainable development-related courses with collaborative learning aspects to understand the wider effectiveness of this course structure. Findings This study finds that course format (virtual vs in-person) overall made no difference in either connectedness or conceptual understandings, and that students in both formats felt more connected to others than students taking other courses with P2PL. Scaffolding P2PL and supplemental peer support can yield improved connectedness and learning among students taking environmental coursework. Originality/value Sustainable development requires group collaboration and partnership building skills. Issues are consistently raised about the challenges to teaching these skills in higher education. The students and instructors in this research study identify P2PL strategies to address these challenges for in-person and virtual classroom settings.

Skill components of higher education in the era of sustainable development: an analytical study among university students in Qatar

Introduction The present study investigates the status of education for sustainable development (ESD) as an approach applied to higher education. This study proposes cognitive, behavioral, and socio-emotional learning as the three dimensions of ESD. It examines the extent to which the current curriculum and educational structures applied by Qatar University (QU) contribute to sustainable development (SD) skills in students' attitudes. Methods Data from 319 students were collected. Factor analysis was performed to regroup skill items within the consistent dimensions of 16 core skills. A multivariate logistic regression analysis was performed to examine the relationship between core skills and the five SD skills. Findings Five logistic regression models were investigated. Model 1 found two predictors that only increase the odds of innovative thinking skills. Model 2 detected five predictors that increase the odds of critical thinking skills. Model 3 defined three predictors that increase the odds of resolving problem skills. Model 4 mentioned four predictors that increase the odds of communication/coordination skills. Model 5 showed two predictors that increase the odds of decision-making skills. Research implications This study introduces new core skills that have been reclassified based on students' real-world experiences. Such findings may help target specific skills and bring significant changes in higher education outcomes.

Evaluating Students' Skills for Sustainable Development

Evaluating Students' Skills for Sustainable Development

Praxeology of sustainable development in educational ontology (evidence from Khmelnytskyi Humanitarian Pedagogical Academy)

The article focuses on the relevance of education for sustainable development in the process of future educators training for professional life. The methods of historical, comparative, dialectical and prognostic are applied. It was possible to consider practical features of sustainable development in the educational environment. These methods contributed to a deeper study of the problem; clarifying and outlining key positions and priorities; specifying the main problems of implementing the concept of sustainable development in national education by comparing the national legal framework with the international one; finding out the essence of the outlined problem and the ways of its implementation in national education, which leads to a change in the philosophy of education; identifying the main priorities for the formation of an individual mindset, as well as life position in a society of sustainable development. Based on the analysis of particular documents and scientific publications on sustainable development and education for sustainable development, the tasks of education for sustainable development are highlighted. The results list of the educational community work in the International Project «Education for Sustainable Development in Action» are presented. The results of the experimental research carried out in Khmelnytskyi Humanitarian Pedagogical Academy aimed at future educators’ training technology of preschoolers’ skills for sustainable development are also presented. A short description of the option course «Future educators training technology of preschoolers’ skills for sustainable development» which has been delivered to the students is presented. As well as the structure of the course «Pedagogical foundations of developing soft skills» is described. The content of the course reveals the social component of sustainable development, but environmental and economic components are implemented at the expense of teaching aids (artistic and popular scientific texts). A brief description of teachers training for implementing interactive technologies with students is presented.

The Influence of Formal and Informal Education on Students’ Sustainable Development Skills, a Study in Iran

Abstract This study aimed to understand the influence of formal and informal education on students’ sustainable development skills. A sample of 567 students studying Humanities, Agriculture, or Engineering at public universities of Iran participated in this study. A survey was used to investigate students’ skills for sustainable development according to different forms of education. Students’ sustainable development skills were assessed including: empathy, participatory skill, systems­thinking, creative thinking, and anticipatory thinking. The results indicated that students had a good level of skills for sustainable development. Differences and similarities were found on students’ skills by different forms of education and learning. The findings confirmed that education is useful to improve individuals’ skills for sustainable development and confirmed the key role of education for sustainable development in addressing sustainable future.

Students’ attitudes towards sustainable development in Serbia

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to examine university students’ attitudes towards the concept of sustainable development and towards the need for the implementation of education for sustainable development into the higher education system. To that end, the paper explores in a process-oriented focus which drivers and barriers are experienced as being the most important ones and how they relate to one another.Design/methodology/approachThe study is based on the questionnaire for the evaluation of attitudes towards the concept of sustainable development. This instrument consists of 9 batteries with 83 items presented in the form of the five-point Likert scale. The questionnaire evaluated different aspects of respondents’ attitudes towards the concept of sustainable development, but students’ attitudes in relation to the items from the following subscales will be presented for this paper: understanding the concept of sustainable development, position of sustainable development in the system of higher education, sources of information about sustainable development and entities responsible for sustainable development. The study sample consisted of students from the University of Novi Sad, specifically from the faculties with accredited programs in the field of humanities and technological sciences.FindingsIn general, students recognized the main determinants of sustainable development and they support an integral approach to sustainability, i.e. the need to include the knowledge, values and skills for sustainable development in the higher education programs. In addition, they identified a number of obstacles and the uncertainties of overcoming them. In this regard, the students did not recognize the responsibility of the higher education institutions as the key responsibility or their own responsibility in relation to sustainable development, which can be related to their feeling of marginalization and the doubt that their behaviour and decisions can influence the development of the local society, as well as the development of the society as a whole. On the other hand, the respondents acknowledged the role, the importance and the responsibility of the mass media in the process of developing the attitudes towards and opinions about the problems related to environmental protection and sustainable development.Practical implicationsThe results of the study indicate the students’ attitudes towards sustainable development, thus making the directions for higher education reform clearer and in line with the present needs for sustainable development in Serbia. The obtained results can serve as a recommendation to the governing structures, i.e. to the relevant ministries of education and environmental protection, as well as to the universities in terms of which direction their process of planning and creating paths of sustainability should take. This is particularly important in the case of the Republic of Serbia, which is currently in the process of joining the European Union and responding to the requirements set by the process of negotiation for Chapter 27 in terms of improving the strategic framework and plans for the education for sustainable development and building the capacities in response to climate change. On the other hand, linking the results of this research with the results of similar studies around the world contributes to the further enrichment of the scientific knowledge base in this field and confirms the need for stronger and united efforts on the path to a sustainable future. It is a fact that, regardless of the national, economic, socio-political and cultural context, there is a global lack of success in shaping a humane and sustainable relationship between man and nature. Therefore, the results of this research should be considered as an invitation for new research initiatives regarding the ways to support the positive attitudes of students towards the concept of sustainable development and to facilitate their further development in the educational process, as well as in other academic domains.Originality/valueThis research is inspired by the fact that, in the Balkan countries, education for sustainable development has not been extensively discussed within the scientific discourse on higher education for sustainable development. This is one of the first papers to provide data about students’ attitudes towards the concept of sustainable development and the need for its implementation in the higher education system in Serbia. The value of the paper lies in its potential to help understand the role that different drivers and barriers play in higher education for sustainable development.

Sustainability management control systems in higher education institutions from measurement to management

Purpose As social institutions, higher education institutions (HEIs) play a key role in the distribution of knowledge and skills for sustainable development and societal structures. To fulfill this task, the institutionalization of sustainability within the organization’s structures is essential. The purpose of this paper is to provide an overview of the status quo of environmental management performance (EMP) in HEIs and conclusions for the application of management control systems. Design/methodology/approach Within a systematic literature review, 56 international publications were analyzed along a qualitative thematic content analysis. The coding followed the dimensions of EMP by Trumpp et al. Findings Structuring environmental sustainability efforts along the concept of EMP reveals a major weakness in environmental sustainability management of HEIs. Therefore, the study proposes a model for a processual integration of steering mechanisms for management bodies to systemize appropriate efforts to gain excellence in operations. Originality/value By applying the concept of EMP by Trumpp et al., this systematic review provides an overview of the status quo of environmental management performance at HEIs and proposes a model for the implementation of advanced top-down steering striving a whole institution approach.

Analysing the factors affecting the incorporation of sustainable development into European Higher Education Institutions' curricula

AbstractThere has been an increase in sustainable development (SD) integration into Higher Education Institutions' (HEIs) curricula. Several tools have been developed to assess SD in HEIs; however, only a few have focussed on curricula assessment, such as the “Sustainability Tool for Assessing UNiversities' Curricula Holistically.” Curricula assessment can provide an overview on how courses and programmes incorporate SD. This paper analyses the factors affecting the incorporation of SD in curricula using a survey sent to a database of 4,099 European contacts, with a response rate of 9.85%. The responses were analysed using descriptive statistics, t test, ANOVA, and correlations. The analyses showed that (a) teaching in European courses covers many issues of sustainability in a fairly good balance, with the exception of social issues that are the least addressed; (b) there are correlations between the economic, environmental, social, and cross‐cutting themes; (c) females tend to teach SD in a more balanced way than men; (d) the HEIs types have no influence on how SD is being taught, but the education level has; and (e) some countries, in the case of this research, Italy and Spain, may show more interest, yet the average results tended to be lower than those others, in this research, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the Netherlands. Curricula assessment provides a diagnostic of SD incorporation and the factors that affect it. This can help educators improve their courses and provide students with better SD skills and insights.

Acquisition of Vocational and Technical Skills for Sustainable Development in Technical Colleges in Rivers State: Determinants of Gender Disparity

Acquisition of Vocational and Technical Skills for Sustainable Development in Technical Colleges in Rivers State: Determinants of Gender Disparity

Engineering education and the development of competencies for sustainability

PurposeThis paper aims to deal with the skills for sustainable development in engineering courses. The main objective is to identify which competences should be developed in these courses to contribute to the resolution of conflicts related to sustainability, as well as the means used by universities for their development.Design/methodology/approachThe research is divided into two strands: a theoretical and an empirical one. Concerning the theoretical part, the webibliomining method was adopted, to select the articles that were relevant to the theme, and 22 works were selected. Regarding the empirical study, structured questionnaires were applied to 30 specialists in the field, aiming at validating the competencies found in the literature.FindingsIn the literature, eight main competencies required to the engineering professional, related to sustainability, were found. The empirical study showed that some competences are considered more relevant than others by the interviewees.Practical implicationsThe competencies verified in the present study and the relative relevance between them found in the empirical study can contribute to the engineering courses that wish to develop the sustainable behavior of the engineers in their professional or daily life.Originality/valueThe originality of the work consists in presenting to engineering students and teachers as well as professionals of the market and the government the competencies that can contribute to the formation of an engineer capable of bringing adequate solutions to the conflicts of sustainability in the twenty-first century. This paper also presents learning teaching methodologies indicated for this purpose. No other works were found with these results.

Entrepreneurial Skills for Sustainable Development in Rural Tourism Firms, an on Going Study: Case of Region Souss Massa, South of Morocco

Nowadays, entrepreneurial skills for a sustainable development has become a major strategic issue for a growing number of companies, especially in rural tourism. knowing that the focus of rural tourism firms may differ from one another depending on their attributes but assuming that their main objective is to move up the value chain toward the production of sustainable higher value added services and products in order to gain a significant competitive edge and position their destination as a destination of choice. Unmistakable, every company ‘s success will rely on the quality of its people but to what extend can we redevelop or sharpen their skills to succeed in such volatile, complex industry. The purpose of this communication is to to identify entrepreneurial skills needed for rural firms to continue progressing and meeting sustainability standards, and to explore the conventional and ecological organisations in rural tourism needs toward entrepreneurial skills to operate effectively and efficiently. Hence, the research question is what are the entrepreneurial competencies for sustainable rural tourism firms within the Souss Massa region located in the south of Morocco ? To answer this question, authors conduct an exploratory study on ten rural tourism entrepreneurs within Morocco Souss Massa region. The choice of this region is due to the fact that rural zone occupies a largley extended part of Souss Massa area and it is charactirized as promising economic growth engine for rural tourism firms and local community. The study concerned pivot actors of the rural tourism organizations. Morever, authors explore the conventional and ecological organisations in rural tourism needs toward entrepreneurial skills to operate effectively and efficiently.

Skills for sustainable development: Transforming vocational education and training beyond 2015

There have been recent calls to transform VET and to transform development. This double call leads us to ask how can skills development best support development that is sustainable for individuals, communities and the planet, and which promotes social justice and poverty reduction. In considering this question, we critique the idea of green skills for the green economy as being inadequate for achieving a transformed and transformative VET that shifts the target from economic growth to the wellbeing of individuals and that enables vocational education to play a role in challenging and transforming society and work. Rather, we argue that we must see human development and sustainable development as inseparable, and plan and evaluate VET for its contribution to these. Such an approach must be grounded in a view of work, and hence skills for work, that is decent, life-enhancing, solidaristic, environmentally-sensitive and intergenerationally-aware. It must confront the reality that much current VET is complicit in preparing people for work that lacks some or all of these characteristics. It must be concerned with poverty, inequality and injustice and contribute to their eradication. It must be supportive of individuals' agency, whilst also reflecting a careful reading of the structures that too often constrain them. In doing all this it must minimise the costs and risks of any transformation for the poor and seek to lock them into better individual and communal lives, not out of them. Finally, it must transform skills, work and the world in ways that are truly sustainable of the people of today but also of those who are to inhabit the earth tomorrow.

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The article presents an approach to the development of international indicators of education for sustainable development. It could aff ord to increase the
 comparability of the results of the global monitoring in diff erent countries. The problem of comparability of the results of national monitoring systems
 requires coordination of a number of indicators at the global level.
 However, some indicators are understood quite clearly, others are far from global comparability. There is no universal language of general scientifi c categories
 of sustainable development. It is not clear what skills for sustainable development are equally important for people all over the world. Reaching a
 global consensus on these issues is hampered by diff erences in the curriculum of diff erent countries and national cultures.
 We discuss the use of the universal fl exible modules in global tracking that can be used in diff erent ways in diff erent countries. The feasibility of building
 monitoring �bottom-up� is justifi ed. The need for using specifi c cultural concepts of ESD in diff erent countries (groups of) is discussed. This may contribute
 to make a global semantic fi eld of sustainable development ideas in variety forms of their metaphorical representation. It is proposed to supplement the
 subject of the global monitoring with dynamics of everyday concepts of sustainable development.

Managing knowledge transfer partnership for a rural community

Purpose– This paper aims to propose a knowledge transfer partnership (KTP) model, using higher education (HE) students researching in the UK. It is focused on community engagement via charitable trusts, New Opportunities Wirksworth (NOW) & Ecclesbourne Valley Rail (EVR). The researchers designed and implemented a pilot study that explored the potential of a small, yet attractive and active, market town to diversify and regenerate using tourism. This project, which has been funded by the UK Higher Education Innovation Fund (HEIF), has been devised to operate and monitor a KTP in the culturally important heritage market town of Wirksworth, in Derbyshire.Design/methodology/approach– A systems-thinking constructivist approach is used and employs problem-based learning (PBL) through engagement of students in research and data collection. The authors identified that skills for sustainable development within the community are dependent on the reintegration of complex, inter-dependent and inter-disciplinary factors. A holistic approach to the learning and knowledge shared within the community underpins UK initiatives to promote capacity development in ways to change knowledge applications across product and service boundaries. Therefore, in addition to encouraging diversification and regeneration through tourism, this project supported the University of Derby's academic agenda to promote experiential and entrepreneurial learning in students working at both undergraduate and postgraduate levels. This paper accords with the current university initiatives to meet the student employability agenda through the application of PBL and knowledge management.Findings– The creation of outcomes and recommendations for Wirksworth's stakeholders provides sustainability through the knowledge creation and sharing processes. There are seven outcomes that chart a path to development and knowledge transfer (KT) and sharing. The authors simultaneously provided an environment for students to gain skills and a community to acquire new knowledge, and these are the outcomes and output of this project. New learning styles may support inclusive academic practice (see related samples of PBL such as Ineson and Beresford in HLST resources 2001). Implications for building a KT community through the social capital accumulated in the project are explored.Originality/value– In taking PBL from the classroom to the community, the authors have created a new KT environment in which skills can be acquired and a regeneration strategy can be tested in a work-or-practice-related setting. Students recognise that they are building learning for themselves that is unique in that it cannot be recreated in a classroom setting. The authors see this project developing into a robust long-term partnership between communities and institutions with KT benefits to teaching staff in addition to students. These benefits will include new skills for PBL, working collaboratively with partners in the community to develop key skills in HE students, innovation in assessment, inclusive learning and teaching, experiential and entrepreneurial learning in practice.

Student Attitudes Towards and Skills for Sustainable Development

Student Attitudes Towards and Skills for Sustainable Development

Employers’ needs on Competences, Knowledge and Skills for Sustainable Development as a Reference Framework for Higher Education in Life Sciences

A great many people have already embraced the need for education and training as a key to moving the workforce and society in general toward a sustainable living process. Education bodies and employers are beginning to recognise this trend and know about the need for training in the manifold aspects of sustainable development (SD). Different actions are being set by higher educational bodies and employers are also becoming aware of the needs (competences, knowledge and skills for SD) of their employees. The aim of this paper is to give an indication of (1) the importance of SD competences, knowledge and skills according to professional practice, in Europe; and (2) whether there is a need for new jobs in the field of SD.

Earth Charter, ESD and Chinese Philosophies

This article examines the relationship between the Earth Charter and education for sustainable development (ESD), as part of the UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development. The areas of shared interest between the two are assessed and the invaluable nature of the Earth Charter as a resource outlining global values and principles for a sustainable, peaceful Earth asserted. Through an examination of the traditional Chinese philosophies of Confucianism, Daoism and Buddhism, symmetries with the Earth Charter principles are explored and the importance of linking the Earth Charter and ESD with local culture, belief systems and indigenous knowledge is emphasised. Methods for infusing these values and principles in education are proposed and the role of the Earth Charter as a base for linking the local and global in order to foster knowledge, values and skills for sustainable development at the individual, institutional and societal levels through formal, nonformal and informal learning settings is highlighted.

Developing futures: a knowledge‐based capital for Manchester

This piece of work reports on the initial findings of ongoing research conducted at the Victoria University of Manchester UK, aiming at categorizing the city‐region’s different forms of knowledge capital. Using a global knowledge‐based development (KBD) model as an instrument, information about recent urban regeneration and development experiences in its inner city and beyond have been collected, identified and analyzed. Such research is aiming to establish Manchester’s potential to become a knowledge city. In this aim, the current research paper will report first on a review of the theoretical background behind the concepts of the knowledge city (KC) and KBD, which have been the catalysts to a systematic account of facts and figures of urban regeneration developments within Manchester. The review will be followed by the narrative of KDB observations on the continuous flow of creation and renovation initiatives; with observations on outcomes that can be traced out through Manchester’s cumulated and diversified capital repositories and agents. Such flow is presented through the eyes of the different actors involved (authorities, researchers, and partnership organizations), whose voices are present in the diverse capital landmarks of the city. The global knowledge‐based model used has served as a comprehensive framework for consistent, systematic gathering of primary data on capital systems for a deeply contextualized case study. It has facilitated powerful inter‐relational capabilities for researchers’ insights on the city‐region’s potential knowledge capital. It has also provided the platform for systematic identification of socio‐economic issues beyond level one. In the case of Manchester, the model helped interrelating concerns about social inclusion, access, and skills for sustainable development. They were also re‐positioned to their true dimensions as the KBD model has assisted research with the systematic identification of the (knowledge capital) roles that city‐region actors (k‐agents and k‐repositories) are playing, and the solutions they are bringing to those concerns and beyond. Most of all, the KBD model facilitated multiple insights into how global challenges are finding local solutions. And Manchester’s case is undoubtedly filling a gap in the recent literature of knowledge cities. This contribution, amongst many others, is aiming to trigger further debate through a rainbow of contrasting points of view about what KBD has meant for the city‐region of Manchester. It is also hoped that a renewed interest in capital systems research and its social policy implications in and about the city would be triggered as well.