Curriculum
Introduction
One of the primary functions of colleges and universities is to educate students. By training and educating future leaders, scholars, workers, and professionals; higher education institutions are uniquely positioned to understand and address sustainability challenges. Institutions that offer courses covering sustainability issues help equip their students to lead society to a sustainable future.
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Incorporating Prerecorded Environmental Lifecycle Assessment Modules in a Classroom Setting
- Washington State University, Pullman (WA)
Addition of sustainability-related material is becoming a point of emphasis in engineering education. Freely available modular lessons are one way to quickly effect this incorporation. This research examines the effectiveness …
- Posted July 28, 2016
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Using Concept Maps to Explore the Impacts of a Learning-Cycle-Based Sustainability Module Implemented in Two Institutional Contexts
- Georgia Institute of Technology (GA)
- James Madison University (VA)
- The Citadel (SC)
Because engineers are responsible for the design phase of projects where decisions impacting sustainability are most effectively made, it is important to ensure that students are equipped with the necessary …
- Posted July 28, 2016
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MS in Professional Science
- Unity Environmental University (ME)
Learning to navigate the unpredictable waves of our globalized society places a pivotal degree of responsibility on aspiring leaders to develop skills necessary to be effective change agents. At America’s …
- Posted July 26, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Green Genome Institutional Self-Assessment Tool
- American Association of Community Colleges (DC)
The Green Genome Institutional Self-Assessment Tool is a free tool designed to enable community colleges to quickly gauge how well they are leading and integrating sustainability and green workforce development …
- Posted July 25, 2016
- Tools
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Sustainable MBA
- Eastern Mennonite University (VA)
At EMU our purpose is to build students’ portfolios of management skills, leadership strengths, and stewardship strategies to enable our graduates, and their colleagues, to achieve greater success and to …
- Posted July 23, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Masters of the Environment Professional Graduate Program
- University of Colorado Boulder (CO)
The Masters of the Environment (MENV) is a professional master’s degree program that is administered by the Environmental Studies Program, but partners with units and disciplines across the Boulder campus …
- Posted July 22, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Reshaping the Education of Energy Managers
Newly educated Energy managers will play a key role in the unfolding global transition to renewable energy and sustainability. We describe a new approach to energy management education via a …
- Posted July 21, 2016
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A comparative review of policy and practice for education for sustainable development/education for global citizenship (ESD/GC) in teacher education across the four nations of the UK
The early 21st century has seen a period of extreme turbulence in education at all levels in the UK. Although education policy was administrated on a territorial basis before 1999, …
- Posted July 21, 2016
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Education for sustainability-challenges and opportunities: The case of RCEs
- London South Bank University
This article will focus on the challenges of leadership and management of a key initiative of the 2005-2014 UN Decade of Education for Sustainable Development (DESD), namely the Regional Centres …
- Posted July 21, 2016
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Boldly Sustainable: Hope & Opportunity for Higher Education in the age of Climate Change
- National Association of College & University Business Officers (NACUBO) (DC)
Sustainability is a powerful strategy for higher education to achieve renewal, reformation, and relevance in the 21st century. Boldly Sustainable examines how colleges and universities can leverage their commitment to …
- Posted July 21, 2016
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Sustainable Mobility for the Future: Development and Implementation of a Sustainable Transportation Planning Course
- Bucknell University (PA)
The field of transportation engineering has become more sustainable as challenges of the twenty-first century continue. Sustainable mobility topics such as pedestrian and cycling travel, smart growth development, and transit-oriented …
- Posted July 18, 2016
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Enhancing sustainability curricula through faculty learning communities
- University of Vermont (VT)
Purpose
Although the number of higher education institutions adopting sustainability-focused faculty learning communities (FLCs) has grown, very few of these programs have published evaluation research. This paper aims to report …
- Posted July 18, 2016
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Sustainability Education: The What and How for Mathematics
- Ithaca College (NY)
In this article we provide a simple way to think about the concept of sustainability and provide a number of examples for incorporating sustainability education into commonly taught mathematics courses. …
- Posted July 13, 2016
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Foreign Languages and Sustainability: Addressing the Connections, Communities, and Comparisons Standards in Higher Education
- Clarion University of Pennsylvania (PA)
- Queen's University
This article describes an interdisciplinary collaboration that combined the study of German language with instruction in environmental issues (sustainable development). The project, involving both an independent study and a classroom …
- Posted July 13, 2016
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Composition and Sustainability: Teaching for a Threatened Generation
- St. John's University, New York (NY)
While sustainability - meeting today’s needs without jeopardizing the interests of future generations - has become a dominating force in a range of disciplines, it has yet to play a …
- Posted July 13, 2016
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The Greening of the Language Arts: Considering Sustainability Outside of the Science Classroom
- Western Washington University (WA)
If the concept of sustainability is studied at all in middle or high school, chances are that study is taking place in the science classroom. After all, the topic of …
- Posted July 13, 2016
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Incorporating Global Sustainability in the Business Language Curriculum
- San Diego State University (CA)
- University of California, Los Angeles (CA)
“Providing food, water, energy and other human needs to the world's entire population without harming the environment is a formidable task,” according to Purdue University’s Global Sustainability Institute. Global sustainability …
- Posted July 13, 2016
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Sustainability Pedagogies for the Business Language Classroom
- George Washington University (DC)
Heightened urgency about the question of the earth’s survival has generated increased attention to how to teach sustainability across the curriculum. The business language course, positioned at the nexus of …
- Posted July 13, 2016
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Sustainability Programming is an Ethical Obligation for Higher Education in the Environmental Century
- Unity Environmental University (ME)
Development of a sustainable relationship with our natural resources is an imperative for any meaningful quality of life as climate change poses the ultimate test of our adaptability as a …
- Posted July 7, 2016
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Online Master of Advanced Study in Sustainable Tourism
- Arizona State University (AZ)
Students in ASU's MAS in sustainable tourism receive a comprehensive education with a focus on the environmental, economic, and social aspects of tourism. Graduates are equipped with translatable skills necessary …
- Posted July 7, 2016
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Transforming US higher education to support sustainability science for a resilient future: the influence of institutional administrative organization
- Unity Environmental University (ME)
Interdisciplinary environmental and sustainability (IES) academic programs have an important and distinctive role in education for sustainability: preparing sustainability-oriented problem solvers who work at the science–policy, science–management, and policy–management interfaces. …
- Posted July 7, 2016
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AAS Degree in Energy Management
- Tunxis Community College (CT)
The Applied Associate of Science Degree in Energy Management is a two-year technical training program that prepares students for a career in commercial building energy analysis and energy management.
Students …
- Posted July 7, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Learning outcomes for sustainable development in higher education
This paper sets out to discuss the commonalities that can be found in learning outcomes (LOs) for education for sustainable development in the context of the Tbilisi and Barcelona declarations. …
- Posted July 6, 2016
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Developing Learning Outcomes for Sustainability
- Macquarie University (NSW)
This resource provides information on how to develop learning outcomes for sustainability, including examples sourced from unit outlines across the university.
- Posted July 6, 2016
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Ethical internationalisation in higher education: interfaces with international development and sustainability
- University of Alberta (AB)
- University of British Columbia (BC)
This analysis is situated within a larger project focusing on ethics and internationalization in higher education. Internationalization is occurring at a fast pace and encompasses overlapping and contradictory aims largely …
- Posted July 5, 2016
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Regenerative Sustainable Development of Universities and Cities The Role of Living Laboratories
Now that the Earth has reached the limits of its biophysical carrying capacity, we have to change technologies, social practices and social norms relating to material production and consumption to …
- Posted July 5, 2016
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Environmental Navigation Network: Developing a Peer Mentor Program in the Environmental Program at the University of Vermont
- University of Vermont (VT)
The acknowledgement of complex environmental problems and society’s work to address them during the late 1960’s and early 1970’s, inspired higher education to respond by developing a high number of …
- Posted July 5, 2016
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A Higher Calling for Higher Education
Education and knowledge resources are more available today than ever before. However, humanity’s two main conflicts - coexistence with nature and coexistence with each other - remain unresolved. We need …
- Posted July 1, 2016
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Interdisciplinary environmental and sustainability education: islands of progress in a sea of dysfunction
- Brown University (RI)
- Unity Environmental University (ME)
This essay describes the inequity faced by most interdisciplinary environmental and sustainability (IES) degree programs and the impact of that inequity on student and faculty experiences. Despite the urgent need …
- Posted July 1, 2016
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Engaging with the contradictions of capitalism: Teaching "sustainability" in the business school
- University of Sydney (NSW)
- The University of Newcastle (NSW)
The chapter explores how sustainability education might contribute to a reimagining of our economic system and the role of business. Based on our experience in developing and teaching sustainability curricula …
- Posted July 1, 2016
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Toward the Development of Robust Learning for Sustainability Core Competencies
- Western Michigan University (MI)
This paper presents the results of a workshop on "Learning for Sustainability Core Competencies" held at AASHE's annual conference. The authors review research on core competencies in education for sustainability …
- Posted July 1, 2016
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New Developments in Engineering Education for Sustainable Development
This book discusses essential approaches and methods in connection with engineering education for sustainable development. Prepared as a follow-up to the 2015 Engineering Education in Sustainable Development (EESD) Conference held …
- Posted June 28, 2016
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ENERGY STAR Commercial Buildings College Course Materials Package
- U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (DC)
The ENERGY STAR college-level course, Introduction to Commercial Building Energy Efficiency Through EPA's ENERGY STAR Program, gives students practical, hands-on experience with commercial building energy efficiency. This course was …
- Posted June 27, 2016
- Course Materials
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As colleges add green majors and minors, classes fill up
- USA TODAY (VA)
Colleges are rapidly adding new majors and minors in green studies, and students are filling them fast.
- Posted June 23, 2016
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First-year student attitudes towards, and skills in, sustainable development
- Higher Education Academy (York)
This report on student attitudes towards, and skills in, sustainable development describes the results of an online survey of 5,763 first-year higher education (HE) students, across all four UK member …
- Posted June 23, 2016
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Sustainability Field Booms on Campus
This article describes fast growth in continuing education programs focused on sustainability.
- Posted June 23, 2016
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Responsible Business: The Textbook for Management Learning, Competence and Innovation
- Tecnológico de Monterrey – Campus Monterrey (Nuevo Leon)
As sustainable development becomes an increasingly important strategic issue for all organizations, there is a growing need for management and executive education to adapt to this new reality. This textbook …
- Posted June 23, 2016
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Educating for Responsible Management: Putting Theory Into Practice
- Nazareth College (NY)
The global community is looking towards business to play its role in creating a just and fair economy. This increases the urgency and relevance of new approaches to management education …
- Posted June 23, 2016
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University Students as Change agents? A Comparative Study of the Role of Students in Higher Education for Sustainable Development in Germany and Sweden
- Uppsala University
To readjust the direction of social development and to enable sustainable learning for students at all levels, international policy emphasises the necessity to transform education systems based on a whole …
- Posted June 23, 2016
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Sustainable Happiness, Living Campus, and Wellbeing for All
- Dawson College (QC)
- Cape Breton University (NS)
There is a definite and heartening movement afoot in many education circles. The widespread recognition that formal education is destined for sweeping changes begins with redefining its very purpose. This, …
- Posted June 21, 2016
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Online Bachelor of Arts in Sustainability at ASU
- Arizona State University (AZ)
The program explores the social and human aspects of sustainability in the context of real-world issues. Students will look at ways to solve challenges of sustainability related to the environment, …
- Posted June 21, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Pre-Service Teachers and Climate Change: A Stalemate?
- James Cook University (Queensland)
Findings from the second phase of a study of pre-service teachers’ attitudes to environmental education and knowledge of climate change are reported in this paper. A sample of 87 pre-service …
- Posted June 20, 2016
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Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation
- University of California, San Diego (CA)
The Center for Marine Biodiversity and Conservation at Scripps Institution of Oceanography exists to promote a holistic, interdisciplinary approach in the education of future leaders in marine biodiversity and conservation, …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Research Centers & Institutes
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BS in Environmental Science and Technology
- University of Maryland, College Park (MD)
The Environmental Science and Technology major prepares students for graduate study and careers focusing on understanding the natural and built environments and resolving environmental problems and concerns for the benefit …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Academic Programs
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BS in Environmental Science and Policy
- University of Maryland, College Park (MD)
Environmental Science and Policy (ENSP) is a unique undergraduate major co-sponsored by three Colleges, the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources, the College of Behavioral and Social Sciences and the …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Academic Programs
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International MA Program in Environmental Studies at The Porter School, Tel Aviv University
- Tel Aviv University (Tel Aviv District)
The Porter School’s M.A. Program in Environmental Studies at Tel Aviv University provides students with an intensive multidisciplinary exploration of environmental studies with an emphasis on Israel's unique geographic and …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Master of Advanced Studies in Climate Science and Policy
- University of California, San Diego (CA)
The master of advanced studies (MAS) in Climate Science and Policy is a unique program of study providing advanced training in climate science and policy for working professionals in government, …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Master of Advanced Studies in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation
- University of California, San Diego (CA)
The master of advanced studies (MAS) in Marine Biodiversity and Conservation is a unique program of study equipping its graduates with the knowledge they need to improve conservation of marine …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Graduate Certificate in Environmental GIS and Biodiversity Conservation
- George Mason University (VA)
As biodiversity is the life support system of our planet, it is important to prepare students for careers that require knowledge of both ecology and public policy. This certificate focuses …
- Posted June 20, 2016
- Academic Programs
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Teaching Education for Sustainable Development at University Level
This book introduces readers to the latest research and findings from projects focusing on teaching education for sustainable development at universities. In particular, it describes practical experiences, outline courses, training …
- Posted June 16, 2016
- Publications
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This tab provides access to data collected through AASHE’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment & Rating System™ (STARS). STARS is a transparent, self-reporting framework for colleges and universities to measure their sustainability performance. STARS enables meaningful comparisons over time and across institutions using a common set of measurements developed with broad participation from the campus sustainability community.
All responses reference content from reports under the latest version of STARS, version 2.2. AASHE membership and log-in is required.
AC 1: Academic Courses
- Percentage of courses that are sustainability course offerings
- Percentage of academic departments with sustainability course offerings
- Inventory of sustainability course offerings (upload)
- Website URL - Sustainability course offerings
AC 2: Learning Outcomes
- Description of institution level sustainability learning outcomes
- List of degree programs that require an understanding of the concept of sustainability
- Percentage of students who graduate from programs that require an understanding of sustainability
- Website URL - Sustainability learning outcomes
AC 3: Undergraduate Program
- First sustainability-focused undergraduate degree program
- Second sustainability-focused undergraduate degree program
- Third sustainability-focused undergraduate degree program
- First sustainability-focused undergraduate minor or concentration
- Second sustainability-focused undergraduate minor or concentration
- Third sustainability-focused undergraduate minor or concentration
AC 4: Graduate Program
- First sustainability-focused graduate-level degree program
- Second sustainability-focused graduate-level degree program
- Third sustainability-focused graduate-level degree program
- First sustainability-focused graduate-level minor or concentration
- Second sustainability-focused graduate-level minor or concentration
- Third sustainability-focused graduate-level minor or concentration
AC 5: Immersive Experience
- Description of the sustainability-focused immersive program(s)
- Second sustainability-focused graduate-level degree program
- Third sustainability-focused graduate-level degree program
AC 6: Sustainability Literacy Assessment
- Copy of the sustainability literacy assessment (upload)
- Copy of the sustainability literacy assessment (description)
- Website URL - Assessment of sustainability literacy
AC 7: Incentives for Developing Courses
- Description of the course development incentives
- Website URL - Incentives for developing sustainability courses
AC 8: Campus as a Living Laboratory
Additional analysis on scores and quantitative fields can be conducted using the STARS Benchmarking Tool.