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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The Global Campus: Linking Student Educational Experiences to Global Realities
- University of California, Irvine (CA)
- SERES (Sacatepequez)
Presentation highlights the collaboration between the University of California, Irvine and SERES, a Central American NGO working on youth sustainability leadership. Their joint effort - manifested through the Global Sustainability …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Teaching Sustainability In Place: A Workshop and Field Experience at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities's Cedar Creek Ecosystem Reserve
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
- Will Steger Foundation (MN)
Since an understanding of ecology underlies any notion of sustainability, teaching about sustainability means teaching fundamental ecology. Sustainability envisions a system in which humanity and nature are inextricably and forever …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A new classroom environment: Extending sustainability education into living & learning residential communities
- University of Rhode Island (RI)
- NORESCO (NC)
Over the past 8 years, the University of Rhode Island (URI) has been working with the Energy Service Company, NORESCO, to increase energy efficiency for campus buildings. Multiple phases of …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Moving Beyond the Generic at Community Colleges: 100 and 200-Level Sustainability Education Courses, e-Badges and Co-Curricular Learning
- Central Community College (NE)
An environmentally sustainable future requires more than sustainability professionals working in sustainability-focused positions. Needed are employees across businesses and organizations capable of implementing, communicating, applying and maintaining environmentally sustainable practices …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Sustainability Seminar: A model for sustainability curriculum connected to the local community
- Macalester College (MN)
In 2014, Macalester College began a new initiative called Educating Sustainability Ambassadors (ESA) with the purpose of infusing sustainability across all the units of campus. The flagship program of ESA …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Assessing the Feasibility of a Microgrid to Reinforce Campus Climate Resiliency
- Middlebury College (VT)
Catastrophic weather events like Katrina, Irene, Sandy and others have raised concern about being prepared for the uncertainties of climate change. Students participating in the summer Middlebury School of the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Self care for sustainability leaders: Insightful perspectives and innovative practices
- Portland State University (OR)
A shift toward a more connected, collaborative, and relational way of leading for sustainability requires leaders who can sustain themselves in the midst of challenging work. Self care involves slowing …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainable Systems: Coming in at the ground floor
- The New School (NY)
Our case study presents the development of a required course for all first year students, a cohort of approximately 900 students. Students learn about the challenges and opportunities presented by …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Growing Up Green
- University of Arizona (AZ)
Three interns from the University of Arizona's Students for Sustainability (SfS) program will present the necessity for linking environmental education programs from universities to K-12 classrooms. The SfS program develops …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Cooperative Curriculum for a Resilient Future: How to Integrate Education on Cooperatives in U.S Undergraduate Programs.
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
The co-operative business model and co-operative economics are not taught as subjects in most U.S. undergraduate programs. To address this systemic lack of awareness, our workshop will explore how to …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Global Cities as a Learning Environment for Sustainability: Comparing Field Experiences in Austria, China and India.
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
This presentation will bring in students and faculty from from multiple courses offered at different Schools who have participated in and/or delivered study abroad courses on sustainability, focusing on study-abroad …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Engaging K-12 educators in Sustainability Science: Case study on urban sustainability systems at Arizona State University
- Arizona State University (AZ)
Universities often include education & outreach as part of their broader impacts. However, research endeavors of faculty are typically presented through one-way forms of dissemination (i.e., presentations, articles, and reports) …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Professional Skills in Sustainability
- Arizona State University (AZ)
The practice of professional sustainability requires critical competencies that focus on teamwork, communication, project management and stakeholder engagement. A one-credit hour course which highlights these critical professional competencies in sustainability …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Teaching Sustainability as a Philosophical Concept
- Bemidji State University (MN)
We address teaching sustainability primarily as a philosophical rather than scientific idea. We propose to relate our experience as part of an interdisciplinary team of faculty leading a course titled …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Assessing Sustainability Attitudes: A New Multi-Dimensional Measure
- Central College (IA)
The rise of sustainability curricula in higher education has coincided with increasing calls for academic assessment, and a variety of tools have been developed to measure sustainability literacy and attitudes. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Getting in Touch with the Pachamama: An Interdisciplinary course with emphasis on Global Sustainability and Study Abroad
- Central College (IA)
Pachamama Never Left: Nature and Culture of Peru is a liberal arts course at Central College. The course has a study abroad component with an emphasis on global sustainability. The …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Integrating Environmental Sustainability Across the Community College Curriculum: Courses, Co-Curricular Learning and Badges
- Central Community College (NE)
An environmentally sustainable future requires more than sustainability professionals working in sustainability-focused positions. Needed are employees across businesses and organizations capable of implementing, communicating, applying and maintaining sustainable practices within …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainable Learning Initiative at Franklin Falls: Developing Transdisciplinary, Community-Based Living Laboratory Partnerships
- Colby-Sawyer College (NH)
The Sustainable Learning Initiative at Franklin Falls is a partnership between Colby-Sawyer College and the city of Franklin, NH, which has plans for a comprehensive revitalization of their downtown that …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Establishing Pipelines for Sustainability Students, Two-year to Graduate Level: A Working Session
- Colorado Mountain College (CO)
In recognition of the importance of integrated approaches to address the pressing challenges of sustainability, sustainability-focused academic programs are growing rapidly among higher education institutions. This growth necessitates increased coordination …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Assessing Sustainability Efforts: Examples and Opportunities
- Concordia College (NY)
Assessment is necessary to determine impact on students, but finding effective instruments to accurately measure change can be difficult. Our college has been actively involved in assessing student perception and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Wicked Problems in Sustainability Initiative: Creating and Supporting a Multi-Institution Course Community
- Engineers for a Sustainable World (CO)
Creation or replication of multidisciplinary courses with real-world context is limited by technical and economic constraints at many institutions. Efforts that connect multiple institutions to multidisciplinary resources can enable success …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Digital & Interactive Short Courses in Technical Sustainability & Design: Pilot Results and Lessons Learned
- Engineers for a Sustainable World (CO)
In an effort to improve access to education on both skills and multidisciplinary topics within sustainability Engineers for a Sustainable World (ESW) has been piloting a series of digital short …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Progressing Toward Sustainability Literacy: Assessing Curricular and Co-Curricular Learning Outcomes for First-Year Students
- Hobart and William Smith Colleges (NY)
The Sustainable Living and Learning Community (SLLC) Program is a newly launched pilot program for first-year students, bringing together a group of faculty, staff, and students into a unique partnership …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Building School-to-Farm Traffic: Small-farm Infrastructure as Sustainable Technology Design
- Lafayette College (PA)
Farm-to-school projects have flourished in recent years. By aggregating and delivering food from local sources to regional institutions (like schools), they help rebuild the missing middle between producers and consumers; …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Educating Sustainability Ambassadors: Insights from a campus-wide sustainability initiative
- Macalester College (MN)
Achieving sustainability is one of the grand challenges confronting society. To answer this challenge, in 2014 Macalester embarked on a campus-wide initiative to infuse sustainability throughout the college curriculum and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Cooperative Education: Promoting Sustainability in Procurement & Education
- Portland Community College (OR)
This presentation will share highlights from projects which seek to support instructors in the development and implementation of sustainability curriculum thereby increasing student engagement and improving their knowledge, skills and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Management of an Urban White Oak Savanna: Blending Indigenous Permaculture with City Life
- Portland State University (OR)
White Oak Savannas are among the most endangered ecological communities in the Pacific Northwest. Historically, annual burnings of these sprawling grasslands inhibited encroaching forests to allow for plentiful hunting, gathering …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Pursuing impact: Facilitating and assessing curricular partnerships that advance neighborhood sustainability
- Portland State University (OR)
Neighborhoods are advancing urban sustainability in powerful ways. In cities like Portland, Oregon, non-profits, businesses, government, and residents are learning that by working together they can effect more sustainable change …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Beyond Conservation-Reimagining the Purpose of Energy Education: An interactive issue of Journal of Sustainability Education
- Prescott College (AZ)
A major challenge to human quality of life in the 21st century is going to be our successful ability to shift the burden of our energy resources and the way …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Incorporating sustainability one course at a time
- Randolph College (VA)
Sustainability programs (including certifications, majors, minors, graduate and professional programs) began appearing at institutions of higher education over a decade ago. Randolph College first proposed a sustainability minor in 2011, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Analyzing the future of education and the influence of experiential sustainability education
- The GREEN Program (PA)
A Think Tank, presenting The GREEN Program findings related to weak signals and trends within the changing higher educational system, student-mindset and needs, and the industry expectations of graduates. The …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainable design and construction contest
- Universidad de Monterrey
Universidad de Monterrey created a multidisciplinary contest were students must develop an alternative energy systems and sustainable building proposal on a non-profit organization that attends people in situations of vulnerability, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Compass Curriculum: The Successful Implementation of Sustainability as a General Education Requirement
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs (CO)
In Fall 2014,sustainability was added to the General Education requirements at the University of Colorado Colorado Springs. The new Compass Curriculum requires that all students, in all majors and colleges, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Weaving Sustainability into Curricula across Disciplines: Challenges and Successes from the Green Threads Faculty Workshop
- University of Louisville (KY)
How does a large research institution that offers nearly 200 different majors across the undergraduate- and graduate levels integrate sustainability into its many disciplines? Since 2009, the University of Louisville …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Northern Roots: Growing Food in the Western Lake Superior Region: A Participatory, Public Ethnography in Film Form
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
Planting and cultivation instructions: 1) Combined engaged students, hard-working farmers, a supportive university, dedicated nonprofit leaders and the fertile potential of participatory media. 2) Seed the ground with community coordination …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability education: A campus-wide study guiding an all unit strategic approach at the University of Minnesota, Duluth
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
A team of faculty and staff who were working on sustainability education across the UMD campus conducted an all campus survey (N=1700) to meet the Chancellor's Strategic Initiative. The Initiative …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Hair dryers, gaming systems, and fans: Engaging an online Social Psychology Class in an Energy Competition for Residence Halls
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
This presentation describes the development, implementation, and outcomes of an online Social Psychology class project designed to reduce energy consumption among students living in a campus residence hall. The co-curricular …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Project-based courses provide practical educational experience for students and advance sustainability within local community
- University of Minnesota, Duluth (MN)
Collaboration between the University of Minnesota, Duluth (UMD), a local non-profit that promotes sustainable energy and six area businesss has resulted in a series of class projects implemented into two …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Developing Sustainability Leaders - Skills and Experiences from a Leadership Development Program for Graduate Students
- University of Minnesota, Twin Cities (MN)
In this workshop participants will both experience and learn about a cutting-edge leadership development program for graduate students. The Boreas Leadership Program, at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities's Institute …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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An Innovative Approach to Training the Next Generation of Interdisciplinary Professionals in Environment and Sustainability
- University of Saskatchewan (SK)
Field Skills in Environment and Sustainability is a mandatory course in the Master of Sustainable Environmental Management program at the University of Saskatchewan. The main goals for this interdisciplinary field …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability meets employability: developing career readiness skills in our students
- University of South Carolina (SC)
At the University of South Carolina we've developed a high impact coaching program for students to develop skills employers seek, while working on projects to further the impact of sustainability …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A Systems Approach to Supporting Curricular Innovations
- University of St. Thomas (MN)
UST faculty, through grass-roots efforts, have transformed piecemeal efforts to integrate sustainability into their courses into a system that encourages the integration of sustainability throughout the curriculum. Our system consists …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Secret Garden: Cultivating Sustainability Curriculum in Confined Spaces
- University of Wisconsin-River Falls (WI)
In teacher education, curriculum has become prescriptive and confining due to a political shift, which has affected how schools of education prepare teacher candidates. There is now a focus on …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A Survey of Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices on Sustainability Topics among College Students
- West Chester University of Pennsylvania (PA)
Over the last decade, colleges and universities have increased their focus on sustainability education to improve students' understanding of and engagement with sustainability issues. Establishing a baseline of students' knowledge, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Greening of an Appalachian College of Business
- Appalachian State University (NC)
The Greening of an Appalachian College of Business Training future business people on the tools and skills needed to run sustainable businesses is a key challenge for our society, but …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Developing a Campus Sustainability Literacy Survey as a Metric for a Sustainability Themed Strategic Plan
- Appalachian State University (NC)
This talk will describe of creation a sustainability metric for one of the only college and university campuses in the country that uses sustainability as the primary guiding principal for …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Integrating Biophillic Design in the Classroom: Connecting Students with Nature
- Appalachian State University (NC)
This presentation will describe the process of transforming typical university classrooms into biophilia inspired living laboratories. Biophilic Design is an innovative way of designing the places where we live, work, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Guide on the Side' instead of a 'Sage on the Stage': Facilitating Innovative Student-Led Sustainability Discussions
- Bowling Green State University (OH)
In this Round Table presentation I will highlight an approach that I utilize to facilitate discussions associated with assigned sustainability-related reading material in university-level sustainability courses. The approaches that I …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Weaving Sustainability into Curriculum at California State University, Northridge
- California State University, Northridge (CA)
Colleges and universities across the globe are increasingly focusing their efforts on campus sustainability and related curricula. California State University, Northridge has made steps in recent years to improve the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Estimating carbon sequestration potential of college campus soils: An example from Carleton College
- Carleton College (MN)
We developed a method to determine how much carbon could be sequestered by soils on a college campus. In Fall 2014, the Geology of Soils class at Carleton College wrote …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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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.