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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A Rooted University: Growing Resiliency, Community, and Engaged Food Citizens
- University of Michigan (MI)
With the impending energy descent and accelerating impacts of climate change, the need to foster resiliency and adaptation in the realm of higher education is increasingly pertinent. Universities provide a …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Teaching Sustainability & Fostering Change at Vanderbilt University
- Vanderbilt University (TN)
Sustainability is the most pressing educational issue of the twenty-first century. In a crisis prone world of limited resources and rapid change, colleges and universities play a vital role in …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Design and Construction of an Anaerobic Digestion Laboratory: An Addition to the Biofuels Education and Research Facility at Appalachian State University
- Appalachian State University (NC)
The Biofuels Education and Research Facility (BERF) at Appalachian State University (ASU) originally funded by an EPA P3 grant in 2007 for the planning and construction of a closed cycle …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Somatics, Wellness, and Sustainability: Embedding the Concept of Sustainability Within the Physical Body
- Appalachian State University (NC)
Much of the work towards sustainability is focused on reducing the actions of consumption on many levels. Natural resources, space, and food resources are several of the main areas of …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability, A Living Experience
- Carnegie Mellon University (PA)
At Carnegie Mellon University sustainability has been stripped to “green.” Despite the greater on-campus attention of recycling and composting initiatives, six green roofs, zero-waste events, a community garden, and student …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Creating Cross-Campus Collaborations: Transforming Curriculum, Empowering Students
- Central College (IA)
Cool things can happen when campus silos are breached and faculty members get to know and start collaborating with directors of facilities, grounds, and food service to empower students. This …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Imagining a Sustainable Future: Studying Sustainability through Interdisciplinary Lenses and Experiential Learning in the First-Year Seminar
- Chapman University (CA)
This presentation will focus on a freshman foundations course that introduces students to sustainability as an interdisciplinary concern, using various analytical perspectives to critically explore sustainability through the disciplinary lenses …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Driving the Clean Energy Revolution: Student Entrepreneurial Leaders Wanted - Apply Here!
- Chevrolet (OR)
As Chevrolet prepares to support a cleaner, energy efficient future for US campuses as part of its Carbon Reduction Initiative, it will also be challenging students to help engage their …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Dalhousie University’s College of Sustainability: Transforming a campus for sustainability education
- Dalhousie University (NS)
Over the past five years, Dalhousie University’s College of Sustainability has developed and implemented an innovative model for sustainability education, which transforms university education to ensure all graduates have the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A Design-Build Block Semester: Student Engagement Through the Creation of a Solar Garage
- Green Mountain College (VT)
This presentation tells the story of twenty-one students and one building, where pedagogy revolved around a single goal: the design and construction of a solar garage. The fifteen-credit semester was …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Energy from the Sun = Food + Electricity + Innovation
- Metropolitan Community College (NE)
MCC embarked on a project to integrate its solar energy program with an existing symbiotic horticulture and culinary arts program. The project seeks to provide hands-on learning experiences for solar …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Turning the Campus Into a Living Laboratory via the Classroom and the Boardroom
- Middlebury College (VT)
This session will explore the current state of practice bringing sustainability issues to the decisionmaking level via a two way exchange coming either from the administrative/boardroom level to the classroom …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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What Predicts Students’ Perceptions of Ethics and Corporate Social Responsibility?
- Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (AB)
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) continues to become increasingly important in management practice as the global business community is embracing CSR as an important link to positive corporate identity and reputation. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Teaching Student Resiliency Requires Faculty Adaptability: Two Case Study Comparisons
- Portland State University (OR)
This paper discusses the process and outcomes of two different approaches to incorporating community-based learning into undergraduate courses. Both courses are part of a year-long, interdisciplinary Freshman seminar, one course …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Experiential Learning for MBAs in Sustainable Management
- Presidio Graduate School (CA)
Experiential learning is the process of learning from direct experience. Aristotle once said, "For the things we have to learn before we can do them, we learn by doing them”. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Connecting Sustainability Culture to Curriculum at The Hotchkiss School
- The Hotchkiss School (CT)
Josh Hahn, Hotchkiss Assitant Head of School and Director Environmental Initiatives and Andy Cox, General Manager and Director of Sustainability for Dining Service discuss how The Hotchkiss School and Sodexo …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Turning Trash into Cash: The USD E-Waste Collection Center
- University of San Diego (CA)
Electronic waste is the largest growing municipal waste stream in the United States. As technology continues to advance, consumers continue to buy new electronics, but where can they properly dispose …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Kinnikinnic Project: Developing Sustainability Learning Outcomes In Higher Education
- University of Wisconsin-River Falls (WI)
A sustainable campus and community approach to learning outcomes provides the single richest multi-disciplinary and discipline specific platform for immersing our students and stakeholders in a place-based, living-learning laboratory environment …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Core Competencies in Learning for Sustainability: A Key to Building Campus Cultures of Sustainability
- Western Michigan University (MI)
As a gathering, the AASHE Conference has tremendous potential to foster rich campus cultures of sustainability. The goal of our session is to help realize this potential by engendering meaningful …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Shut Your Sash? Connecting Fume Hood Behavior Change Theories with the Real World
- Alliance to Save Energy (CA)
Two prestigious think tanks and a multi-campus educational program collaborated over the past year in an effort to quantitatively answer the question: “Do fume hood campaigns save energy?” Though intuitively, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Personal Narrative as Research Pedagogy: Using Poetic Language and Personal Testament in the Research Writing Process
- Appalachian State University (NC)
Research scientists are often dismissed when their reports include personal ethical statements or persuasions—these individuals risk their objectivity in doing so and the result can be invalidation in the scientific …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability Projects Assessment Tool (SPAT)
- Arizona State University (AZ)
The Sustainability Projects Assessment Tool (SPAT) is an automated decision support program that seeks to identify total cost of ownership of sustainability projects, and analyzes three aspects: assessment of environmental, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Modeling Urban Form: Expressions of the Operational State of Design-For-Sustainability
- Ball State University (IN)
As a rule students do not have the opportunity to interact readily with those of other disciplines. And so they cannot bring to bear their respective disciplinary experience and knowledge …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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In Front of the Mirror: Assessing Curricular Change
- California State University, Chico (CA)
California State University, Chico undertook a general education reform, providing a unique opportunity to craft a new general education pathway with the intent of preparing students for challenges of the …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A Collaborative Approach to Applied Sustainability in Undergraduate Education
- Chandler-Gilbert Community College (AZ)
This paper will note best practices in sustainability education by examining a collaborative learning endeavor involving an undergraduate special projects course. The course is designed to engage students in experiential …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Getting Involved on Your College Campus: The Power of Students and Sustainability Tools
- Clean Air-Cool Planet (NH)
The college campus is a living lab where students can learn about sustainability through projects, internships, and work study positions. There are many “sustainability tools” available to reveal how colleges …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability Competencies to Meet Market & Societal Demand
- College of Charleston (SC)
Sustainability and sustainable practices are growing to include every sector of global society. Therefore there is a growing demand for professionals to have basic sustainability competence. At the same time, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Dissertations on Sustainability in Higher Education: A Meta-Study Analysis
- Colorado State University (CO)
As a means of examining emerging scholarship on sustainability in higher education (SHE), a bounded qualitative meta-study of SHE dissertations was undertaken in 2012 concurrent with the twentieth anniversary of …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Reframing Courses to Integrate Sustainability: Essential Strategies and Resources
- Creative Change Educational Solutions (MI)
College courses often are based on disciplinary knowledge, but teaching sustainability requires an interdisciplinary perspective. How can professors integrate key sustainability concepts without radically changing course requirements or abandoning disciplinary …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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A Teaching Module on Climate Change for the Introductory Business Course
- Dickinson College (PA)
Business managers are increasingly engaged with climate change issues, but pedagogy on climate change in the business curriculum is in the early stages of development. This session addresses the need …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Greater Carlisle Project – a College/Community Collaboration for Sustainability
- Dickinson College (PA)
Taking inspiration from The Oberlin Project, Dickinson College convened a series of meetings from November 2012 through March 2013 with members of the Greater Carlisle community for conversations about creating …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Energy Dashboards: Cross-Discplinary Opportunities for Coursework & Research
- Illinois State University (IL)
Illinois State University utilized an ESCO project to install a custom programmed energy monitoring system with the dual purpose of serving as a public classroom and research repository. Cross-collaborating with …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainability Practicum: Making a Seamless Transition from Classroom to Career
- Indiana University South Bend (IN)
Typically, the transition from classroom to career has been seen as the primary responsibility of the students themselves, perhaps with some support (if available) from student affairs and the ‘Career …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Summer Internships for a Sustainable Food System
- Linfield College (OR)
Today, the importance of sustainably addressing our food system is vital. There is a pressing societal need for citizens educated in actively creating and participating with food systems based in …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Internships as a Tool for Sustainability Education and Outreach
- Luther College (IA)
Using Luther College’s successful sustainability internship program as a case study, this presentation will cover all aspects of developing and implementing a sustainability focused student internship program for undergraduates. Like …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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People, Planet, Participation: An Approach to Holistically Embedding Sustainability in Curriculum
- Macquarie University (NSW)
Embedding sustainability across a broad curriculum is a difficult and daunting task. An holistic approach cannot simply focus on adding content into existing units, nor can it depend upon specifically …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Addressing Fundamental Questions on the Design and Implementation of Sustainability Education
- Merrimack College (MA)
Asking fundamental questions about sustainability education will be the focus of this interactive, possibly advanced track, workshop. The presenter will begin by presenting data on the disciplinary homes and leadership …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Incorporating Sustainability Into Undergraduate Education
- Northland College (WI)
Many colleges and universities in the U.S. have embraced the concept of sustainability in their facilities and operations. Many have also captured sustainability as part of their institutional mission statement …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Dining Hall as a Classroom: A Unique Model for a Life-Cycle Analysis Course
- Northwestern University (IL)
Though students, faculty, and the dining service have all shown dedication to sustainable initiatives, there has been little academic research on the sustainability of our campus dining service. This year, …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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The Invisibility of Sustainability: Student Projects that Render Visible Previously Hidden Environmental Impacts
- Rice University (TX)
As humans, we are inherently biased towards what we can see. Sustainability officers will often observe with frustration that others perceive sustainability as being all about recycling bins and solar …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Growing Pains: Curriculum Design and Redesign in a First-Year Sustainability Cohort
- Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology (IN)
The HERE (Home for Environmentally Responsible Engineering) program, a first-year living-learning community at our school, was designed around standard required courses. First-year students enroll together in an orientation course and …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Sustainabillity by Collaboration: Partnering Facilities with Instruction
- Sierra College (CA)
Sierra College utilizes a unique partnership between the facilities and instructional divisions to provide high-level workforce development training for students while expanding the college's renewable energy portfolio. The Energy Technology …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Recycling, Reusing and Repurposing Environmental Art: A Case Study
- Spelman College (GA)
As an artist-educator interested in sustainability I have been exploring the concept of recycling, reusing and repurposing eco-friendly materials in my art practice and my pedagogy. The Sanctuary Series that …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Plenary: Organizational Leadership for Sustainability Education
- Unity Environmental University (ME)
As president of Unity College, Dr. Stephen Mulkey is a champion of sustainability science, which he sees as the defining framework for academic programming at Unity College. In just under …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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UC Berkeley's Building Sustainability at Cal Class: The Integration of Social Justice Into Sustainability Education
- University of California, Berkeley (CA)
The Building Sustainability at Cal (BS@C) class is a unique course on the campus of UC Berkeley—gathering students from diverse disciplines to learn about and form the future of sustainability. …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Pushing The Boundaries Of Student Sustainability Competitions With The Kukui Cup
- University of Hawaii at Manoa (HI)
In order to meet the sustainability challenges we face in higher education and the world, we need to understand the impact of our behavior, and what we can do to …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Island Food Security through a Campus Community Garden
- University of Hawaii Maui College (HI)
The Sustainable Living Institute of Maui (SLIM) at UH Maui College began an endeavor to build a campus community garden in 2010. Almost three years later, and after many obstacles …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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“You Can’t Measure That!” Measuring Affective Learning Outcomes in an Undergraduate Urban Sustainability Course
- University of Louisville (KY)
Traditional classroom assessments are unable to measure students’ development of the affective competencies and behavioral dispositions implicit in education for sustainability. This original research addresses the question of how to …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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How can we know that our educational efforts are working?
- University of Otago (Otago)
Some higher education institutions aspire to transform students into global citizens, able and willing to address the sustainability needs of the planet. Yet these institutions have limited capacity to evaluate …
- Posted Feb. 26, 2016
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Teaching Sustainability as a Contested Concept: Reflections from the Cascadia Sustainability Field School
- University of Victoria (BC)
Skepticism with respect to the self-evidence of truth claims in the ever-present context of power relations is central to critical scholarship. Concepts can and are used not as innocent representations …
- 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.