ERIC Number: EJ1435814
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2024
Pages: 17
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1467-6370
EISSN: EISSN-1758-6739
Six Dimensions of Sustainability: A Framework for Organizing Diverse University Sustainability Curricula at the Ohio State University
Maria Manta Conroy; Becky Mansfield; Elena Irwin; Gina Jaquet; Gregory Hitzhusen; Jeremy Brooks
International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, v25 n9 p316-332 2024
Purpose: Integrating sustainability into university curricula brings diverse challenges and conflicts as separate units vie for ownership of courses and topics. This case study presents a six dimensions sustainability framework developed at The Ohio State University to organize curricula under an inclusive strategy. Design/methodology/approach: An interdisciplinary group of faculty focused on sustainability education engaged in a three-phased process including review of sustainability definitions from diverse disciplines; analysis of key aspects of the definitions in conjunction with course descriptions and learning outcomes; and identification of commonalities across the key aspects. This yielded six foundational dimensions of sustainability which serve as a means to assess curricular contributions across University units and topics. The six dimensions framework has been used in practice in multiple contexts. Findings: The six dimensions framework provides a way to identify and foster diverse sustainability curricula efforts. It has enabled academic units to describe their disciplinary and interdisciplinary perspectives on diverse sustainability topics and the University to advance a broad sustainability vision. Originality/value: The six dimensions framework provides a novel "big tent" approach to integration of sustainability into higher education curricula. The framework provides guidance about what counts as sustainability while maintaining the breadth that widens participation.
Descriptors: Sustainability, College Curriculum, State Universities, Curriculum Design, Inclusion, Equal Education
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Higher Education; Postsecondary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Ohio
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A