The Contribution of Social Sciences to Sustainable Development at Universities

Walter Leal Filho, Michaela Zint

• Publisher: Springer
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN:
  9783319268644
• eBook ISBN:
  9783319268668
• Topic: Biological Sciences
• Subtopic: Environmental Science
• Index: Biological Sciences

This volume is the first of its kind to present contemporary, state-of-the-art examples of how social science theories, models, and findings can advance all aspects of campus sustainability, an area that has so far been largely neglected. The individual chapters reflect the broad diversity of research on sustainable campus development conducted within and across basic and applied social science disciplines, drawing on a range of methods and case studies from around the world. Institutions of higher education have been among the leading promoters of sustainable development. However, efforts to transition to sustainability have been largely dominated by technological "solutions" and universities and colleges are increasingly recognizing that this transition cannot be achieved without attention to the human dimension. Administrators, campus sustainability officers and other university staff, faculty members and students, as well as alumni and external constituents all help to shape which sustainability innovations and initiatives are considered and pursued, and their participation determines the ultimate success of sustainability efforts. The book's individual contributions illustrate how the social sciences can broaden visions of what may be possible, identify the advantages and disadvantages of different instrumental and emancipator approaches, evaluate interventions' effectiveness, and offer processes for learning from mistakes and successes in ways that support continuous advances toward sustainability. Given that the majority of social science research stems from universities, the level of trust in these institutions, and their mission to develop societal leaders, higher education institutions are ideally suited for testing, assessing and modeling the social innovations needed to achieve sustainability on campuses and beyond.

Table of contents

• Preface
• Contents
• Part I Theoretical Frameworks and Analyses
• 1 Rethinking Education for Sustainable Development: Interdisciplinarity, Community and Environmental Justice
• 2 Sustainable Internationalization? Measuring the Diversity of Internationalization at Higher Education Institutions
• 3 Looking Beyond Fossil Fuel Divestment: Combating Climate Change in Higher Education
• 4 Beyond Recycling: Developing ``Deep'' Sustainability Competence
• 5 Discourses and Identity: An Educational Sociology Approach to Campus Sustainability Assessment
• 6 Declarations and Commitments: The Cognitive Practice of Sustainability Agreements
• 7 Place Consciousness as a Pathway Towards Campus Sustainability
• 8 Gauging Universities for Sustainability: Action Research as a Tool for Assessing and Influencing Organisational Transformation
• Part II Case Studies and Examplesof Implementation
• 9 Food Production as a Niche Innovation in Higher Education
• 10 Student Interest in Campus Community Gardens: Sowing the Seeds for Direct Engagement with Sustainability
• 11 Implementation of Education for Sustainable Development in Universities of Applied Sciences
• 12 Introducing the Graphical Assessment of Universities' Sustainability Image (GAUSI) Instrument: A Marketing Tool
• 13 Assessing Resources and Dynamic Capabilities to Implement the ``Green Campus'' Project
• 14 Think Big, Live Green: Community-Specific Sustainability Engagement Campaigns
• 15 Obstacles to Curriculum Greening: The Case of Green Chemistry
• 16 Changing Energy Behavior Through Community Based Social Marketing
• 17 Material Values, Goals, and Water Use: Results from a Campus Residence Hall Survey
• 18 Understanding Recycling While Tailgating: Applying an Information-Motives-Behavior Skills Approach
• 19 Social Sciences and Campus Sustainable Development: The Way Forward