Transforming Education for Sustainability: Discourses on Justice, Inclusion, and Authenticity

This book explores how educators and researchers in the sciences, social sciences, and arts connect concepts of sustainability to their work and classrooms. It emphasizes the integration of sustainability with justice, authenticity, and inclusivity across various courses and disciplines. The narratives showcase sustainability education in various settings, including the classroom, laboratory, and field, and address complex sustainability issues such as climate change, water quality, soil health, biodiversity, resource use, and education. The authors discuss how they engage students in learning about sustainability, foster democratic practices, and create authentic and empowering learning experiences. Undergraduate student perspectives are also included, highlighting their experiences in sustainability research and learning, the challenges they face, and the importance of perseverance in the field.

Format: Hardback
Length: 447 pages
Publication date: 24 April 2023
Publisher: Springer International Publishing AG

This book delves into the intricate connections between educators and researchers in the sciences, social sciences, and arts, as they explore how to integrate concepts of sustainability into their fields of study and teaching practices. Sustainability, driven by principles of justice, authenticity, and inclusivity, can be seamlessly incorporated into diverse courses and disciplines, even if they historically lie outside their primary focus. Through captivating narratives, the authors shed light on sustainability education in various settings, including classrooms, laboratories, and the broader field. They navigate the complexities of sustainability issues such as climate change, water quality, soil health, biodiversity, resource use, and education, employing authentic approaches that convey their multifaceted nature, societal implications, and aspirations for a sustainable future.

The chapters delve into the engaging ways in which faculty facilitate students' learning about sustainability. Working at the forefront of our knowledge about sustainability becomes a catalyst for engagement, motivation, and intellectual challenge. The authors discuss how they design learning experiences that promote democratic practices, empowering students to actively participate in creative decision-making, data collection and analysis, and the formulation of authentic questions. They highlight the transformative impact of students engaging in active analysis, debate, dialogue, argumentation based on evidence, and the construction of nuanced understandings of complex socioscientific sustainability issues.

The narratives also incorporate undergraduate student perspectives, providing insights into their experiences of engaging in sustainability research and learning. They navigate the complexities and contradictions inherent in sustainability issues, discern what constitutes authentic and empowering learning experiences, and share their insights into the transformative power of sustainability education.

Overall, this book serves as a valuable resource for educators, researchers, and students seeking to integrate sustainability into their academic pursuits. It offers practical insights, inspiring narratives, and a roadmap for creating learning environments that foster sustainability literacy, promote critical thinking, and inspire action toward a more sustainable and just world.

Weight: 948g
Dimension: 235 x 155 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783031135354
Edition number: 1st ed. 2023