Vivian Neal, Educational Consultant, Teaching and Learning Centre, Simon Fraser University Janet Pivnick, Educational Consultant, Teaching and Learning Centre, Simon Fraser University Festival of Learning in Burnaby, B.C. - June 6-9, 2016

1. Perspec'ves on
Sustainability in Higher
Educa'on: Invi'ng and
Leveraging Change
Vivian Neal and Janet Pivnick

2. This morning we will consider:
• what is sustainable development and
education for sustainability?
• what they mean for post-secondary
education
• what you might do within your sphere of
influence

3. Sustainable Development
• meeting the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their
own needs.*
• balancing environmental, social
and economic factors
*Brundtland, G., Our Common Future, 1987
!

4. Education for Sustainability
• education that helps people
understand the issues involved in
planetary sustainability
• relevant to the learner and their
immediate surroundings
• interdisciplinary, multi-methodological

5. Education for Sustainability
• experiential
• holistic, values-driven
• participatory and collaborative
• concerned with the development of
knowledge, skills, values, attitudes
and behaviors

6. What is Education for Sustainability
Gavin Watson, Associate Director, eLearning,
Teaching Support Centre, Western University

9. What is Education for Sustainability
Trish O’Connor, Academic Lead, Office of
Sustainability, Fleming College

11. Find a Learning Space
• Find a space, inside or outside, and spend about
20 minutes there.
• Consider how you might use this space for
teaching and/or for student learning, accounting
for:
• some of the ideas discussed here about EfS,
• your own discipline(s), and
• your own experiences of teaching and learning

12. Break

13. The Challenge for Higher Education
“The real need is to change from transmissive
towards transformative learning, but this in turn
requires a transformed educational paradigm.”
“The mainstream emphasis on cognitive
learning, with a little ‘values education’ thrown in,
is simply insufficient to meet the challenge.”
(Sterling, S., 2001 & 2011)

14. Examples of Programs/Initiatives
Jean Marcus, Associate Director, Teaching and
Learning, UBC Sustainability Initiative

16. Examples of Programs/Initiatives
Gavin Watson, Associate Director, eLearning,
Teaching Support Centre, Western University

18. Examples of Programs/Initiatives
Trish O’Connor, Academic Lead, Office of
Sustainability, Fleming College

21. Some Thoughts
• multiple and flexible approaches to
supporting ESD
• each institution, department, discipline
or faculty member works in a unique way

22. References
Barlett, P. & Rappaport, A. (2009) Long term impacts of faculty development
programs: The experience of Teli and Piedmont, College Teaching, 5(2)
73-82 Spr 2009.
Brundtland, G., (1987) Our common future: Report on the world commission
on environment and development, UN.
Centre for Sustainable Futures (CSF) (2008) Sustainability policy (http//
www.csf.plymouth.ac.uk/?p=policy, accessed Sept 2012)
Sterling, S. (2012) The future fit framework: An introductory guide to teaching
and learning for sustainability in HE, York UK:HEA
Sterling, S. (2011) Transformative learning and sustainability: sketching the
conceptual ground, Learning and Teaching in Higher Education, 5 17-33,
2011
Wenger, E., McDermott, R., and Snyder, W. (2002) Cultivating Communities
of Practice, Boston MA:Harvard Business School Press

23. Questions?
Vivian Neal, MET, PEng
vneal@sfu.ca