Integration of Sustainability Into Universities - Good Practices and Benchmarking for IntegrationDiploma Thesis from the year 2004 in the subject Sociology - Work, Education, Organisation, grade: 1,0, University of Graz (Institut für Geographie und Raumforschung), language: English, abstract: The number of charters and declarations, promoting sustainability in education is increasing with the number of universities integrating sustainability. For many universities, those declarations are self commitments and are used to improve public relations. Although they may have further implications, declarations can be a strong policy statement. Over 300 European universities have signed the Copernicus Charta and in the same moment, they sign a commitment for sustainable development. This shows that sustainability became an important issue. Universities can use the Charta to raise awareness among staff and convince them that they should act and demonstrate universities' role and impact on society. Universities impact society by their four roles. - Education: Universities train and influence future decision makers - Research: University research influences daily life - Administration/Management: Universities are large employers and consume all kinds of resources - Role in Society/Outreach: Universities have a direct (regional development, actor in society) and indirect (education, research, administration) influence on societal development and especially the surrounding and environment. By fulfilling their role and obligations, universities can contribute to a sustainable development for the society and the university itself. Good examples of each of those responsibilities offer universities ideas about what they can do. Of course good practices must be adapted to their own structure. To gain insight to the processes and the activities of other "sustainable" universities, universities can participate in the COPERNICUS University Core Group. Within this group, universities can benchmark themselves with others and can get a better understanding about the structure and pr |
Common terms and phrases
achieve action activities Administration adopted Agenda 21 awareness benchmarking building Charta Charter co-operation commitment Conference contribute COPERNICUS CAMPUS countries course criteria culture Decade Declaration describe DESD discuss ecological economic Education for Sustainable effective employees environment environmental especially Europe European evaluate exchange experiences faculty field four Further future Geography global goal Greening Higher Education human ideas Impact Matrix Implementation important improve influence initiatives institutions integrate sustainability integrated interdisciplinary International involved issues knowledge launch learning meet needs October oikos organizations participants Partnership policies Practices principles projects promote raise awareness recommendations regional representatives responsible role Role in Society Sciences scientific sectors Seminar signed social society staff stakeholders steps strategy structure studies sustainable development Table UNESCO United Nations University of Lüneburg Virtual workshops World
Popular passages
Page 4 - Man has the fundamental right to freedom, equality and adequate conditions of life, in an environment of a quality that permits a life of dignity and well-being, and he bears a solemn responsibility to protect and improve the environment for present and future generations.
Page 4 - Education in environmental matters, for the younger generation as well as adults, giving due consideration to the underprivileged, is essential in order to broaden the basis for an enlightened opinion and responsible conduct by individuals, enterprises and communities in protecting and improving the environment in its full human dimension.
Page 31 - The use of goods and services that respond to basic needs and bring a better quality of life, while minimizing the use of natural resources, toxic materials, and emissions of waste and pollutants over the life cycle, so as not to jeopardize the needs of future generations.
Page 6 - Nations in this regard; (d) the achievement of the goals established by the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992...
Page 65 - UNCED United Nations Conference on Environment and Development UNECE United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNEP United Nations Environment Programme...
Page 6 - Agenda 21 is a comprehensive plan of action to be taken globally, nationally and locally by organizations of the United Nations System, Governments, and Major Groups in every area in which human impacts on the environment.
Page 7 - Both formal and nonformal education are indispensable to changing people's attitudes so that they have the capacity to assess and address their sustainable development concerns. It is also critical for achieving environmental and ethical awareness, values and attitudes, skills and behaviour consistent with sustainable development and for effective public participation in decisionmaking.
Page 23 - Acceptance of the new set of values and beliefs cannot usually be brought about item by item. (h) The individual accepts the new system of values and beliefs by accepting belongingness to a group.
Page 23 - These have to be accepted not merely verbally as an official ideology, but as an action-ideology, involving that particular, frequently non-conscious system of values which guides conduct. In other words, 8. A change in action-ideology, a real acceptance of a changed set of facts and values, a change in the perceived social world — all three are but different expressions of the same process.
Page 21 - The re-educative process has to fulfill a task which is essentially equivalent to a change in culture.