This thesis takes its point of departure in the change of emphasis in the field of environmental and sustainability education (ESE) towards the inclusion of social and human development issues. The theoretical frames of the thesis are poststructural and postcolonial theories, from which different writings, central concepts and approaches are drawn. The thesis also builds on a pragmatist and anti-essentialist approach which argues that we socially construct the meaning of right and wrong and what works better in our lives on the current problematic or situation. The results are presented in four studies and the thesis has three purposes. The first purpose is to describe and investigate theoretical perspectives that take a critical stand on and offer alternatives to universal and consensus-oriented approaches. This purpose is the central focus in the first and second studies. The first study examines the re-emergence of classical cosmopolitanism and contemporary views of the perspective with the intent of discussing its potential for the development of education for sustainable development (ESD). The second study aims to clarify the philosophical problem of addressing universally sustainable responsibilities and values in environmental and sustainability education. The second purpose is to investigate teachers’ ethical reflections in a first-hand intercultural experience. This purpose is dealt with in the third study, where seven Swedish upper secondary school teachers facing particular conflicts of interest and moral situations during a study visit to Central America are interviewed. The third purpose is to investigate how teachers deal with the complex issues of intragenerational equity or social justice in their teaching. This is dealt with in the fourth study, which explores how teachers integrate issues of social justice into their teaching of global sustainability. My hope is that this thesis will contribute to the discussion about how teachers can develop a conscious and critically informed approach to the teaching of environmental and sustainability issues and also contribute to theoretical and philosophical discussions about universalism, normativity and global ethics within environmental and sustainability education research.

The incorporation of sustainability education and sustainable practices in higher education serves several purposes. It prepares students for work in sustainability-focused professions, fosters environmentally responsible behavior in individuals, and helps to reduce the ecological impacts of the operational aspects of educational institutions. However, contemporary definitions of sustainability, which consider social, political, ecological, and economic influences on the environment, complicate educational initiatives. Distinct educational departments often consider sustainability through their specialized lens. Trans-disciplinary initiative must be enacted in order for sustainability education to reach its full potential. This paper outlines the results of an electronically administered faculty sustainability curriculum inventory as well as an electronically administered university-wide sustainability literacy survey that were conducted at Southern Illinois University. The relationship between individual values and perceived importance and knowledge of sustainability components are examined within the context of the Value-Belief-Norm theory. While response rates for both surveys were relatively low, the faculty curriculum inventory survey was useful in identifying faculty members with an interest in sustainability education. These individuals could potentially work to spearhead curricular initiatives across the university. The survey also provided information that was used to create a sustainability course database and profiles of faculty members with an interest in sustainability education. Results for the literacy survey indicate that respondents' perceived importance of sustainability components exceeded their knowledge of those components in every case. Respondents rated components grouped under both energy systems and individual integrity as very important or extremely important to a sustainable university community. However, all components were rated at or above relatively important. Ecocentric, altruistic, and traditional individual values served as reliable predictors of respondents' perceived importance of sustainability components. These results should encourage further research of the motivations for sustainability incorporation on a campus community when considered within the framework of behavioral models such as the Value-Belief -Norm Theory or the Theory of Planned Behavior.

abstract: As climate change becomes a greater challenge in today's society, it is critical to understand young people's perceptions of the phenomenon because they will become the next generation of decision-makers. This study examines knowledge, beliefs, and behaviors among high school students. The subjects of this study include students from high school science classes in Phoenix, Arizona, and Plainfield, Illinois. Using surveys and small group interviews to engage students in two climatically different locations, three questions were answered: 1) What do American students know and believe about climate change? How is knowledge related to beliefs? 2) What types of behaviors are students exhibiting that may affect climate change? How do beliefs relate to behavioral choices? 3) Do climate change knowledge, beliefs, and behaviors vary between geographic locations in the United States? The results of this study begin to highlight the differences between knowledge, beliefs, and behaviors around the United States. First, results showed that students have heard of climate change but often confused aspects of the problem, and they tended to focus on causes and impacts, as opposed to solutions. Related to beliefs, students tended to believe that climate change is caused by both humans and natural trends, and would affect plant and animal species more than themselves and their families. Second, students were most likely to participate in individual behaviors such as turning off lights and electronics, and least likely to take public transportation and eat a vegetarian meal. Individual behaviors seem to be most relevant to this age group, in contrast to policy solutions. Third, students in Illinois felt they would be more likely to experience colder temperatures and more precipitation than those in Arizona, where students were more concerned about rising temperatures. Understanding behaviors, motivations behind beliefs and choices, and barriers to actions can support pro-environmental behavior change. Educational strategies can be employed to more effectively account for the influences on a young person's belief formation and behavior choices. Providing engagement opportunities with location-specific solutions that are more feasible for youth to participate in on their own could also support efforts for behavior change. / Dissertation/Thesis / Masters Thesis Sustainability 2015

abstract: For some time it has been recognized amongst researchers that individual and collective change should be the goal in educating for sustainability, unfortunately education has generally been ineffective in developing pro-environmental behaviors among students. Still, many scholars and practitioners are counting on education to lead us towards sustainability but suggest that in order to do so we must transition away from current information-intensive education methods. In order to develop and test novel sustainability education techniques, this research integrates pedagogical methods with psychological knowledge to target well-established sustainable behaviors. Through integrating education, behavior change, and sustainability research, I aim to answer: How can we motivate sustainable behavioral change through education programs? More specifically: How do diverse knowledge domains (declarative, procedural, effectiveness, and social) influence sustainable behaviors, both in general as well as before and after a sustainability education program? And: What are barriers hindering education approaches to changing behaviors? In answering these questions, this research involved three distinct stages: (1) Developing a theoretical framework for educating for sustainability and transformative change; (2) Implementing a food and waste focused sustainability educational program with K-12 students and teachers while intensively assessing participants' change over the course of one year; (3) Developing and implementing an extensive survey that examines the quantitative relationships between diverse domains of knowledge and behavior among a large sample of K-12 educators. The results from the education program demonstrated that significant changes in knowledge and behaviors were achieved but social knowledge in terms of food was more resistant to change as compared to that of waste. The survey results demonstrated that K-12 educators have high levels of declarative (factual or technical) knowledge regarding anthropocentric impacts on the environment; however, declarative knowledge does not predict their participation in sustainable behaviors. Rather, procedural and social knowledge significantly influence participation in sustainable food behaviors, where as procedural, effectiveness, and social knowledge impact participation in sustainable waste behaviors. Overall, the findings from this research imply that in order to effectively educate for sustainability, we must move away from nature-centric approaches that focus on declarative knowledge and embrace different domains of knowledge (procedural, effectiveness, and social) that emphasis the social implications of change. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Sustainability 2013

abstract: This dissertation explores the unique role schools play in contributing toward a sustainable future for their communities. This was undertaken by first conducting a thorough review and analysis of the literature on the current utilization of schools as agents of sustainable development, along with an evaluation of schools engaging in this model around the United States. Following this, a framework was developed to aid in the assessment of school-community engagements from the perspective of social change. Sustainability problem solving tools were synthesized for use by schools and community stakeholders, and were tested in the case study of this dissertation. This case study combined methods from the fields of sustainable development, transition management, and social change to guide two schools in their attempts to increase community sustainability through addressing a shared sustainability problem: childhood obesity. The case study facilitated the creation of a sustainable vision for the Phoenix Metropolitan Area without childhood obesity, as well as strategic actions plans for each school to utilize as they move forward on addressing this challenge. / Dissertation/Thesis / Ph.D. Sustainability 2013

abstract: Employee-owned businesses, benefit corporations, social enterprises, and other sustainability entrepreneurship innovations are responding to challenges such as climate change, economic inequalities, and unethical business behavior. Academic programs to date, however, often fall short in sufficiently equipping students with competencies in sustainability entrepreneurship – from a coherent set of learning objectives, through effective and engaging pedagogies, to rigorous assessment of learning outcomes. This dissertation contributes to bridging these gaps. The first study proposes a process-oriented and literature-based framework of sustainability entrepreneurship competencies. It offers a general vision for students, faculty, and entrepreneurs, as well as for the design of curricula, courses, and assessments. The second study presents an exploration into the nature of sustainability entrepreneurship courses, with a focus on teaching and learning processes. Using pioneering courses at Arizona State University, the study analyzes and compares the links between learning objectives, pedagogies, and learning outcomes. Based on document analysis and semi-structured interviews with course instructors, the study identifies cognitive apprenticeship from input processing to experimentation, constructive alignment from learning objectives to assessments, and curriculum-level coordination across courses as key success factors of sustainability entrepreneurship education. The result of this study can inform instructors and researchers in applying and further substantiating effective educational models for future entrepreneurs. The third study addresses the key question of competence assessment: what are reliable tools for assessing students’ competence in sustainability entrepreneurship? This study developed and tested a novel tool for assessing students’ competence in sustainability entrepreneurship through in-vivo simulated professional situations. The tool was in different settings and evaluated against a set of criteria derived from the literature. To inform educators in business and management programs, this study discusses and concludes under which conditions this assessment tool seems most effective, as well as improvement for future applications of the tool. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Sustainability 2020

abstract: Making significant progress on the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) needs change agents equipped with key competencies in sustainability. While thousands of sustainability programs have emerged at various educational levels over the past decade, there is, as of yet, no reliable way to assess if these programs successfully convey key competencies in sustainability. This dissertation contributes to addressing this gap in three ways. First, it reviews the body of work on key competencies in sustainability. Based on broad agreement around five key competencies as well as an emerging set of three, an extended framework is outlined that can be used as unified set of learning objectives across sustainability programs. The next chapter reviews the scholarly work on assessing sustainability competencies. Based on this review, a typology of assessment tools is proposed offering guidance to both educators and researchers. Finally, drawing on experience of the four-year “Educating Future Change Agents” project, the last chapter explores the results from a diverse set of competency assessments in numerous courses. The study appraises assessment practices and results to demonstrate opportunities and challenges in the current state of assessing key competencies in sustainability. The results of this doctoral thesis are expected to make a practical and scholarly contribution to the teaching and learning in sustainability programs, in particular with regards to reliably assessing key competencies in sustainability. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation Sustainability 2020

In this thesis, we begin with a personal inquiry into “How can I make a sustainable impact?” and return to the moment when we discovered sustainability. Drawing on our personal background and reflection, we are curious to know "What competences are required for a career in sustainability?" To answer this question, we build our research upon the concept of Action Competence which articulates the necessary abilities to engage in solving sustainability issues. The action-oriented competences consist of motivation, skill and knowledge, as well as confidence, which collectively enable individuals to take responsible actions. Based on this concept, we interview alumni of the Master's Programme in Sustainable Management of Uppsala University, Campus Gotland, and identify the aspects required in a sustainable career. The aim of the thesis is to provide a comprehensive framework for understanding the desirable characteristics of sustainability professionals. Our research provided empirical evidence supporting the concept of Action Competence, in which the individuals under study demonstrated a high level of motivation, relevant knowledge and skills, and moderate confidence. Based on this theory, we introduce "The Egg Model," comprising the elements of hope, curiosity, and community. These additional elements contribute to a holistic understanding of the essential competences for a successful career in sustainability. The implications of our research aim to make meaningful contributions to the field of sustainability management. Individuals, higher education institutions, and companies can enhance their competences to a sustainable future.

Environmental and sustainability education is a widespread concept nowadays, with several frameworks and competencies supporting it, such as normative learning and forest schools. However, not all of these frameworks are as accessible for every teacher, since they tend to be based on a certain approach the school has to take as a whole, or personal knowledge of the teacher that might not have been acquired yet. This qualitative study focuses on the perception of museum employees on environmental history, with the aim of providing information to history teachers on how museums can help in taking the first steps towards the integration of sustainability education in history. Eight different museum employees from two different countries were interviewed about their perceptions on history and sustainability education –also known as environmental history. The results clearly showed that sustainability and environmental history are active components in current museum education, although the intensity and perceptions of it varied. Answers from the participants showed a clear awareness, both for the topic as for potential improvements. Challenges and obstacles that were found mainly consisted of resources, people, and time. The aforementioned findings contribute to the limited understanding that currently exists on sustainability education at museums. Additional research is required in order to create a more enhanced view of how museum visits can be implemented in sustainability education.

The aim of this study is to explore how Catalan primary teachers perceive the integration of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) into the Catalan curriculum, as well as their experiences into teaching about sustainability issues. The study uses a qualitative research design, characterized by semi-structured interviews with twelve Catalan teachers. The teachers were working in primary schools in Catalonia both in public and private schools and in urban and rural areas. Through this approach, the research aims to explore teachers' perceptions, experiences, and challenges related to the integration of the SDGs within the curriculum. The qualitative data revealed both challenges and opportunities when integrating the SDGs in the classroom. The challenges especially concerned the initial and permanent teacher training and the overload that most teachers experience, while the opportunities focused on the great outdoor and environmental tradition that Catalonia has and the small changes in the curriculum, opening the path for a quality education in sustainability. This study complements already conducted research as it focuses on active teachers with experience working in Catalonia. The participants have been working for more than a year and trained in Catalonia, with its very specific context. This thesis provides a significant overview of the current situation of SDGs in the Catalan system, offering valuable insights for educational practitioners, policymakers, and researchers alike.