Building capacity and awareness for the UN Sustainable Development Goals through project-based and community-engaged pedagogies
Author
Faculty Advisor
Date
2022
Keywords
sustainability competencies, sustainable development goals, community-engaged learning, project-based learning, pedagogies
Abstract (summary)
Purpose - The key sustainability competencies are fundamental to sustainability transformations. The purpose of this study is to investigate the effectiveness of project-based and community-engaged pedagogies in supporting student development of all key sustainability competencies. Additionally, the study examines whether the UN SDGs provide an appropriate framework to support engagement with the breadth of sustainability topics and increase awareness and support of the goals within the community.
Design - This case study triangulates scaled self-assessment, performance observation, and regular course work in an undergraduate interdisciplinary sustainability course to gain insights into how all key sustainability competencies can be developed through recommended pedagogies.
Findings - Project-based and community-engaged pedagogies are supportive of key sustainability competencies development. The act of engaging with an interdisciplinary group towards achieving a common goal created effective learning opportunities for students. However, the project-based and community-engaged pedagogies cannot be completely separated from the context of the course. The use of the SDGs to guide community partner participation and project development was effective in increasing awareness of the goals among students and community partners.
Implications - These findings support the use of project-based and community-engaged pedagogies to facilitate student development of key sustainability competencies.
Originality - This study demonstrates that using the SDGs to guide community partner participation and project development is effective both in facilitating a wide range of projects from the identified areas of sustainability: environment, economic, social, and cultural, and in increasing awareness of the goals among students and community organizations.
Publication Information
Munro, T. & King, M. (2022). Building Capacity and Awareness for the UN Sustainable Development Goals through Project-Based and Community-Engaged Pedagogies [Paper presentation]. 1st International Academic Conference on the Sustainable Development Goals "Why It Matters", Orem, UT, United States.
DOI
Notes
Presented on October 5-7, 2022 at the 1st International Academic Conference on the Sustainable Development Goals "Why It Matters" held at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, USA.
Item Type
Presentation
Language
Rights
Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA)
