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The participants of the seminar called for a wider approach to addressing sustainability issues during studies. Sustainability education is still piecemeal and dependent on individuals. Although some faculties have special programs with focus on sustainability issues, addressing sustainability in teaching depends on the individual teachers’ interests. It is problematic if there are no other options than including and integrating sustainability only in the current modules and credits without wider changes in the contents of curricula.

“We are fighting about credits between subjects and the question is whether we can bring any new content or not.”
-JYU university lecturer.

The seminar included a panel discussion. The panelists acknowledged the relevant role of their respective fields as a part of the problem and as potential problem solver, but they considered that much work needs to be done for mainstreaming sustainability. For example, in ICT or business studies the focus could transform from promoting/boosting consumption to solving the problems, as sustainability could be included in the goals of developing digital systems and businesses. Finding meaningful connections between Planetary Wellbeing - the future obligatory course on sustainability- and other studies requires teachers to update their sustainability competences. Adequate resources must be allocated for teachers to update their own competences and develop their teaching to better integrate sustainability issues.

”We have this kind of path, constructed dependence on unsustainability at the university, dismantling it is not really simple.”
-JYU lecturer

Raising the issue of current studies and practices that reproduce unsustainable behavior demands courage. Students call for interactive approaches and opportunities to discuss sustainability issues that would enable them to question personal assumptions and prevailing contents of teaching.

Both students and teachers perceived study and work overload to constrain promotion of sustainability in studies and university’s practices. This limited resource need to be considered. The students reflected that acting for sustainability can only be practiced outside one’s studies by participating in political and societal action. A question emerges whether studies could enable and include action for sustainability in practice.

“Concrete acts for sustainability create hope: when action begins, despair decreases.”
-JYU student

There is an urgent need for concrete action for sustainability. Addressing practical issues and concrete aims to solve them elevates hope and helps to cope with the future worries and ecoanxiety

“Bon courage, students and teachers, now there’s still time and there is a will to act!”
– JYU administration.

The seminar included introductory talks by students and specialists and a panel discussion with representatives from all the faculties. Additionally, the audience’s experiences on whether sustainability is visible in studies at JYU were gauged using the polling tool Mentimeter.

Panelists: Veikko Halttunen (ICT), Sirpa Tenhunen (Humanaties and Social Sciences), Joonas Ilmavirta (Mathematics and Science), yliopistonlehtori Mikko Simula (Sport and Health Sciences), Hanna-Leena Pesonen (JSBE), Mikko Hiljanen (Education and Psychology) and student representative Veikka Holma (Student Union).

You can participate in the discussion by answering the following questionnaire about sustainability competences: How could the ECF4CLIM-project support university in transformations towards sustainability?

Webropol link:

How to promote sustainability in education?

More information

Niina Mykrä (niina.p.mykra@jyu.fi)

Anna Lehtonen (anna.e.lehtonen@jyu.fi)

Finnish Institute for Educational Research