German students want more content on sustainability in higher education

Peer reviewed / Manuscript (original) submitted: 08 September 2019 / Revision accepted: 31 August 2020

Introduction

Sustainability is an international field of activity formulated in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. Global challenges like climate change, loss of biodiversity, the rise of poverty and hunger as well as diminishing resources demand a solution and this must take account of social, environmental, and economic aspects in order to ensure that future generations can maintain the basis for life [1]. In the EU Strategy for Sustainable Development from 2006 education is seen as the basis for implementation of this [2]. Higher Education and Research for Sustainable Development (HESD) has the task of overseeing and changing the structures of research, teaching and learning [3].

Universities contribute to regional sustainable development by teaching students competences in the field of sustainability. They also form a bridge for the collaboration of actors from research and practice in the development of up-to-date solutions, while also qualifying students as future-oriented employees [4]. Since 2015 UNESCO has been working on behalf of the United Nations (UN) towards the goal of firmly integrating “Education for Sustainable Development” (ESD) into all stages of education. In higher education it can be incorporated into the teaching of competences and skills with the intention of ensuring that students are better equipped to deal with future challenges [5]. There is a need for innovative teaching oriented towards the employment market. For this it is important to develop strategies which on the one hand cover content across the whole value chain relative to sustainability and on the other hand use teaching methods with integral elements of practice.

Abstract

The European project SUSPLUS deals with sustainable food systems (Sus- Food) and innovative education. This article examines the extent to which universities contribute to sustainable development. An online survey carried out between 17 February and 31 May 2017 questioned 120 students from the University of Kassel and 171 students from the Münster University of Applied Sciences (FH Münster) on the following topics: values when shopping for food, understanding of SusFood, expectations of topics covered in higher education courses and the teaching methods employed. Overall, it was possible to establish an interest in SusFood (Kassel 84%, Münster 71%). The students also believed that the topic could be helpful in a future career (Kassel 91%, Münster 76%). Excursions, interactive workshops and discussions were favored over classic subjects like organic food. Based on these results, strategies are to be developed to increase students’ chances on the job market.

Keywords: food system, teaching methods, sustainability, Education for Sustainable Development (ESD)

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