NEW YORK – Sustainability education must be expanded and more fully integrated into students’ curricula in order to best meet society’s long-term goals, according to a research policy paper released Nov. 30 and co-authored by a Washington State University associate professor.
“Part of sustainability is adapting to the world and its needs,” the authors write. “So educators must understand that the process is iterative – little steps turn into wider-spread arms, always reaching to embrace more of the world, its people and their needs.”
Sustainability concepts and skills must be incorporated into higher education in more flexible, novel and multifaceted ways, write Liv Haselbach, associate professor in the WSU Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and Norbert Delatte, professor at Cleveland State University.
The authors point to sustainability programs that have been successful, including those at WSU. They underline the importance of learning from and building upon these examples.
The McGraw-Hill Research Foundation policy paper is titled “A Transdisciplinary Approach to Sustainability Education.” To download a copy, click here.
Haselbach’s teaching and research focus on sustainable construction, pervious concrete, low-impact development, environmental issues with concrete, alternative transportation and air pollution. She serves on many national and international committees, including ASTM E60 (Sustainability), ACI 130 (Sustainability), ASCE LID (Low Impact Development), and ISO TC71/8 Environmental Management of Concrete and Concrete Structures.
