Integrating professional sustainability literacy into the master of public administration curriculum

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsten Kinzer
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Sustainability Literacy ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Policies And Programs ◽  
High Level ◽  
Master Of Public Administration

Purpose Public administration, or the implementation of public policies by civil servants, will be central to implementing the Agenda 2030 Sustainable Development Goals. And yet, few American master of public administration (MPA) programs explicitly focus on sustainable development or sustainability literacy. This study asks whether it is possible to build professional sustainability literacy within a general MPA course, specifically in a course on quantitative methods. Design/methodology/approach Through a natural experiment conducted in three sections of the graduate course Quantitative Methods in Public Administration at UNC Wilmington, the study explores the relationship between student growth in professional sustainability literacy and a student’s level of foundational sustainability literacy, pro-environmental behavior, background knowledge in statistics and their interest in sustainable development within public administration. Findings The study finds that there is a statistically significant relationship between growth in a student’s professional sustainability literacy and two variables: above average foundational sustainability literacy and a high level of interest in sustainability policies and programs. Originality/value This study is the first to consider an embedded approach to sustainability education in the field of public administration.

Influence of sustainability scholarship on competencies – an empirical evidence

2019 ◽  
Vol 61 (3) ◽  
pp. 310-325
Author(s):  
Clare D’Souza ◽  
Silvia McCormack ◽  
Mehdi Taghian ◽  
Mei-Tai Chu ◽  
Gillian Sullivan-Mort ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Multinational Corporations ◽  
Cumulative Effect ◽  
Work Force ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Knowledge Based ◽  
Technical Competencies ◽  
Sustainability Literacy ◽  
Organisational Values ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
High Level

Purpose Curricula is developing from a pure knowledge-based outcome to a more skill-based outcome, with the objective of creating and advancing competencies that meet employer expectations. While the new Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) demand organisations to change practices and adapt to sustainable goals, there is a lack of understanding in how competencies can enhance these goals. The purpose of this paper is twofold: Study 1 explores competencies related to sustainability required in a work force and examines employer perceptions on the existing literature for competencies. Study 2 empirically tests the influence of sustainability scholarship on non-technical competencies in the work force. Design/methodology/approach A mixed method approach was undertaken. A sample of managers from 39 large Australian organisations participated in the scoping study. This was followed by further interviewing executives from 12 multinational corporations in China to assess the validity of competencies and provide deeper understanding of the issues at hand. The quantitative study analysed a sample of executive responses from 229 multinationals in China using factor and regression analysis to test for the effects of mediation. Findings The research highlights that the underlying competencies regarding sustainability influences the bigger picture within firms for attaining sustainability. The affective and cognitive growth of sustainability scholarship is governed mainly by a firm’s sustainable values. Core organisational values facilitate the development of non-technical competencies. These relationships and their cumulative effect on competencies provide a theoretical framework for acquiring sustainability within organisations. Employees need sustainability scholarship for enhancing sustainability. Sustainability scholarship reflects high-level learning obtained through universities or training. The research found that non-technical competencies such as professional ethical responsibility mediate between core business competencies and sustainability scholarship. Originality/value By exploring employer’s perception of competencies, the study first makes an important contribution in addressing the need to support SDGs by bridging organisational-level competencies and sustainability literacy, which hold significant benefits for practitioners, academia and organisations at large. Second, the theoretical findings strengthen the need for embedding competencies in the curriculum. It conveys the need for sustainability literacy/scholarship to align with organisational training and learning pedagogies, in order to effectively meet industry needs. Third, it provides useful insights on employers’ estimation about workplace competencies and broadens our understanding on the contribution that competencies within organisations make to this end.

scholarly journals Refocusing metrics: can the sustainable development goals help break the “metrics trap” and modernise international drug control policy?

2017 ◽  
Vol 17 (2) ◽  
pp. 98-112 ◽  
Author(s):  
David R. Bewley-Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
International Development ◽  
Drug Policy ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Control Policy ◽  
Drug Control ◽  
Policy Outcomes ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
High Level

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which the dominant metrics currently used to measure the success of the UN based global drug prohibition regime are in many ways inadequate and consequently contribute to systemic inertia. Within this context, it seeks to explore the potential of explicitly linking drug policy to the recently launched sustainable development agenda (SDA) and the associated sustainable development goals (SDGs) to initiate a change in approach. Design/methodology/approach Framing the topic in terms of international relations (IR) and regime analysis, prominent examples of where current metrics are imprecise (the relationship between production and seizures), misconceived (drug use) and missing (a range of drug and drug policy related harms) are explored. Attention is then given to an examination of international development as a model for measuring drug control outcomes, including a discussion of the SDGs in general and the intersection between drug policy interventions and several goals in particular. Findings While aware of the complexity of the issue area, the paper finds that there are considerable shortcomings in the way international drug policy outcomes are currently assessed. Although methodological problems are likely to persist, linking drug policy with the SDGs and their associated metrics offers the potential to help to shift the focus of international policy in a manner that would benefit not only UN system-wide coherence on the issue, but also assist in the achievement of the regime’s own overarching goal; to safeguard the “health and welfare” of humankind. Practical implications With the next high-level review of international drug policy due to take place in 2019, the paper offers policy makers with a way to begin to refocus drug policy metrics, and subsequently review outcomes, in line with the UN system-wide SDA. Originality/value As an emerging domain of inquiry, the paper not only explores a hitherto largely unexplored – yet increasingly important – facet of UN level policy evaluation, formulation and implementation, but also helps to fill a gap in the IR literature on regime dynamics.

scholarly journals Analysis of Similarities Between the European Union Countries in Terms of Sustainable Energy and Climate Development

2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 86-96
Author(s):  
Magdalena Tutak
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Sustainable Energy ◽  
Energy Transition ◽  
The European Union ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Eu Countries ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
High Level ◽  
The Eu

Abstract Energy and climate issues are an essential part of the sustainable development process of the EU countries. They are also one of the primary objectives of international policy, as evidenced by their inclusion in Agenda 2030, adopted by the UN in 2015 among the Sustainable Development Goals. The implementation of these goals is also taking place in the EU countries. Although climate protection and energy transition activities have been undertaken in the EU for years, individual countries significantly vary in this regard. The aim of the research, the results of which are presented in this paper, was to analyze similarities between the EU countries in terms of sustainable energy and climate development. The analysis was conducted for all EU countries, based on 14 indicators characterizing energy and climate sustainability, in energy, climate, social and economic dimensions. Kohonen’s artificial neural networks were used for analysis. The research was conducted for data from the period between 2009-2018. The results showed that in the studied period (10 years), significant differences were found between the EU countries. A high level of energy and climate development was reported for Sweden, Denmark, Austria and France, among other states, and a low level for e.g., the Czech Republic, Poland and Bulgaria.

Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals: ‘Responsive, Inclusive, Participatory and Representative Decision-Making’?

2020 ◽  
pp. 39-66
Author(s):  
Tonia Novitz ◽  
Margherita Pieraccini
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Policy Development ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Knowledge Bases ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Policy Actors ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Global Partnership ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
High Level

This chapter focuses on the contemporary framing of sustainability in the context of the adoption of Agenda 2030 and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). In this setting, we consider the potential coherence and tensions between attempts to protect ‘people’ and the ‘planet’ while promoting ‘prosperity’, ‘peace’ and ‘partnership’. We begin by examining the identities and intentions of the policy actors engaged in formulating the SDGs, as revealed preparatory documentation. We then address the scope for debate (and even conflict) regarding the content of the SDGs and their interaction. Finally, we consider the processes created for supervision of SDG implementation at the UN level by the High Level Political Forum (HLPF). SDG 16 would seem to enable inclusive dialogue with diverse participants offering alternative knowledge bases for policy development, while SDG 17 conceives of a global partnership for development. The crucial question is whether the orchestration offered by the HLPF has that participatory potential.

scholarly journals How can international business research contribute towards the sustainable development goals?

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Asmund Rygh ◽  
Eleni Chiarapini ◽  
María Vallejo Segovia
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
International Business ◽  
Quantitative Methods ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Multinational Enterprise ◽  
Firm Level ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
International Business Research ◽  
Development Goals

Purpose Realising the sustainable development goals (SDGs) will require substantial efforts from both governments, businesses, civil society and academic researchers. This paper aims to discuss the contributions that the international business (IB) discipline can make to promoting the SDGs. Design/methodology/approach The paper is conceptual. Findings The authors argue that IB can contribute to promoting the SDGs, given IB’s expertise on the multinational enterprise (MNE) and knowledge that is relevant to the international dimensions that most SDGs have. However, paradigmatic features of IB such as a focus on firm-level financial performance and on the MNE as an organisation, and dominance of quantitative methods, may presently restrict the discipline’s contributions to the SDGs. Originality/value The authors present a set of recommendations for IB research on the SDGs, many of which imply an extension of the boundaries of the current IB paradigm.

2030 is tomorrow: transformative change for a mistreated mother Earth

foresight ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacques G. Richardson ◽  
Walter R. Erdelen
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Homo Sapiens ◽  
Modern Science ◽  
Transformative Change ◽  
Content Type ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Transformative Action ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Mother Earth

Purpose This study aims to assess progress toward achieving international (United Nations’) goals and targets for attaining sustainable development and discuss the risks of worldwide failure. Design/methodology/approach The authors highlight the relationship between global goals/targets and governance, relate this to the concept of sustainable development, outline and compare Millennium Development Goals and their successors, the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and lastly view SDG implementation from two major spaces i.e. the governance and science space, respectively. Findings Governance and culture as new components of sustainable development may be sine qua non for humanity’s transformative action toward global and just sustainable development. Through fostering informed decision and policymaking, modern science, as sketched in this contribution, should provide the framework for realizing Agenda 2030. Earth System Science and its innovative notions such as the Anthropocene, planetary boundaries, tipping points and tipping elements will be key in the process of “designing” blank a sustainable future of and for Homo sapiens. Originality/value This essay proposes developing holistic approaches to cooperate at all levels in urgent efforts to meet goals projected for 2030 and 2050. The complexity and functioning of the governance space, comprising a system of governance systems, is illustrated not only in the diversity of the institutional landscape but in particular through the blurring of all scales – local to global.

scholarly journals Achieving Sustainable Development Goals of Agenda 2030 in Bangladesh: the crossroad of the governance and performance

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Md Mizanur Rahman
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Conflicts Of Interest ◽  
Stakeholder Analysis ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Content Type ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The Right

PurposeThis paper aims to assess the performance of achieving the targets of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by aligning with the recent initiatives taken by different ministries and divisions in Bangladesh. It also examines the institutional challenges associated with the implementation of SDGs.Design/methodology/approachBoth primary and secondary data were analysed by applying different techniques. The initiatives taken by various ministries and divisions of Bangladesh resonated partially with 84 targets of SDGs.FindingsAmbiguous mandates of different ministries and divisions have caused overlapping jurisdiction, followed by conflicts of interest and lack of cohesion. Inaccurate stakeholder analysis, data unavailability, lack of competency and accountability, and a top-down policy approach can be considered as the major institutional bottlenecks in achieving SDGs.Originality/valueThis paper advocates revising the map to incorporate the right stakeholders to avoid erroneous monitoring, evaluation, and finally, inaccurate reporting. The reallocation of business for ministries and divisions is warranted to abolish jurisdictional overlapping and conflict of interests and make SDGs friendly. Despite the COVID-19 pandemic recession, Bangladesh may be able to multiply its achievement with the same resources and efforts by addressing those drawbacks.

scholarly journals Semi-Systematic Literature Review on Sustainability and Sustainable Development in Higher Education Institutions

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (14) ◽  
pp. 7683
Author(s):  
Amila Omazic ◽  
Bernd Markus Zunk
Keyword(s):  
Higher Education ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Literature Review ◽  
Systematic Literature Review ◽  
Higher Education Institutions ◽  
Main Research ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Research Themes ◽  
Development Goals

Public sector organizations, primarily higher education institutions (HEIs), are facing greater levels of responsibility since adopting and committing to the Agenda 2030 for Sustainable Development (SD) and its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). HEIs are expected to provide guidance for various stakeholders on this matter, but also to implement this agenda and the SDGs in their institutions. Although the role of these organizations has been recognized, the fields and issues that HEIs should address on their path towards sustainability and SD are still unclear. To provide further clarity, a semi-systematic literature review on sustainability and SD in HEIs was conducted to identify both the key concepts and main research themes that represent sustainability and SD in HEIs and to identify research gaps. This review increases our knowledge of this topic and enhances our understanding of sustainability and SD in the context of HEIs.

scholarly journals Sustainable Public Administration

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (11) ◽  
pp. 6382
Author(s):  
Harald Heinrichs ◽  
Norman Laws
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Public Administration ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Member States ◽  
2030 Agenda ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
The United Nations

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, with its 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), was agreed upon by 193 member states of the United Nations in September 2015 [...]

scholarly journals Reinterpreting the SDGs: Taking Animals into Direct Consideration

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 843
Author(s):  
Olle Torpman ◽  
Helena Röcklinsberg
Keyword(s):  
Sustainable Development ◽  
United Nations ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Good Health ◽  
Clean Water ◽  
Water And Sanitation ◽  
Agenda 2030 ◽  
Health And Wellbeing ◽  
Development Goals ◽  
Zero Hunger

The United Nations Agenda 2030 contains 17 sustainable development goals (SDGs). These goals are formulated in anthropocentric terms, meaning that they are to be achieved for the sake of humans. As such, the SDGs are neglecting the interests and welfare of non-human animals. Our aim in this paper was to ethically evaluate the assumptions that underlie the current anthropocentric stance of the SDGs. We argue that there are no good reasons to uphold these assumptions, and that the SDGs should therefore be reconsidered so that they take non-human animals into direct consideration. This has some interesting implications for how we should understand and fulfil the pursuit of sustainability in general. Most noticeably, several SDGs—such as those regarding zero hunger (SDG 2), good health and wellbeing (SDG 3), clean water and sanitation (SDG 6)—should be achieved for animals as well. Moreover, the measures we undertake in order to achieve the SDGs for humans must also take into direct account their effects on non-human animals.

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