Imagining a Sustainable World
Duquesne University’sMulti-Disciplinary Course
on Sustainability
Stanley J. Kabala, Ph.D., Associate DirectorCenter for Environmental Research and
EducationDuquesne University
Pittsburgh, PA. 15282 USA
Imagining a Sustainable World• Course Origins
▫ University Academic Sustainability Committee▫ First offered in Spring 2012
• Course Goal▫ To prepare students to become informed and engaged
decision makers on sustainability and bring a multidisciplinary approach to this decision-making
• Course Aims▫ Basis in Triple Bottom Line (TBL) & the 3 E’s
(Environment, Economy, Equity)▫ Serve the University Core Curriculum in the
Social Justice theme area▫ Become a permanent elective for all students at
Duquesne
Imagining a Sustainable World• Overarching Themes
▫Learning how to engage in constructive discourse on issues of sustainability with constituents from varying backgrounds and disciplines
▫Using multi-disciplinary communication & reasoning to resolve TBL dilemmas
• Conceptual Framework: 3 Levels ▫Global, macro, world, conceptual▫ Institutional/organizational, regional, national▫Micro, personal, local
Course Development
•Faculty: 9 instructors, 7 disciplines, 5 schools
•11 meetings of 2 - 3 hours over Fall 2011
•Pro bono instruction in Spring 2012
•Teaching teams of two, with others joining
The Multi-Disciplinary Team• Michael Irwin Sociology• Stanley Kabala Envir. Sci. &
Mgmt.• Lenore Resick Nursing• Khlood Salman Nursing• David Seybert Chemistry• Nagaraj Sivasubramaniam Business• Robert Sroufe Business• John Stolz Biological Sciences• James Ulrich Leadership and
Professional Advancement
Course Structure and Content:
Unit 1 The Big Picture
•Systems thinking basics: events, patterns, structure (Business)
•Social science, material elements of society and sustainability (Sociology)
• Introduction to major geophysical and biophysical systems (Environmental Science)
Course Structure and ContentUnit 2 The System Around Us
•Recognizing systems, systems dynamics
(Business, Environmental Science)
•Activity: Simulation exercise
Course Structure and ContentUnit 3 “The Data”
• Indicators of System Limits(Business, Environmental Science)
Major Warming and Cooling Influences on Climate
The figure above shows the amount of warming influence (red bars) or cooling influence (blue bars) that different factors have had on Earth’s climate over the industrial age (from about 1750 to the present). Results are in watts per square meter. The longer the bar, the greater the influence on climate. The top part of the box includes all the major human-induced factors, while the second part of the box includes the Sun, the only major natural factor with a long-term effect on climate. The cooling effect of individual volcanoes is also natural, but is relatively short-lived (2 to 3 years), thus their influence is not included in this figure. The bottom part of the box shows that the total net effect (warming influences minus cooling influences) of human activities is a strong warming influence. The thin lines on each bar provide an estimate of the range of uncertainty. Image Reference: Forster et al.1
Course Structure and ContentUnit 4 The “A” in IPATBeliefs, Behavior, and Lifestyle
•Humans and nature: Society, culture, ideology, constructs (Sociology)
•Consumption as a driver of environmental degradation (Environmental Science)
•Activity: Personal ecological footprint calculations (Students)
• Source: Global Footprint Network http://www.footprintnetwork.org/en/index.php/GFN/page/footprint_basics_overview/
Course Structure and ContentUnit 5 Ecosystem Sustainability
(Biology)
Course Structure and ContentUnit 6 Business systems
• Industrial ecology and industrial symbiosis (Business)
•Business, environment, and ethics (Leadership)
•Activity: Natural Step simulation (Students)
Course Structure and ContentUnit 7 Business Systems, continued
•Natural Capitalism (Environmental Science)
•Valuing and reporting sustainability(Business)
Course Structure and Content
Unit 8 New Industrial Systems• Green Chemistry (Chemistry, Biology)
Unit 9 How to see it: • Social Science and Public Policy
(Sociology; Environmental Science)
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Course Structure and ContentUnit 10 How to get at it: Taking Action•Approaches and points to intervene in
systems (Business)•Tools and strategies
(Sociology; Environmental Science)
Unit 11 Health and the environment (Nursing)
•Patterns of health and illness•Environmental justice
Course Structure and ContentUnit 10 How to get at it: Taking Action•Approaches and points to intervene in
systems Business)•Tools and strategies
(Environmental Science, Sociology)
Unit 11 Health and the environment (Nursing)
•Patterns of health and illnessEnvironmental justice
Environmental Health Assignment
Course Structure and ContentUnit 12 Health and the Environment,
cont.(Nursing, Chemistry)
Unit 13 Emerging Systems and Synthesis
(All Instructors)
Unit 14 Sustainability Action Plans(Students)
Challenges•Defining terms and clarifying meanings so as
to merge differing disciplinary usages
•Providing content vs. offering frameworks
•Ensuring adequate and consistent course management
•Making sure the reading gets done
•Ensuring consistent grading
Status quo 2012•Currently an Honors College offering
•Eventual University Core Curriculum elective
•Honors College single stipend for faculty in 2013
•Reliance on revolving instructional team
Learnings/Takeaways/Reflections I: Design and Development•Multi-disciplinary teaching team is a big
plus: providing numerous points of view
•Each instructor begins tied to a disciplinary framework of concepts, terms, usages
•“Labels were different”
•Toys as ice breakers
•End-of-session “takeaways”
Learnings/Takeaways/Reflections II:
How little these Honors College students know about:
• the “people” part of the fractal triad
•environmental toxins and health
Learnings/Takeaways/Reflections III: Critical Success Factors
•Grasp of the typical student’s knowledge base
•Exams/quizzes to ensure student responsibility
•The importance of a single person coordinating and facilitating
•End-of-session “takeaways”
Imagining a Sustainable World
Duquesne University’sMulti-Disciplinary Course
on Sustainability
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