Sustainability in Curriculum Design

29th May 2024

Presentations from the University of Helsinki X UNESCO IESALC workshop: Sustainability in Higher Education: Integrating sustainability into university teaching and learning locally and globally.

The Teachers for Sustainability network at the University of Helsinki, and UNESCO IESALC organized a joint workshop on 27th May 2024.

The first workshop brought together teaching personnel, management, and support staff from various higher education institutions in the Global North and Global South. The goal of the workshop was to explore the challenges, existing practices, and opportunities in pedagogical transformation towards sustainability from local to global levels.

Through concrete examples and discussions, the workshop discussed relevant drivers, barriers, risks, actors, and stakeholders related to sustainability in pedagogical design in higher education. It provided a platform for co-creating and evaluating possible tools and solutions to embed sustainability into university teaching and learning.

Workshop PowerPoint slides and video recording include presentations from the speakers:

Rami Ratvio, University Lecturer, University of Helsinki
Yuma Inzolia, Chief of Capacity Building, UNESCO IESALC
Anniina Tammisalo, Generation Green, University of Helsinki, Finland
Edwin Namakanga, Fridays for Future International, Rise Up Movement, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda
Maria Toro-Troconis, ALDESD director and UN Consultant

PowerPoint 1: Opening presentation and case examples
PowerPoint 2: Dr Yuma Inzolia: Transforming Higher Education: Towards Sustainability

18th May 202421st May 2024

Workshop on 27th May: Sustainability in Higher Education: Integrating sustainability into university teaching and learning locally and globally. Register now!

The Teachers for Sustainability network at the University of Helsinki, and UNESCO IESALC welcome you to explore the key challenges for sustainability in higher education, both locally and globally, and co-create and evaluate possible tools and solutions. Register now to participate via Zoom.

When: Monday 27th May 2024, at 14:00–16:00 Finland time (UTC+3)
Where: in Zoom:
https://helsinki.zoom.us/j/69610929825?pwd=UDU3UGJUVDdNRFN3UVMwUXFpOTZ0QT09 ‘
Meeting ID: 696 1092 9825, Passcode: 409025
Please fill in the pre-registration form by Sunday 26th May.
Registration link: https://elomake.helsinki.fi/lomakkeet/130025/lomake.html
Language: English

Welcome to the first workshop of the UNESCO IESALC-University of Helsinki Greening Higher Educations series!

The first workshop aims to bring together teaching personnel, management, and support staff from various higher education institutions in the Global North and Global South. The goal of the workshop is to explore the challenges, existing practices, and opportunities in pedagogical transformation towards sustainability from local to global levels.

Through concrete examples and discussions, the workshop will touch upon relevant drivers, barriers, risks, actors, and stakeholders related to sustainability in pedagogical design in higher education. It will provide a platform for co-creating and evaluating possible tools and solutions to embed sustainability into university teaching and learning.

Taking away from the workshop, not only expertise and actions from various regions in the globe will be presented, but also ways forward will be shared to move into potential next steps for higher education stakeholders to support pedagogical transformation.

Climate Justice Activist, Campaigns Organizer & Demographer Edwin Namakanga (Fridays for Future International, Rise Up Movement, Makerere University, Kampala, Uganda) will present examples of local and global climate action.

AGENDA (Finland time, UTC+3)

14:00 – 14:15 Welcome, Presentation of the series of workshops, and Keynote on Pedagogical Transformation

Rami Ratvio, University Lecturer, University of Helsinki
Yuma Inzolia, Chief of Capacity Building, UNESCO IESALC

14:15–15:00 Pedagogical Transformation across Borders: challenges, existing practices, and opportunities towards sustainability in higher education curriculum

Anniina Tammisalo, Generation Green, University of Helsinki, Finland
Edwin Namakanga, Makerere University, Uganda
Maria Toro, ALDESD director and UN Consultant

15:00–15:50 Concrete Examples and Discussions of Pedagogical Design on Sustainability at Higher Education

Discussions in Zoom Breakout Rooms

15:50–16:00 Conclusions and Ways Forward

26th November 202116th May 2023

The latest version of the instructions can be found from Flamma

According to the new strategic plan of the University of Helsinki for 2021–2030, the theme of sustainability is to run through all of the University’s educational offerings. This means making sustainability expertise part of discipline-specific knowledge and skills as well as generic expert skills.

The links below provide more detailed instructions, with the aim of supporting staff of the University of Helsinki design new degree programme curricula that strengthen academic expertise with sustainability expertise. In curriculum design, degree programmes should describe the sustainability expertise they provide and enable in terms of the following goals:

Strengthening of discipline-specific sustainability expertise
- Which knowledge, skills, values and attitudes are key to discipline-specific sustainability expertise?
- Which Sustainable Development Goals of the UN are central to the degree programme (or study track), or how do the degree objectives support the sustainability transformation, or how do the degree objectives support the understanding of sustainability specific to the discipline?
Development into a sustainability expert
- How are studies that support the development of sustainability expertise included in the curriculum?
- Bachelor’s programmes: The curriculum can include the Sustainability course (SUST-001, 3 cr) as either discipline-specific studies or general studies. The curriculum can also include a course worth five credits designed by the degree programme, which includes the knowledge and skills provided by SUST-001 (3 cr) and a discipline-specific component worth two credits. These courses can be either compulsory or optional in the curriculum.
- Master’s programmes: The degree structure should allow students to complete the Sustainability course (SUST-001, 3 cr).
- Doctoral programmes: Sustainability expertise should be included in the degree.
Strengthening of sustainability skills as part of generic expert skills
- How does the degree support the acquisition of generic expert skills, which include sustainability skills?

Support material:

Towards constructively aligned competence-based curricula at the University of Helsinki (PDF)
Sustainability expertise as part of academic expertise (PDF)
Appendix 1. Integrating key sustainability skills identified in the literature into generic expert skills (PDF)
Appendix 2. Examples of the operationalisation of sustainability skills (PDF)
Appendix 3. Supporting the development of generic academic skills during bachelor’s studies (PDF) (examples of academic skills to be integrated into discipline-specific studies, learning outcomes for academic skills to be integrated into discipline-specific studies)
Appendix 4. Supporting the development of generic academic skills during master’s studies (PDF) (examples of academic skills to be integrated into discipline-specific studies, learning outcomes for academic skills to be integrated into discipline-specific studies)

Further information and questions: Centre for University Teaching and Learning (HYPE), info-hype@helsinki.fi

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Viimeisimmän version löydät Flammasta

Helsingin yliopiston uudessa strategiassa vuosille 2021–2030 kestävyys sisällytetään läpikäyvästi koulutustarjontaan. Tämä tarkoittaa kestävyysosaamisen tuomista osaksi tieteenalakohtaisia tietoja ja taitoja sekä geneerisiä asiantuntijataitoja.

Alla olevista linkeistä löytyy tarkempia ohjeita, joiden tavoitteena on tukea Helsingin yliopiston henkilökuntaa laatimaan koulutusohjelmien uusia opetussuunnitelmia, jotka vahvistavat akateemista asiantuntijuutta kestävyysosaamisella. Opetussuunnitelmatyössä koulutusohjelmat kuvaavat, millaista kestävyysosaamista koulutusohjelma tuottaa ja mahdollistaa seuraavien tavoitteiden osalta:

Tieteenalakohtaisen kestävyysosaamisen vahvistaminen
- Mitkä tiedot, taidot, arvot ja asenteet ovat keskeisiä tieteenalakohtaisen kestävyysosaamisen kannalta?
- Mitkä YK:n kestävän kehityksen tavoitteet ovat keskeisiä koulutusohjelman (tai opintosuunnan) kannalta, tai miten tutkinnon tavoitteet tukevat kestävyysmurrosta, tai miten tutkinnon tavoitteet tukevat tieteenalan piirissä käytettyä jäsennystä kestävyydestä?
Kestävyysasiantuntijaksi oppiminen
- Miten opetusuunnitelmaan on sisällytetty kestävyysasiantuntijuuden kehittymistä tukevia opintoja?
- Kandiohjelma: Opetussuunnitelmaan voidaan sisällyttää Kestävyyskurssi (SUST-001, 3 op) tieteenalaopintoina tai yleisopintoina. Opetussuunnitelmaan voidaan sisällyttää myös koulutusohjelmien kehittämä 5 op laajuinen opintojakso, johon sisältyy SUST-001 osaaminen (3 op) sekä 2op laajuinen tieteenalakohtainen osio. Em. opintojakson suorittaminen voi olla opetussuunnitelmassa pakollista tai valinnaista.
- Maisteriohjelma: Suositellaan, että tutkinto mahdollistaa Kestävyyskurssin (SUST-001, 3 op) suorittamisen.
- Tohtoriohjelma: Suositellaan, että tutkintoon sisällytetään kestävyysosaamista.
Kestävyystaitojen vahvistaminen osana geneerisiä asiantuntijataitoja
- Miten tutkinto tukee geneeristen asiantuntijataitojen oppimista, joihin on sisällytetty kestävyystaidot?

Tarkemmat ohjeet:

Kohti linjakkaita osaamisperustaisia opetussuunnitelmia Helsingin yliopistossa (PDF)
Kestävyysosaaminen osana akateemista asiantuntijuutta (PDF)
Liite 1. Kirjallisuudessa tunnistettujen keskeisten kestävyystaitojen integroituminen osaksi geneerisiä asiantuntijataitoja (PDF)
Liite 2. Esimerkkejä kestävyystaitojen operationalisoinnista (PDF)
Liite 3. Akateemisten asiantuntijataitojen kehittymisen tukeminen kandiopintojen aikana (PDF) (Esimerkkejä substanssiopintoihin integroitavista asiantuntijataidoista, substanssiopintoihin integroitavien asiantuntijataitojen osaamistavoitteet)
Liite 4. Akateemisten asiantuntijataitojen kehittymisen tukeminen maisteriopintojen aikana (PDF) (Esimerkkejä substanssiopintoihin integroitavista asiantuntijataidoista, substanssiopintoihin integroitavien asiantuntijataitojen osaamistavoitteet)

Lisätietoa ja kysymykset: Yliopistopedagogiikan keskus (HYPE) info-hype@helsinki.fi