Maik Adomssent
a, Daniel Fischer
a, Jasmin Godemann
b, Christian Herzig
b, Marco Rieckmann
c, Jana Timm
c
a Institute for Environmental and Sustainability Communication, Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Scharnhorststr. 1, D-21335 Lüneburg, Germany
b Nottingham University Business School, Jubilee Campus, Nottingham, NG8 1BB
c UNESCO Chair ‘Higher Education for Sustainable Development’, Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Scharnhorststr. 1, D-21335 Lüneburg, Germany
Over the years there has been considerable progress in implementing sustainability into Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs). However, there is still a long way to go until sustainability becomes a guiding principle in higher education. This Call for Papers (CfPs) for a special issue of the Journal of Cleaner Production (JCLP) will focus upon new developments in key topics and dynamic developments in the following categories:
- Business Education for Sustainable Development;
- Sustainable Consumption in Higher Education Institutions;
- Higher Education for Sustainable Development in Central and Eastern Europe.
We look forward to receiving your contribution to this CfPs by sharing your experiences and research results on these aspects of Higher Education for Sustainable Development (HESD). Based on critical investigation of current practice in HESD, we are aiming at illuminating future prospects and requirements in HESD, particularly with regard to the end of the United NationsWorld Decade of “Education for Sustainable Development” in 2014.
We hope a wide range of representatives active in the field of HESD will submit their papers in response to this CfPs in order to collectively make an outstanding contribution to making significant transitions to sustainable societal patterns. Please find detailed information about the three topics of this CfPs in the following paragraphs:
1. Area I. Business Education for Sustainable Development
The core aims are
- to gain an overview of international developments in sustainability-related business education;
- to explore conceptual debates on teaching and learning approaches, and research paradigms;
- to share experience with approaches to sustainability-related business education and consider implications for HEI practice.
By bringing together findings on questions such as the following, we hope to shed light on ways to transform business
education in the future.
How can sustainability values be integrated into educational frameworks of business education institutions? Which learning settings can be vehicles for enhancing students’ reflections on the value of sustainability, both in their decisions as professionals and as individuals? What competences, knowledge and values do future managers need to create sustainable values in their organisations and in society? What contributions can interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary business courses and programs make to the wider goals of education for sustainable development? Which methods and materials appear to be useful and how do they help to advance the integration of sustainability research findings? How do sustainability research, curriculum and co-curricular learning settings interact with each other and which configurations have been found to be the most effective in enhancing organisational change toward sustainable development?
We are interested in publishing articles that explore these topics as they apply to different types of organizations such as freestanding business schools, faculties within HEIs and other management-related academic institutions. The aim is to explore responses to the challenge of sustainable transformation and the role of business education therein. Submitted papers should address one or more of the following areas:
A. Theoretical or conceptual frameworks of business education for sustainable development;
B. Innovative teaching approaches and programs (e.g. case studies);
C. Studies into the demand for and impacts of business education for sustainable development (e.g. surveys, experiments).
2. Area II. Sustainable Consumption in Higher Education Institutions
The core aims are
- to discuss conceptual innovations and international developments in the emerging field of higher education for sustainable consumption;
- to present results and findings from empirical studies and create a baseline on what we know about effective approaches for promoting sustainable consumption in universities;
- to share models of good practice on and opportunities for linking formal and informal consumer learning.
Relevant questions for the further advancement of higher education for sustainable consumption are:
What are the specific requirements (both opportunities and restrictions) for creating aneducational engagementwith sustainable consumption in universities? Which learning settings are best suited for fostering learning and engagement and how can they be evaluated? What contributions can interdisciplinary and transdisciplinary courses make? How do different academic dimensions (e.g. curriculum development, operations, informal learning settings, research) interact with each other and which configurations are most effective in creating “cultures of sustainable consumption” in HEI settings? What can be learned for HESD from other educational sectors (e.g.
schools, vocational training institutions)?
Submitted papers should address one or more of the following areas:
A. Theoretical or conceptual approaches to education for sustainable consumption at the tertiary level;
B. Innovative teaching approaches and programs (e.g. case studies);
C. Studies into the demand for and impacts of higher education for sustainable consumption (e.g. surveys, experiments).
3. Area III. Higher Education for Sustainable Development in Central and Eastern Europe
The core aims are
- to gain an overview of on-going practices in the implementation of sustainability into higher education in Central and Eastern Europe;
- to share research activities and results in HESD within Central and Eastern European HEIs;
- to explore future collaboration strategies towards HESD in Central and Eastern Europe.
To specify the achievements and to advance the implementation of sustainability in HEIs in the region of Central and Eastern Europe, the following questions are relevant:
Which contribution should be made by HEIs to promote sustainable development? Which role do universities play as
teaching, learning and living environments for sustainable development? What are the challenges in mainstreaming sustainability into curricula? What changes to curriculum content should be made? What are the methodological and structural challenges for different target groups? How should research practice develop so as to encourage the implementation of sustainability into research? Which methods and approaches are best suited for inter- and
transdisciplinary research? How could sustainability-orientated cooperation between academia and practice contribute effectively to sustainable development? Which approaches are best suited to measuring efficiency and to evaluating collaborations? How can sustainability be institutionalised? What are the current strategies for organisational learning in this field? Which approaches for sustainability management and reporting are most promising?
Submitted papers should address one or more of the following areas:
A. Theoretical or conceptual frameworks for the implementation of sustainability in HEIs in Central and Eastern Europe;
B. Innovative approaches and programs (e.g. case studies);
C. Studies into the demand for and impacts of implementation of sustainability in HEIs in Central and Eastern Europe (e.g. surveys, experiments).
4. Coverage/Audience
This JCLP Special Issue aims to enhance our understanding of the current state of HESD and to explore what is needed to adapt HEIs’ curricula, teaching methods, research approaches and implementation strategies to the new challenges and opportunities arising from the concept helping societies to make the transition from unsustainable to sustainable societal development. Particular focus will be placed on the three areas described above. This Special
Issue will build upon theoretical and practical experiences and analyses from and for those who are involved in diverse learning processes occurring at individual, organizational and institutional levels or at the level of society e as educators, educational policy makers or others who want to initiate and foster sustainable transitions in practice at HEIs.
5. Tentative schedule
The following schedule will be applied:
a. 15 December 2011: On-Line Publication of this CfPs.
b. 15 January 2012: Submission of a max 1000 word, extended abstract to the Editorial Team of this Special Issue, via Elsevier’s EES system.
c. 15 February 2012: Responses from the Special Issue Editorial Team to the prospective authors.
d. 15 May 2012: Authors submit ‘peer-review ready’ documents to Elsevier via the EES system.
e. 15 Maye30 September: Peer review/paper revision and rerevision process.
f. 1 November 2012 Deadline for all final revisions.
g. 1 December 2012 Submission of all final documents as corrected proofs.
h. 15 December 2012 publication of special issue on-line and within two weeks, publication in hard copy.
6. Contributions
The research focus of this special issue is on a wide range of activities that are sustainability oriented AND which have a specific focus on teaching and learning with regard to the three areas outlined. This CfP seeks relevant scientific reflection and the sharing of international experiences. Full papers are invited for consideration for publication in a Special Issue of the JCLP. The following types of contributions are of special interest:
Original Research Papers, Comprehensive Literature Reviews, Educational Initiatives, & Governmental Initiatives.
Other categories of articles concerned with the theme, such as letters to the editor, shorts from the field, editorials, and book reviews are welcome as well. Since these shorter contributions will not need to be so extensively reviewed they can be submitted and processed on a shorter time horizon throughout the entire process of the development of the Special Issue.
Articles in all categories should be formally adjusted to the specific requirements of JCLP and should fulfill the editorial
guidelines provided in the ‘instructions for authors,’ which can be accessed from the website: http://www.elsevier.com/wps/find/journaldescription.cws_home/30440/authorinstructions
Authors are expected to provide the names, affiliations and current e-mail addresses of at least three, independent, qualified, potential peer reviewers. This information is to be included with the submission of the complete documents. Subsequently, four to five people will be invited to peer review each document.
The authors will receive the reviewer’s and the Special Issue team’s feedback and are expected to respond via their revised document. Upon receipt and acceptance by the Special Issue team of the authors’ revised documents, they will be published in this Special Issue of the JCLP.
Contributors with proposals for papers are encouraged to communicate with the co-editors by e-mail. Please contact the following contact persons for your area of interest.
Area I. Business Education for Sustainable Development
Dr habil Jasmin Godemann, Research Fellow, International Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility, Nottingham University Business School, UK, Associated Research Fellow, Institute for Environmental and Sustainability Communication, Leuphana, University of Lüneburg, Germany, Jasmin.Godemann@nottingham.ac.uk
Dr Christian Herzig, Lecturer, International Centre for Corporate Social Responsibility, Nottingham University Business School, UK, christian.herzig@nottingham.ac.uk
Area II. Sustainable Consumption in Higher Education Institutions
Daniel Fischer, Research Fellow, Institute for Environmental and Sustainability Communication, Leuphana University of Lüneburg, Germany, daniel.fischer@uni.leuphana.de
Area III. Higher Education for Sustainable Development in Central and Eastern Europe
Dr habil Maik Adomssent, Research Fellow and Lecturer, Institute for Environmental and Sustainability Communication, Leuphana, University of Lüneburg, Germany, adomssent@uni.leuphana.de
For general inquiries, please contact
Dr Marco Rieckmann, Research Fellow and Lecturer, UNESCO Chair ‘Higher Education for Sustainable Development’, Leuphana, University of Lüneburg, Germany, marco.rieckmann@uni.leuphana.de
Jana-Michaela Timm, PhD Student, UNESCO Chair ‘Higher Education for Sustainable Development’, Leuphana, University of Lüneburg, Germany, jana.timm@uni.leuphana.de
For more Call for Papers on Special Issues for Journal of Cleaner Production, visit the journal homepage