Academics grapple with the role of tertiary institutions in sustainable
development
Article by Will Bendix
Academics are preparing to grapple with sustainable development, as Rhodes
University is set to host the second Environmental Management of Sustainable
Universities (EMSU) conference in September this year.
The conference, which is being held in conjunction with the World Summit in
Johannesburg, looks to critically examine the role that tertiary education
institutions play in sustainable development. It will run from the 11 to 13
September, with the Eastern Cape University hosting representatives from over 40
countries.
"Sustainability is one of the most important issues this century since
we have learned that the focus on environmental protection per se is not
enough", says professor Walter Filho, a representative from TuTech in
Germany, "The challenge is to bring such messages across in a meaningful
way and universities are well placed to do that."
EMSU will provide a platform for academics to present research and case
studies from around the world highlighting recent practice and debates around
sustainable development in higher education.
"The conference will be looking at what is currently been done by other
leaders in the tertiary field and serve as a catalyst for new ideas", says
Mark Hazell, who secured the bid for Rhodes to host the event after attending
the initial conference in Sweden in 1999.
Hazell says that the conference needs to examine important issues from three
different perspectives. These include how teaching programmes affect
sustainability, how universities themselves impact directly on the environment,
and the involvement of tertiary education institutions in sustainable
development projects beyond their gates.
"I think one of the biggest (issues to address) is energy as it is
consumed in production processes from suppliers through to waste production. The
next one is waste - especially paper as it impacts the environment through
forests and water systems and the pollution that arises there from," he
says.
Professor Heila Lottz, chief organiser of the EMSU programme, says that
although environmental issues and sustainable development are being incorporated
into curricula and research in developing nations, environmental management is
lagging behind.
"Systems are not set up to be conducive to environmental
management", says Lottz, referring to South African and many developing
nation's tertiary education institutions. She cites technical and financial
resources as major problems in implementing environmentally sustainable
practices, as well as the fact that these are often quite new initiatives.
Lottz hopes that the conference will provide an opportunity for all
representatives to address and understand these issues from a different context,
and create the chance for a cross-cultural examination.
"We need to deal with the division between tending, management and
policy - this requires a co-operative activity", says Lottz. She believes
the conference will strengthen the implementation of the Rhodes University
Environmental Policy, and hopefully those elsewhere.
South African tertiary education institutions also face other unique
challenges to sustainable development, based on transitions and transformations
within curricula since the release of the National Plan for Higher Education
document. These changes deal mainly with structure, management and curricula.
Christopher Tshivhase, a senior lecturer at Vaal Triangle Technikon, says
these have important consequences for sustainable development that need to be
spoken about. This includes the decision of whether the state should prescribe
the curricula for institutions, or if institutions should determine this
themselves.
"If we (institutions) decide, do we see sustainable development from the
same background? What type of knowledge do we include in our curriculum (and)
will this contribute to sustainable development?" he asks.
Tshivhase will be presenting a paper that aims to provoke some discussion on
these curricula issues. He states that although some institutions are busy
recruiting and helping development and sustainable projects in the Southern
African region, few institutions are starting to respond to globalisation issues
or embracing technology in curricula for sustainable development.
"We see changes in governance and management of institutions (but) we
still have to see whether these are effective or not", he says, adding,
"One way or another these changes will contribute to the sustainable
development of institutions themselves".
A special edition of the International Journal of Sustainability in Higher
Education, a publication dedicated to promoting the cause of sustainability from
a tertiary education perspective, will be devoted to the EMSU conference.
Filho, who is also the editor, says, "The aim of the edition is to
document and further disseminate the experiences presented at the event
internationally, (and) it will serve the purpose of informing those who are
unable to be there".
More information:
http://www.rhodes.ac.za/environment/emsu.html
Contact e-mail: BigTree@intekom.co.za
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