Visual Displays of the Sustainable
Development Goals in the Curricular
and Extra-Curricular Activities
at Nottingham Trent University—A Case
Study
Vanessa Odell, Petra Molthan-Hill, Lina Erlandsson and Eleanor Sexton
Abstract The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been
fully embedded into the formal and informal curriculum of Nottingham Trent University (NTU), United Kingdom. In order that staff and students can recognize the
17 goals and 169 targets, visual displays have been used to act as cues and content providers in curricular and extra-curricular activities. This paper summarizes
the different approaches taken to display the SDGs visually at NTU. All taught
courses/programmes at the university address at least one of the SDGs and have the
option to include their chosen SDG as an icon in both physical and digital course
materials. Extra-curricular activities include the creation of thought-provoking installations of the goals around the estate, for example demonstrating the vast amount of
plastic bottle waste contributing to ocean marine debris (SDG 14, target 1) linked
holistically to competitions and workshop activities targeted at raising insights of
staff and students and changing behaviour. This paper will offer detailed descriptions of the displays created at NTU, for example as part of Green Week and how
these can be easily replicated at other universities. The paper will, therefore, be of
interest to anyone aiming to adopt visual approaches to communicating sustainability
messages in curricular and extra-curricular activities.
V. Odell (B) · L. Erlandsson
NTU Green Academy, Nottingham Trent University,
50 Shakespeare St, Nottingham NG1 4FQ, UK
e-mail: vanessa.odell@ntu.ac.uk
L. Erlandsson
e-mail: lina.erlandsson@ntu.ac.uk
P. Molthan-Hill
Nottingham Business School/NTU Green Academy, Nottingham Trent University,
50 Shakespeare St, Nottingham NG1 4FQ, UK
e-mail: petra.molthan-hill@ntu.ac.uk
E. Sexton
BA (Hons) Fashion Communication and Promotion Student,
Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
W. Leal Filho et al. (eds.), Universities as Living Labs for Sustainable Development,
World Sustainability Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15604-6_15
227
Development Goals in the Curricular
and Extra-Curricular Activities
at Nottingham Trent University—A Case
Study
Vanessa Odell, Petra Molthan-Hill, Lina Erlandsson and Eleanor Sexton
Abstract The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) have been
fully embedded into the formal and informal curriculum of Nottingham Trent University (NTU), United Kingdom. In order that staff and students can recognize the
17 goals and 169 targets, visual displays have been used to act as cues and content providers in curricular and extra-curricular activities. This paper summarizes
the different approaches taken to display the SDGs visually at NTU. All taught
courses/programmes at the university address at least one of the SDGs and have the
option to include their chosen SDG as an icon in both physical and digital course
materials. Extra-curricular activities include the creation of thought-provoking installations of the goals around the estate, for example demonstrating the vast amount of
plastic bottle waste contributing to ocean marine debris (SDG 14, target 1) linked
holistically to competitions and workshop activities targeted at raising insights of
staff and students and changing behaviour. This paper will offer detailed descriptions of the displays created at NTU, for example as part of Green Week and how
these can be easily replicated at other universities. The paper will, therefore, be of
interest to anyone aiming to adopt visual approaches to communicating sustainability
messages in curricular and extra-curricular activities.
V. Odell (B) · L. Erlandsson
NTU Green Academy, Nottingham Trent University,
50 Shakespeare St, Nottingham NG1 4FQ, UK
e-mail: vanessa.odell@ntu.ac.uk
L. Erlandsson
e-mail: lina.erlandsson@ntu.ac.uk
P. Molthan-Hill
Nottingham Business School/NTU Green Academy, Nottingham Trent University,
50 Shakespeare St, Nottingham NG1 4FQ, UK
e-mail: petra.molthan-hill@ntu.ac.uk
E. Sexton
BA (Hons) Fashion Communication and Promotion Student,
Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020
W. Leal Filho et al. (eds.), Universities as Living Labs for Sustainable Development,
World Sustainability Series, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-15604-6_15
227