PUC-Rio Socio-environmental Agenda: New Steps …
737
2 Sustainability on University Campuses: A Global Agenda
Aware of its role as a driver of changes in the society and its influence on the breaking
of paradigms, the Higher Education Institutions have sought the best mechanisms to
incorporate adequate institutional policies and management systems in their physical
operations and in their educational system in order to institutionalize their commitment to the sustainable development.
To convert a university into a sustainable environment through the concepts of
sustainable development, it is necessary not only to be ecologically responsible, but
also economically viable while finding and disseminating solutions for social problems. In order to contribute to sustainable development, institutions of higher learning
should consistently foster sustainability beyond their boundaries (Alshuwaikhat and
Abubakar 2008).
In pursuit of the ideal way to implement the Global Agenda for Sustainable Development, the HEI have developed their own institutional agendas based on their political contexts, corporate principles and heedful attunement to current issues of local
and global society. The HEI are also mainly committed through networking in the
academic environment to find sustainable solutions for society, but also through
adherence to statements of global scope for sustainability in the HEI, among other
forms of engagement (Larrán Jorge et al. 2015). Thus, HEI cooperate to transform
society beyond the limits of the university. However, the transformation of the institution itself remains a major challenge.
The true success of an institutional environmental agenda is in implementing its
content to reach goals and advance indicators of sustainability, which are the main
and most important obstacles to overcome for transforming the university in the sense
of social and environmental sustainability. Naturally, institutions will continuously
encounter new obstacles and must be prepared to adjust goals and actions constantly
within efficient systems of local governance.
One of the issues raised regarding the challenges of implementing sustainability in
the HEI is to address the three dimensions of sustainability: ecological, economic and
social. Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar (2008) point out that many universities implement measures to protect the environment as initiatives for sustainability; although,
the economic and social dimensions are insufficiently addressed. In order to ensure
a systemic approach of sustainability in the universities, the authors suggest a management structure that minimizes the limitations of systems focusing on ecological issues and guarantees sustainability through the integration of three strategies:
“application of an Environmental Management System (EMS), public participation
and social responsibility, and promotion of sustainability in teaching and research”
(Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar 2008, p. 1777).
The capacity and governance strategies of the institution will therefore be
extremely important to the successful implementation of a local sustainability
agenda.
According to Avila et al. (2017): “when a university seeks to implement sustainability initiatives as part of its daily activities, a set of barriers are encountered, which
737
2 Sustainability on University Campuses: A Global Agenda
Aware of its role as a driver of changes in the society and its influence on the breaking
of paradigms, the Higher Education Institutions have sought the best mechanisms to
incorporate adequate institutional policies and management systems in their physical
operations and in their educational system in order to institutionalize their commitment to the sustainable development.
To convert a university into a sustainable environment through the concepts of
sustainable development, it is necessary not only to be ecologically responsible, but
also economically viable while finding and disseminating solutions for social problems. In order to contribute to sustainable development, institutions of higher learning
should consistently foster sustainability beyond their boundaries (Alshuwaikhat and
Abubakar 2008).
In pursuit of the ideal way to implement the Global Agenda for Sustainable Development, the HEI have developed their own institutional agendas based on their political contexts, corporate principles and heedful attunement to current issues of local
and global society. The HEI are also mainly committed through networking in the
academic environment to find sustainable solutions for society, but also through
adherence to statements of global scope for sustainability in the HEI, among other
forms of engagement (Larrán Jorge et al. 2015). Thus, HEI cooperate to transform
society beyond the limits of the university. However, the transformation of the institution itself remains a major challenge.
The true success of an institutional environmental agenda is in implementing its
content to reach goals and advance indicators of sustainability, which are the main
and most important obstacles to overcome for transforming the university in the sense
of social and environmental sustainability. Naturally, institutions will continuously
encounter new obstacles and must be prepared to adjust goals and actions constantly
within efficient systems of local governance.
One of the issues raised regarding the challenges of implementing sustainability in
the HEI is to address the three dimensions of sustainability: ecological, economic and
social. Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar (2008) point out that many universities implement measures to protect the environment as initiatives for sustainability; although,
the economic and social dimensions are insufficiently addressed. In order to ensure
a systemic approach of sustainability in the universities, the authors suggest a management structure that minimizes the limitations of systems focusing on ecological issues and guarantees sustainability through the integration of three strategies:
“application of an Environmental Management System (EMS), public participation
and social responsibility, and promotion of sustainability in teaching and research”
(Alshuwaikhat and Abubakar 2008, p. 1777).
The capacity and governance strategies of the institution will therefore be
extremely important to the successful implementation of a local sustainability
agenda.
According to Avila et al. (2017): “when a university seeks to implement sustainability initiatives as part of its daily activities, a set of barriers are encountered, which