Sustainability Concept (Whole-Institution Approach) …
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title as UN Decade Project in 2013 and as exemplary place of learning for ESD in
2016, 2018 and 2019 in connection with the UN Global Action Programme ESD.
Furthermore, the KU bears the title ‘Fairtrade University’ since 2017. Between 2011
and 2014, the institution implemented an environmental management system [eco
management and audit scheme (EMAS)] and was awarded the EMAS certificate
and later on, in 2019, also the EMASplus certificate for its efforts. In 2019, the
KU’s overall sustainability concept was evaluated by external experts. The evaluation
confirmed that the KU was among the few higher education institutions in Germany
that served as a role model for consistently pursuing an overall sustainability concept
by way of a whole-institution approach. In Germany, the KU has the leading position
in the fields of EMASplus and sustainability reporting. Together with the University
of Applied Sciences Munich, the KU has founded a Bavarian university network in
2012 which has the aim of supporting other higher education institutions on their
way towards becoming more sustainable.
3.2 The Six Sustainability Action Areas at the KU
3.2.1 Action Area ‘Governance’
In order to be able to implement the topic of sustainability at a higher education institution, different activities and initiatives must be carefully coordinated. The
task of coordinating these processes in a structured way is referred to as ‘governance’
(Bormann et al. 2018). This definition includes both organizational structures and
controlling complex processes. All groups within a university with their very different
skill profiles, perspectives and interests play an important role for the governance of
a sustainability process: university management, students, professors, employees in
research and teaching and administrative and technical staff. Often, these different
players have very different perspectives on the relevance of sustainable development,
the detailed objectives and the means that are pursued or are to be implemented in
this context or in view of the relevant anchoring of responsibilities in connection
with sustainability. This is why the coordination of all these positions is one of the
central tasks of such governance. Communication and consideration processes as
well as active participation are also important pillars in connection with governance.
It is of utmost importance to create necessary structures and allocate responsibilities
in order to effectively support the sustainability agents at a university.
At the KU, the above-mentioned whole-institution sustainability approach, the
appointment of a sustainable development coordinator and the establishment of a
steering group created an important framework for coordinating sustainability activities. The steering group is made up of members from all KU faculties, administrative
departments as well as students. Since 2012, the Chancellor is the official contact
person for all sustainability matters within the university management. In 2014, the
311
title as UN Decade Project in 2013 and as exemplary place of learning for ESD in
2016, 2018 and 2019 in connection with the UN Global Action Programme ESD.
Furthermore, the KU bears the title ‘Fairtrade University’ since 2017. Between 2011
and 2014, the institution implemented an environmental management system [eco
management and audit scheme (EMAS)] and was awarded the EMAS certificate
and later on, in 2019, also the EMASplus certificate for its efforts. In 2019, the
KU’s overall sustainability concept was evaluated by external experts. The evaluation
confirmed that the KU was among the few higher education institutions in Germany
that served as a role model for consistently pursuing an overall sustainability concept
by way of a whole-institution approach. In Germany, the KU has the leading position
in the fields of EMASplus and sustainability reporting. Together with the University
of Applied Sciences Munich, the KU has founded a Bavarian university network in
2012 which has the aim of supporting other higher education institutions on their
way towards becoming more sustainable.
3.2 The Six Sustainability Action Areas at the KU
3.2.1 Action Area ‘Governance’
In order to be able to implement the topic of sustainability at a higher education institution, different activities and initiatives must be carefully coordinated. The
task of coordinating these processes in a structured way is referred to as ‘governance’
(Bormann et al. 2018). This definition includes both organizational structures and
controlling complex processes. All groups within a university with their very different
skill profiles, perspectives and interests play an important role for the governance of
a sustainability process: university management, students, professors, employees in
research and teaching and administrative and technical staff. Often, these different
players have very different perspectives on the relevance of sustainable development,
the detailed objectives and the means that are pursued or are to be implemented in
this context or in view of the relevant anchoring of responsibilities in connection
with sustainability. This is why the coordination of all these positions is one of the
central tasks of such governance. Communication and consideration processes as
well as active participation are also important pillars in connection with governance.
It is of utmost importance to create necessary structures and allocate responsibilities
in order to effectively support the sustainability agents at a university.
At the KU, the above-mentioned whole-institution sustainability approach, the
appointment of a sustainable development coordinator and the establishment of a
steering group created an important framework for coordinating sustainability activities. The steering group is made up of members from all KU faculties, administrative
departments as well as students. Since 2012, the Chancellor is the official contact
person for all sustainability matters within the university management. In 2014, the