Sustainability Curriculum Resource Guide
Resources compiled by SPARC (Sustainable Practices and Academic Resource Council)
Sustainability Curriculum at PCC
Sustainability is a core element of the mission of Portland Community College. This guide provides resources for integrating sustainability and climate justice into courses across the curriculum.
See below recommended books and articles about sustainability curriculum; networks of sustainability educators; and links to national and international sustainability curriculum projects. Use the tabs on the left to find information about
- Sustainability at PCC - staff contacts; place-based projects, initiatives and other resources
- PCC Climate Action Plan - our college's five-year roadmap toward climate justice, with a goal of carbon neutrality by 2040
- Sustainability Focus Awards - opportunities for students to demonstrate their proficiency in the field of sustainability
- Pathways sustainability resources - curriculum resources for specific disciplines
- SPARC - PCC's sustainability curriculum council
Networks
- SPARC (Sustainability Practices and Resources for Curriculum council)PCC’s Sustainability Practices and Resources for Curriculum council (SPARC) is a volunteer council that oversees the integration of sustainability into PCC’s curriculum across all disciplines. SPARC members include staff, administrators, and instructors from across the disciplines. SPARC facilitates sharing, design and development of all curriculum between faculty. This is done through workshops, meetings and conferences (see below for events). It also serves as an advisory board for sustainability-related academic curricular and program development. As part of this latter work, SPARC coordinates the Student Sustainability Focus Award.
- GPSEN (Greater Portland Sustainability Education Network)GPSEN is a cooperative learning network that leverages our collective knowledge and resources to achieve Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) in the Portland region, with a focus on climate justice and intersectional sustainability.
- Second NaturePCC is a member of Second Nature, an organization committed to accelerating climate action in, and through, higher education. PCC is a member of Second Nature's America is All In program and is a host institution for Second Nature's Climate Action Pursuit.
- AASHE (Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education)AASHE’s mission is to empower higher education to lead the sustainability transformation by providing resources, professional development, and a network of support to enable institutions of higher education to model and advance sustainability from governance and operations to education and research.
National and international sustainability curriculum projects
- Curriculum for the Bioregion - Western Washington University"Higher education must lead the way in preparing learners for citizenship in a world where the complex issues of sustainability—environmental quality, community health and wellbeing, and social equity and justice—are paramount. Curriculum for the Bioregion engages faculty communities in exploring these issues and in building sustainability concepts and place-based learning into a broad array of courses and disciplines."
- Piedmont Project - Emory University - Syllabi"The Piedmont Project emerged as a grassroots effort on the part of a group of faculty to strengthen Emory's engagement with environmental issues and sustainability. At the heart of the project is a curriculum development effort that seeks to foster an invigorated intellectual community to address global issues and local sustainability challenges." Link provides access to syllabi from a range of disciplines that incorporate sustainability principles.
Resources
- Key Competencies: Practical Approaches to Teaching SustainabilityFrom the Sustainability Curriculum Consortium (SCC) and the American Association of Sustainability in Higher Education (AASHE), 2023. 134 page pdf.
The Wiley Handbook of Sustainability in Higher Education Learning and TeachingCall Number: EbookPublication Date: 2022A reference for the higher education community to embed sustainability in learning and teaching.
- Teaching and learning about sustainability in higher educationSylvania Library 378.101 T43 2020. This special issue of New Directions for Teaching and Learning, focused on teaching about sustainability across higher education coursework, is divided into three overarching parts: (I) An Overview of Education for Sustainability in Higher Education; (II) Promising Pedagogical Practices for Education for Sustainability; and (III) Ideal Outcomes of Education for Sustainability.
- No Sustainability Without Justice: An Anthology on Racial Equity and Social Justice (volume III)From AASHE -- an anthology of essays with perspectives on how racial equity, social justice, diversity and inclusion are integral components to sustainability, and are particularly relevant for higher education sustainability practitioners.
- Sustainability Education ResourcesArchive of older resources.