1
Return

Towards holistic and interdisciplinary education for sustainable development: an analysis of English-medium ESD master’s programs in Europe

delete2026-03-10
delete0
delete
OA
AI
H
Huong Lan Nguyen
L
Lu Fu
S
Sakari Tolppanen
DOI:10.1108/ijshe-02-2025-0147delete
deleteOriginal
deleteShare
deleteSave
View PDF
Abstract

Abstract

En 中文
<jats:sec> <jats:title>Purpose</jats:title> <jats:p>Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) is critical in providing individuals with the information and abilities required to promote and achieve the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. This study aims to present a thorough overview of ESD master’s programmes programmes across Europe, the subjects and issues that these programmes address and most importantly, how these themes are connected.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Design/methodology/approach</jats:title> <jats:p>This study uses content and network analysis to investigate 16 English-medium ESD master programmes across Europe, looking for important elements, thematic focuses and interdisciplinary approaches in their curricular.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Findings</jats:title> <jats:p>The findings show a high level of interdisciplinarity, with 11 of 16 programmes incorporating various sustainability themes. Overall, the curricula’s main focus is the sociocultural dimension, which encompasses cultural values, ethics and citizenship. Themes of environmental sustainability and place-based education have the strongest connections throughout the courses, while social and economic sustainability are often studied together.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Research limitations/implications</jats:title> <jats:p>The authors call for future research that examines the extent to which holistic ESD curricula address the moral and ethical aspects of sustainability, and the integration of sustainability governance and sustainability in a digital age into higher education curricula.</jats:p> </jats:sec> <jats:sec> <jats:title>Originality/value</jats:title> <jats:p>This study adds to the body of literature on ESD in higher education by highlighting the main focus (sociocultural topics), the most connected subjects (place-based learning and environmental sustainability) and the less common interactions (governance and sustainability in digital era with the three sustainability pillars) in English-medium ESD programmes offered in European institutions.</jats:p> </jats:sec>
Keywords:
Education for Sustainable Development
Interdisciplinarity
Sociocultural Dimension
Place-Based Learning
Sustainability Governance
AI Summary

AI Summary

Key information extracted from the uploaded paper, including a brief overview, abstract, background, key highlights, visual analysis, and future outlook.

Journal

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education cover
International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education
IF:
3.4
Papers:
1.2K
Citations:
4.2K

Organization

D
deakin university
Scholars:
1.6K
Papers: 777
Citations: 1
U
University of Lapland
Scholars:
408
Papers: 424
Citations: 615
U
university of eastern finland
Scholars:
628
Papers: 246
Citations: 0
Cited Papers

Cited Papers

Citing Papers

Citing Papers