Selected Webinars
“Developing a Mindset for a Better World”
Wednesday, May 12, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern/11:00 AM Pacific
Isabel Rimanoczy
PRME Working Group on the Sustainability Mindset
It is becoming clear for all: Sustainability starts in the mindset. Whether it’s called “sustainability mind-shift”, the ‘inner new green deal”, or the ‘inner development goals’: the handwriting is on the wall. Now the question is: Yes, but how?
In this webinar Isabel Rimanoczy will share the Sustainability Mindset Principles, a scaffolding to guide educators and coaches in creating activities and interventions to develop the mindset that can shape a better world.
Dr. Rimanoczy is the Convener of the PRME Working Group on the Sustainability Mindset, a network of academics in 55+ countries and 160 institutions. She has 15 years researching the mindset for sustainability and how to develop it, and is currently working on the Sustainability Mindset Indicator.
Video available at:
Practical Ways to Get Radical in Higher Ed
Tuesday, April 6, 2021
2:00 PM Eastern/11:00 AM Pacific
Debbie Kasper
Hiram College
There is widespread agreement that radical and immediate social changes are necessary to avert catastrophic collapse of earth systems and allow for the possibility of sustaining healthy human civilizations. Among other challenges, achieving this level of transformation requires an unprecedented degree of social learning. Many argue that higher education could (and some say should) play a central role in facilitating this learning. Despite decades of earnest and well-intentioned efforts, however, higher education—even sustainability-oriented higher ed—has not yet risen to the challenge. A deeper transformation of education itself is needed if we are to create the kind of transformative education our circumstances demand. Drawing on insights from her new book, Beyond the Knowledge Crisis, Debbie Kasper looks at some of the deeper reasons for this apparent failing. In attending to the roots of the problem, she argues, we gain insights into some practical actions we can take now, in the classroom and in our curricula, to help create the conditions for effecting the more radical changes called for.
Debbie Kasper is a sociologist and Associate Professor of Environmental Studies at Hiram College in Northeast OH. Her teaching and scholarship reflect a commitment to integrating knowledge, establishing common ground, and demonstrating the practical value of big ideas. Among her eclectic course offerings are Intro to Socio-Environmental Studies, Human Settlements, Permaculture Basics, and Systems Thinking & Social Change. Her book Beyond the Knowledge Crisis: A Synthesis Framework for Socio-Environmental Studies and Guide to Social Change was published by Palgrave-Macmillan in 2021.
Link to video recording:
SCC Roundtable
Tuesday, January 26, 2021
12:00 Noon Eastern/9:00 AM Pacific
“Sharing Perspectives on the National Academies Report on Sustainability in Higher Education”
Invited panelists:
(affiliations for identification purposes only)
Rebecca Potter, University of Dayton
Todd LeVasseur, College of Charleston
Krista Hiser, University of Hawaii
Michael Reiter, Bethune-Cookman University
Paul Barresi, Southern New Hampshire University
David Blockstein, AESS and Solve Climate 2030
Madhavi Venkatesan, Sustainable Practices, Ltd. and Northeastern University
Cody Edwards, George Mason University
Aaron Redman, Arizona State University
Peter Soyka, Soyka & Co.
This Roundtable brings together a panel of leaders in sustainability in higher education to share their perspectives on the recently-published report from the National Academies, “Strengthening Sustainability Programs and Curricula at the Undergraduate and Graduate Levels.” All of the individuals invited have followed the 18-month process that resulted in this report. Some attended workshops in the process; others were advance reviewers of the report; and all are actively involved in the ongoing discourse on sustainability curricula, competencies and learning outcomes.
The purpose of this Roundtable is not to recap or summarize the National Academies report. The discussion assumes that attendees will familiarize themselves with the report in advance. The link to the free download from the National Academies website is provided below. Several members of the 6-person committee tasked by the National Academies have appeared at recent major conferences — including the AASHE and NCSE/Drawdown online events — to present their committee’s take on the report’s findings and to offer their recommendations. Those summary presentations are available on the respective conference websites.
The Roundtable format will be a moderated discussion. We expect to elicit varied views and opinions reflecting the range of reactions to the report in the community of practice thus far. The panelists will present their own individual insights and analyses and are not speaking for their institutions. None of the panelists have been asked to preview or tailor their remarks. All have simply been asked to prepare in response to the following three questions: What topics are covered well in the report; what topics could have been covered better or more completely; and where has the report missed the boat? After the anticipated lively panel discussion, attendees will have the opportunity to comment or ask questions via the moderator, as we have done in all SCC webinars.
Video available at::
Strengthening Sustainability Programs and Curricula at the Undergraduate and Graduate Levels (2020)
Free download from the National Academies website:
Description from the National Academies website:
Over the past decade there has been a growing interest in sustainability education in colleges and universities across the United States, with a marked increase in the number of undergraduate and graduate degree programs, research institutes, and centers focused on sustainability. Evidence-based core competencies for interdisciplinary sustainability programs can provide suitable guidance for curricular and program development, research, policy, communication, and pedagogical approaches at academic institutions. They can also serve as a guide for students to select academic programs and potential career options, a reference for employers to understand qualifications of graduates, and the foundation for a potential specialized accreditation for interdisciplinary sustainability programs. The growing demand for well-qualified sustainability professionals within the public, private, and nonprofit sectors also points to the value of developing core competencies.
A Short Course and Practicum on Equity & Justice
Thursdays, October 8, 15, 22, 29
7PM – 9PM Eastern; 4PM – 6PM Pacific
The Sustainability Curriculum Consortium is pleased to announce
in collaboration with The Foresight Lab
a 4-week online course and practicum for faculty on an especially timely topic:
“Truth, Lies, Peace & Reconciliation:
Teaching and Building Capacity to Deliver an Era of Social Equity & Justice”
Designed and Delivered by The Foresight Lab Regenerative Design Program
This program is a hybrid synchronous and asynchronous short course and co-creative group collaboration for faculty and directors in Sustainability in Higher Education
Background:
The work of The Foresight Lab in forging peace & reconciliation outcomes, and guiding the transformation of municipal police departments through the craft of diplomacy is deep and broad. Their work in this domain directly contributes to their Vision of The Regenerative Economy: An engine driving consistent and inspiring, and measurable, gains in social, economic, and ecological well-being. This pioneering effort has led to successful social justice interventions in Ferguson, MO, Charleston, SC, Philadelphia, PA, Atlanta, GA, and Baltimore, MD, among many other communities.
Program description, goals & outcomes:
Through this course, we will
1) Demonstrate how the tools of statecraft, or international diplomacy can transform policing, social justice dislocations, and breakdowns in community equity;
2) Deliver clear pedagogical guidance into how to teach across the social intervention platforms of diplomacy, systemics, and complexity science; and
3) convey to delegates the skills of advanced convening and conflict resolution as classroom tools and skills for next generation leaders.
Session themes:
-Introduction to Regenerative Development: Systemics & Social Change as Tools to Redress Broken Policing Models & Deliver Just Outcomes
-History of Reconciliation: Diplomacy on the Global Stage Catalyzing Peace & Unity
-Leadership & Character: The Spirit of Ubuntu, Honor, & Dignity as Foundations for Equity & Justice
-Power, Love, and Honor Within and Amongst Nations: Transmuting Battlefield Peace-Keeping into Communities and Nation States
Pedagogies presented:
-Teaching Techniques as Models of Diplomacy
-Emergent Learning: Pedagogical Design for Transformation
-Potent Inquiry: Teaching & Refining Radically Disruptive Critical Thinking Skills
-Fieldwork : A New Generation of Real-World Learning
-Skill-building and gain-sharing – Shared Destiny in the Classroom & Lived Transformation in Communities
Program participation fee includes access to synchronous live sessions on GoToMeeting and access to readings, discussions and co-created materials between live sessions on the Collaborase platform.
Synchronous Dates: Thursdays, October 8, 15, 22, 29, 7PM – 9PM Eastern; 4PM – 6PM Pacific.
To request further details and registration information: