A framework to enable sustainability-oriented transition activities in HEIs: Learnings from two case studies in Germany and Switzerland

Publikation: Beiträge in ZeitschriftenZeitschriftenaufsätzeForschung

Authors

Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) can significantly contribute to sustainability transitions, as they facilitate research, education and knowledge transfer. The integration of sustainability in research touches many scientific disciplines and beyond this affects developments in the entire institution. Enabling a transition towards sustainability requires intense examinations and decisive activities. Even while the literature deals with potential activities and examples of best practice, the initiation phase of such activities has been poorly explored. This article attempts to address this gap by contributing to an enhanced understanding of the initiation of activities towards sustainability-related research by i) presenting a procedure which gives practical guidance in identifying opportunities of action for sustainability-related research in a the unique situation of a university and to launch implementation of them and ii) by proposing a framework to describe critical factors of the initiation phase of activities which bridges three perspectives: a) the consideration of stakeholder attributes of potentially involved persons; b) several types of boundary objects; and c) organizational features of involved institutions. With the two case studies of Leuphana University Lüneburg and University of Applied Science and Arts Northwestern Switzerland we indicate interested and motivated stakeholders as drivers for action. Further, the demand for exchange and networking within HEIs gave ground for activities of sustainability-related research in both cases. The boundary object served as useful concept to link stakeholder and organizational perspective in the action-oriented setting. In a critical discussion we explore the need for refinement of the conceptual components of the framework. Finally, we draw conclusions regarding the potential of transition towards sustainability in HEIs by further applying the procedure and refining the framework.
OriginalspracheEnglisch
Aufsatznummer134605
ZeitschriftJournal of Cleaner Production
Jahrgang379
ISSN0959-6526
DOIs
PublikationsstatusErschienen - 15.12.2022

Bibliographische Notiz

Publisher Copyright:
© 2022

DOI

Zuletzt angesehen

Publikationen

  1. Expert*inneninterview
  2. Reconstructing the “biopiracy” debate from a justice perspective
  3. On the combined effect of soil fertility and topography on tree growth in subtropical forest ecosystems - a study from SE China
  4. Narrative dialogic reading with wordless picture books
  5. Bank management of the net interest margin
  6. Analysis of ammonia losses after field application of biogas slurries by an empirical model
  7. Consequence evaluations and moral concerns about climate change
  8. Planning for Sea Spaces I: Processes, Practices and Future Perspectives
  9. Broad values as the basis for understanding deliberation about protected area management
  10. Article 66 CISG
  11. Power centres
  12. Mental models and attentional processes in car driving
  13. Technik – Magie – Medium
  14. Investigation of the deformation behavior of Fe-3%Si sheet metal with large grains via crystal plasticity and finite-element modeling
  15. Variational Pragmatics and World Englishes
  16. Success factors in Balanced Scorecard implementations
  17. The disproportionate value of scattered trees
  18. Working hour arrangements and working hours
  19. Understanding Similarities and Differences of Digital Health Platforms
  20. Germany Humboldt University in Berlin: Its Transformation in the Process of German Unification
  21. Comparison of Panel Cointegration Tests
  22. Revegetation in agricultural areas: the development of structural complexity and floristic diversity
  23. Digitale Transformation, quo vadis?
  24. Propagating Maximum Capacities for Recommendation
  25. Analysis of brittle layer forming mechanism in Ti6Al4V sloping structures by SLM technology
  26. Lagrangian analysis of long-term dynamics of turbulent superstructures
  27. Foreign and Domestic Takeovers in Germany: First Comparative Evidence on the Post-acquisition Target Performance using new Data