Sustainability Co-Design Project

About

This initiative supported Concordia’s Sustainability in the Curriculum under the Sustainability Action Plan. The Sustainability Co-Design project was an opportunity to answer the students’ call to target those issues important to them and have all participants benefit from a renewed teaching and learning experience. 

When embedding sustainability in course curricula, various constraints including workload challenges and the uncertainty of where or how to start could present barriers. The CTL was interested in reducing these barriers, and this project was specifically meant for programs that wanted to enhance their courses with a sustainability lens. 

The project is based on a Student as Partners collaboration model, with undergraduate and graduate students working collaboratively with faculty to redesign a unit or develop an instructional module in their course. The co-design teams received support from a curricular developer for sustainability at the Office of the Vice-Provost, Innovation in Teaching and Learning (VPITL) and from an instructional designer at the CTL. Furthermore, students and faculty were guided by sustainability mentors, Concordia faculty who are deeply engaged with sustainability.

Results and impacts

• Eight editions of the co-design project resulted in 15 redesigned courses.
• For participating faculty: support in re-designing courses, gained fresh perspectives from students, and revitalized their teaching.
• For participating students: 100% of participating students grasped basic course design and understood professors' viewpoints. Students found the experience unforgettable, cathartic, and wonderful.
• Co-design teams: High satisfaction. Enhanced project-based learning. 
• Enrolled students: Novel learning via revamped teaching, sustainability-discipline interconnections. 
• Impact on curriculum: 30% to 60% increase in sustainability content integration, average redesign of 5+ learning outcomes, inclusion of multiple Sustainable Development Goals.

Sustainability Sparks: Faculty resources for infusing sustainability in the curriculum

During this webinar in 2024, interested faculty, staff, and students were invited to dive into what education for sustainability can mean and explore innovative teaching methods for sustainability across disciplines. This was also the opportunity to discover the Sustainability Co-Design Project, a collaborative effort where students and educators partner to integrate sustainability into courses. We learned from past teams, were inspired, and participated in a dynamic Q&A session for interdisciplinary insights.  

Showcase event

On May 16, 2023, several Sustainability Co-Design teams gathered to show how they have revisited their course curricula to connect discipline-specific content with sustainability issues. Together with Provost Anne Whitelaw, Vice-Provost of Innovation in Teaching and Learning Sandra Gabriele, Concordia faculty and staff and students interested in promoting Education for Sustainability, we celebrated the great strides our teams made and learned about their journey on the project. The event recording is available below, via the 4TH SPACE YouTube channel.

The event received the gold level of Concordia’s Sustainable Events Certification.

Resources