What does it need to prepare our societies for the much-needed social change, leading to sustainability-driven transformation? Raising awareness and anchoring sustainability in the minds of the younger generation, the actors and shapers of the future, is the first prerequisite. But promoting sustainability is far more than talking, far more than listening to proponents and teachers in courses dedicated to education for sustainable development. Instead, skills for the future – and the stimulus to actually make use of these skills – are required to trigger a viable transformational process. What does this imply for teaching and learning assignments in sustainability-driven contexts?
Taking praxiSDG as snapshot for an SDG-related learning opportunity and space, we are going to share some insights of how sustainability can be embraced at higher-education institutions. Learning is a holistic process that involves all senses for activation: “The whole (wo)man must move at once” (Peter Sloterdijk). It goes beyond the mere consumption of information and knowledge and aims at evoking self-efficacy in action and reflection.
Our service-learning format praxiSDG provides and advocates these situated contexts for inspiring ownership and tangible commitment. Participants get the chance to not only learn about sustainability but to apply their knowledge and transform it into tangible added value.
Our interactive praxiSDG-Chit-Chat-Bowl aims at promulgating positive notions of performing sustainability learning across all senses through audience involvement. We will be liaising unexpected and thrilling third places with reflected aspects of third mission and show how a holistic learning experience may constitute a promising driving force towards enlivened sustainability. To this end, we are going to share exclusive, work-in-progress insights on our SoTL-based research programme of praxiSDG.