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Learning about sustainability: an interdisciplinary graduate seminar in biocomplexity

Catherine Mobley (Department of Sociology and Anthropology, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA)
Cindy Lee (School of Environmental Engineering and Earth Sciences, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA)
John C. Morse (Department of Entomology, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA)
Jeffery Allen (Water Resources Center, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA)
Christine Murphy (Academic Success Center, Clemson University, Clemson, South Carolina, USA)

International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education

ISSN: 1467-6370

Article publication date: 1 January 2014

631

Abstract

Purpose

The paper aims to report on the experiences moderating an interdisciplinary graduate-level sustainability seminar. Initiated in Fall 2002, the seminar has explored diverse sustainability topics and reached approximately 150 faculty and students. The paper describes how the course shaped participants' perceptions of sustainability and influenced their viewpoints on interdisciplinarity. The paper discusses the implications of this seminar format for communicating about sustainability and provides suggestions for replicating the course at other institutions.

Design/methodology/approach

Information about the course is complemented by analyses of the results of 15 in-depth interviews of students and faculty who have participated in the course.

Findings

The course facilitated positive outcomes for students and faculty by expanding their familiarity with interdisciplinary perspectives on sustainability and environmental issues, increasing respect for other disciplinary perspectives, learning the basic vocabulary of disciplines outside their area of expertise, and strengthening collaborations between faculty. The course can be strengthened with more involvement from colleagues from the humanities and social sciences, and with attention to equal participation from all involved.

Originality/value

The experience is unique in that it represents a nearly decade-long initiative to teaching about sustainability and biocomplexity from an interdisciplinary perspective. The innovative format, content, and pedagogical approach used for this course can be easily implemented in other disciplines. The learning community has facilitated other teaching and research endeavors. This model of sustainability education can advance understanding of complex environmental issues at a time when both interdisciplinarity and sustainability are becoming more common in higher education.

Keywords

Citation

Mobley, C., Lee, C., C. Morse, J., Allen, J. and Murphy, C. (2014), "Learning about sustainability: an interdisciplinary graduate seminar in biocomplexity", International Journal of Sustainability in Higher Education, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 16-33. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJSHE-09-2011-0063

Publisher

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Emerald Group Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2014, Emerald Group Publishing Limited

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