Mission impossible or never ending story Working on whole system change towards sustainability at th

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Mission impossible - or never ending story?
Working on whole system change towards
sustainability at the University of Plymouth,
UK 

• Dr Stephen Sterling
• Centre for Sustainable Futures
• University of Plymouth, UK

CREE seminar University of Bath 13th July 2009
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Outline

• Context and challenge
• CSFs approach
• Barriers and plusses
• Progress - and work in progress
• What weve learnt/implications for others
• Some deeper questions...

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• Context and challenge

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Reinventing the university

• it is pre-eminently in the universities that we
  should be thinking hardest about the implications
  of the whole world-system for our common life and
  its future, and bringing the best of our
  available intelligence to bear on the necessary
  changes. If not there, where? If thats not the
  business of universities in the early
  twenty-first century, what on earth are they
  for?
• John Foster, 2007
• From review of Michael MGonigles Planet U
  Reinventing the University

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Vision

• The transformation of the UoP - from an
  institution characterised by significant areas of
  excellence in ESD - to an institution modelling
  university-wide excellence and hence able to make
  a major contribution to ESD regionally,
  nationally and internationally.

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The context the UoP

• Largest university in the southwest with over
  30,000 students and is the fifth largest UK
  university based on student population.
• It has almost 3,000 staff and an annual income
  of around 160 million.
• Currently markets itself as the enterprise
  university.

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Centre for Sustainable Futures Key features

• Five-year Centre for Excellence in Teaching and
  Learning (2005-10)
• 4.5 million (2M Capital spend in first 18
  months) from Higher Education Funding Council
  for England
• Core Team of 9 (Director, Associate Director,
  Reader, Centre Manager, Research
  Coordinator, 2 Research Assistants,
  Administrator, 1 Student Assistant )
• Probably largest sustainability-related
  pedagogical and institutional change research
  team in UK
• CSF directly linked to the Office of the Vice
  Chancellor
• 2005-9 43 bought-out academics normally on a .2
  basis
• Centre a once-derelict building retrofitted to
  high sustainability standards

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• CSFs approach

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Proposition

• Whole system change depends on developing a
  sufficient critical, collective and connective
  intelligence - with regard to both systematic and
  systemic aspects of organisational change.

Leadership is shifting the collective attention
at all levels Scharmer, 2006
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Towards holistic change - the 4C model developed
by CSF at Plymouth
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And some more Cs....
Coherence
Connection
Communication
Consistency
Congruence
Collaboration
Outcome
Process
Foci
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Two dimensions of change

• Systematic frameworks
• - policies, strategies, rules, procedures,
  assessment, evaluation, structures etc

• Systemic
• glue
• - collegiality, social learning and exchange,
  informal networks, collective intelligence,
  ethos, self-organisation etc

enabler role
converter role
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Two arenas of learning

• Structured learning
• - intentioned learning amongst students in
  formal education which arises from educational
  policies and practices

• Attendant learning
• - the social learning response to sustainability
  in organisations, institutions and
• their actors

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CSFs approach - action keywords

• Learning
• Dialoguing
• Inviting
• Mentoring
• Facilitating
• Valuing
• Challenging
• Supporting
• Opportunism
• Platforming
• Connecting

Initiating
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• Barriers and plusses

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Advantages of CSF 2005-9

• Well funded. Some prestige as CETL
• Well connected, knowledgeable staff
• Initial chancellery support Corporate plan
• Unusual status in university, belonging to no
  faculty, and no previous baggage
• Free rein and encouragement from HEFCE to be
  innovative
• Quite fertile ground levels of interest,
  awareness and existing activity
• Funded connection with HE Academy ESD Project
• Reputation in wider field and expectations on UP
• Supportive context increasing sustainability
  profile in HE and wider society

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Barriers Plusses

• UoP barriers include
• Uncertain institutional commitment
• Other agendas at senior level (compatibility?)
• Communication
• Policy incoherence
• Limited understanding of sustainability outside
  the converted
• Little tradition of interdisciplinarity or
  pedagogic innovation
• CSF small part in large institution end of
  funding looming

• Positives include
• Support/progress at senior management level
• CSF 5 yr funding and experience
• Pockets of expertise and enthusiasm across
  university
• Funded connection with UK HE Academy
• External recognition of UoPs reputation
  profile
• Rising expectation, initiatives and interest in
  HE and wider society around sustainability

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• Progress and work in progress

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Self-imposed criteria (CSF)

• Sustainability vision policy statement
• Whole institution strategy and action plan
• SEO with known responsibility for implementation
• Senior executive committee
• Regular sustainability and environmental auditing
• Sustainability applied to all aspects of campus
  operation
• Ethical investment policy
• Excellent internal communication
• Excellent external communication of
  sustainability message

• Holistic perception and management of 4 Cs
• Embedding sustainability in formal and informal
  learning of students
• Sustainability principles and pedagogy in LT
  policy
• University sustainability research centre and
  research strategy
• Culture of organisational learning and
  improvement
• Concern for wellbeing of whole community as well
  as achievement

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How are we doing (roughly)?

• Sustainability vision policy statement - 4
• Whole institution strategy and action plan - 3
• SEO with known responsibility for implementation
  2.5
• Senior executive committee
• Regular sustainability and environmental auditing
  - 4
• Sustainability applied to all aspects of campus
  operation - 4
• Ethical investment policy 2.5
• X Excellent internal communication - 1
• Excellent external communication of
  sustainability message - 3

• Holistic perception and management of 4 Cs - 2
• Embedding sustainability in formal and informal
  learning of students - 3
• Sustainability principles and pedagogy in LT
  policy - 4
• University sustainability research centre and
  research strategy (potentially) 3/4
• Culture of organisational learning and
  improvement 3.5
• Concern for wellbeing of whole community as well
  as achievement 3

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Whats good, so far?

• Sustainability adopted as one of three platform
  foci for the university Corporate Plan
• Sustainability policy March 2008
• Sustainability Strategic Action Plan, with 72
  actions and tracking facility
• Sustainability Advisory Group in chancellery
• ISO140001 and BS8900
• Signed Earth Charter
• Sustainable procurement policy
• Ethical investment policy in pipeline
• Campus developments and CAALR project
• Student engagement Sound Impact, Green Gowns,
  Green Week
• Curriculum innovation
• Research Occasional Papers on key aspects of HE
  sustainability
• External recognition e.g. HEFCE, HEA, and Green
  League top position averaged out over last three
  years

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Green gowns - shortlisted

• Green ICT PlymDESK5 Enhancing the Universitys
  Green Credentials With a Full Life-Cycle Desktop
  Service
• Continuous improvement institutional changeA
  model for Institutional Change and Transformation
• Social responsibility
• Shattering Glass Walls to Deliver Sustainable
  Community Enterprise

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UoP Green Agenda

• Through our development plan and key policies we
  have committed to
• Conservation of natural resources used by the
  university
• Minimising adverse environmental effects of
  travelling
• Ethical and sustainable procurement
• The well being of our people and employee
  relations
• Enhancing our community and public engagement
• Developing sustainability-literate graduates

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CSFs curriculum related work includes

• UP Sustainability Policy and Action Plan
• Supporting the sustainability dimension in
  Skills Plus policy
• Integrating sustainability into LTHE
• Sowing Seeds sustainability module guidance
• Staff wiki site on ESD resources and practice
• Web-based interactive learning activities bank
• Professional Support Programme (PSP) as part of
  Staff Development
• Scholarship scheme with Schumacher College
• Curriculum stories research (curriculum
  development experience)
• Learning and teaching framework (in prep)

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Sowing SeedsHOW TO MAKE YOUR MODULES A BIT MORE
SUSTAINABILITY ORIENTED A help guide to writing
and modifying modules to incorporate
sustainability principles     Ce
ntre for Sustainable Futures University of
Plymouth  
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A few outputs...

• CSF Occasional Paper 3 Getting it Together -
  Interdisciplinarity and Sustainability in the
  Higher Education Institution
• http//csf.plymouth.ac.uk/?qnode/712
• Jones, P,Trier, C. and Richards, J. Embedding
  Education for Sustainable  Development in Higher
  Education A Case Study Examining Common
  Challenges and Opportunities for undergraduate
  Programmes.
• http//www.sciencedirect.com/science?_
• Kagawa, F., Selby, D. and Trier, C.  2007.
  Exploring students' perceptions of interactive
  pedagogies in education for sustainable
  development.  Planet, 17, 53-56
• http//www.gees.ac.uk/planet/index.htm
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• Selby, D.  2007.  The catalyst that is
  sustainability Bringing permeability to
  disciplinary boundaries.  Planet, 17, 57-59.
• http//www.gees.ac.uk/planet/index.htm
• Sowing Seeds HOW TO MAKE YOUR MODULES A BIT MORE
  SUSTAINABILITY ORIENTED http//csf.plymouth.ac.uk/
  ?qnode/585
• Cotton et al (2009) Revolution s and second best
  solutions ESD in HE, Studies in Higher
  Education

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CSF Occasional Papers

• Paper 1 Marketing University Sustainability
  Credentials
• Paper 2 Green Travel Plans
• Paper 3 Getting it Together - Interdisciplinarity
  and Sustainability in the Higher Education
  Institution
• Paper 4 Internationalisation and Sustainability
  in the Higher Education Snug or Strange
  Bedfellows?
• Paper 5 Sustainability and Governance
• Paper 6 Enterprise Earthwise - Researching the
  relationship between enterprise and
  sustainability in HE
• Paper 7 Towards the Healthy University
  Sustainability and Well-being in Higher Education
  Institutions

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• What weve learnt implications for others

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What weve learnt....

• Dont over-reach your capacity
• Marketing and communication is vital
• Attract allies and support them
• Create spaces for discussion, exchange and trust
  building
• Make connections that wouldnt otherwise exist
• Dont assume too much
• Slow is the new fast
• Balance systematic and systemic aspects
• Balance your grit function with your
  integrative function
• Value and build on existing things that support
  sustainability
• Continually learn how the organisation works
• Be exemplary as far as reasonable
• Ensure feedback
• Passion and commitment is key but hard to
  sustain
• Keywords invitation, challenge, persistence,
  opportunism, profile, external recognition,
  celebration...

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• Deeper questions

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However....

• There is always a tendency for significant
  challenges (such as education for sustainability)
  to be understood and accommodated within the
  norms of the existing system - rather than change
  the system to be congruent with the challenge
  (first order change).

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EUSD?

• at present most of our universities are still
  leading the way in advancing the kind of
  thinking, teaching and research thataccelerates
  un-sustainability (Wals 2008, 31).
• Wals, A (2008) (ed.) From cosmetic reform to
  meaningful integration implementing education
  for sustainable development in higher education
  institutes - the state of affairs in six European
  countries, DHO, Amsterdam.

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UoP as the enterprise university (so how does
that leave sustainability?)

• No problem
• There are no tensions between the two,
  enterprise and sustainability are
  interchangeable. quote from UoP staff
• Subsumation
• Enterprise should be thought of within the
  context of sustainability, otherwise its likely
  to be unsustainable. quote from UoP staff
• Happy marriage?
• at Plymouth, we are particularly interested in
  the role that we can play in the community,
  enhancing the impact of our volunteering and that
  of ethical, sustainable and socially-focused
  enterprise
• - Wendy Purcell, VC

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UoP a story of transformation...or accommodation?

• How about your story?
• Differences, commonalities?
• What patterns of thinking lie beneath
• commonly occurring resistances to change?
• What kind of learning and change needs to occur
  within policy and practice so that sustainability
  competencies, understandings and values are more
  likely to be fostered amongst staff and students?
  
• How can such learning and change be encouraged
  rapidly but also deeply and critically?
• How do we balance urgency and practicability?
• What does it take to achieve the really
  sustainable university fit for our times?

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• Centre for Sustainable FuturesKirkby
  LodgeUniversity of PlymouthDrake CircusDevon
  PL4 8AAUnited Kingdom01752 588890csf_at_plymout
  h.ac.ukESD CETLwww.csf.plymouth.ac.uk

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Ultimately, its not about...
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Its about...
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Useful websites

• Centre for Sustainable Futures (CSF) at UP
• www.csf.plymouth.ac.uk
• HEFCEs online resource for sustainable
  development in HE http//www.hefce.ac.uk/susdevres
  ources/
• Higher Education Academy ESD Project
  http//www.heacademy.ac.uk/esd
• Environmental Association for Universities and
  Colleges (EAUC) http//www.eauc.org.uk