Concepts of Sustainability in Finnish Higher Education

In other words, there is a request for HEIs to both talk the talk and walk the walk. In this paper I will look at, why sustainability has received so much attention in the last years, how it has been included in higher education, and what kind of future developmental needs can be identified.

In the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, adopted by all United Nations Member States in 2015, education is identified as one of the 17 sustainable development goals (SDG). The fourth SDG is to ensure inclusive and equitable quality education and promote lifelong learning opportunities for all (United Nations 2022). The fact that education is mentioned as a goal of its own shows, what a crucial role education plays in promoting sustainability and generating change. However, the role of education is far from limited to just this one SDG. I even dare to claim, that education and educational institutions play a crucial role in implementing all of the strategic goals. If we want to see change, we need more knowledge and we need education.

Due to the above mentioned, higher education institutions have been considered to have an important role in implementing and enhancing the sustainability goals, since sustainable development was put on the agenda of the United Nations (Frizon & Eugenio 2018, 3; Lim et al. 2022, 2). Also UNESCO has urged HEIs to play their collective role, in order to achieve the targets of sustainable development goals (Lim et al. 2022, 1). This has been manifested in different ways. The most obvious way is perhaps how the topic sustainable development has been included in the curriculums of the HEI’s (Leal Filho et al. 2019, 684). The role of the HEI is highlighted also in other contexts and in the agenda for a variety of organizations. For example, the Finnish Ministry of Education has stressed the role of HEI’s as promoters of sustainable social development (Ministry of Education and Culture 2021). Moreover, the HEI’s themselves has pointed out the role of research and development, and how they play an important role in finding new solutions to the current problems we are facing (Arene 2020).

As Friman et al. (2018, 367) show, the curriculum of the HEI is an important tool for controlling what is included in the university courses and what the students learn. The role of the curriculum is to enhance students’ skills and competences as well as influence attitudes and values. Research shows that sustainable development nowadays is included in the curriculum of most universities, and knowledge about sustainable development is considered to be essential for students. How much teaching is included and how the subject is thought varies quite a lot from university to university, and even significant variations are to be found even within the same university (Boström et al. 2018, 8; Friman et al. 2018, 368; Leal Filho et al. 2019, 684).

The role of HEI’s has traditionally been to educate experts in different fields. That is also the case when it comes to sustainable development, but what is different here is that we need experts who are capable of scrutinizing and solving wicked problems (Friman et al. 2018, 370). Therefore, we need to involve people from different fields and with different backgrounds. We cannot solve the problems we currently face if we do not take a multidisciplinary approach. In a study on learning for sustainable development by Boström et al. (2018, 13), the researchers identified a bias towards an individualistic and cognitive view on learning as transfer of information. They suggest a transformative learning approach would be more suitable. In a transformative learning approach learning does not simply happen based on progress in the knowledge base, but implies a process of change for both organizations and individuals.

It has also been stressed that strategical planning is essential in the process to develop sustainable solutions and raise awareness about sustainability. Leal Filho et al (2019, 683) claim planning is the starting point for creating a joint vision and making the commitment needed in order to make a change. Based on their research, Leal Filho et al. (2019, 684) conclude that universities need a planning framework for sustainable development and right now many universities are lacking this kind of framework. Moreover, successful work within the field of sustainability also requires an official body responsible for the implementation of the sustainable development programme, resources for implementation as well as good communication.

As Frizon and Eugenio (2022, 10) point out, the role that HEI’s play in knowledge creation has wide-ranging implications for global efforts to find sustainability solutions. In this context, knowledge creation cannot, and should not, be restricted to teaching and learning. The role of research and development is crucial when it comes to finding new technological solutions, enabling technology transfer and finding more sustainable business models. Purcell, Henriksen and Spengler (2019, 1353) claim that the role of universities is to function as the engine of transformational sustainability toward delivering the sustainable development goals. They suggest universities should serve as living labs to enable multidisciplinary development and research. 

In a study comparing sustainable development in education in Finland and Brazil, Friman et al. (2018, 366) noticed that there are significant differences in terms of national sustainable development policies and in terms of how government steers the HEI’s in their sustainable development work. In both countries the HEI’s include sustainable development in their work and in their curriculums. But in Finnish sustainable development policy programmes, governmental officials clearly count on HEI’s to take a central role in the work. For example, in agreements between the Ministry of Education and Culture and individual HEIs a clear statement, that all HEIs in Finland should promote sustainable development in their operations, have been included.

One example of the Finnish Government’s efforts to promote sustainable development is the Sustainability Roadmap that was launched in 2021 (Finnish Government 2021). In this policy document the Finnish government sets the objective of a socially, economically and ecologically sustainable society that has been lined out in the Government Programme. One main goal in the programme is to raise the level of education and competence in order to support employment and renewal of the labor market. The action points are set out more in detail in a separate roadmap for developing sustainable education (Ministry of Education and Culture 2021). The main goals are to improve access to higher education, shorten the actual duration of the studies, increase the number of international students in Finland and to promote continuous learning.

The role of HEIs in promoting sustainability can shortly be summarized in two points: providing education and conducting research on the topic. As such, very familiar roles to university organizations. The novelty lies in the way it is done. We cannot use old models to solve new problems.

As can be seen from the figure, and noted in the programme as well, the universities of applied sciences emphasize handprints more than footprints. This is not to say that footprints are not important, but the HEI’s have clearly identified their possibility to make an impact and therefore reducing footprints is not enough. Through education and research, a lot of students, staff members and companies can be reached and included. This opens up opportunities to raise awareness, educate future experts and develop new innovations. (Arene 2020.)

In order to enhance sustainability through education, the organizations have committed to ensuring that all graduates will have at least a basic understanding of sustainable development, to provide education for lifelong learning and to promote accessibility of higher education so that everyone regardless of their background, financial situation, disability, gender etc. will have access to higher education. In order to improve sustainability through research and development, the institutions have committed to developing criteria for sustainable and responsible R&D, to produce solutions to sustainability challenges and promote sustainable development in cooperation with the higher education community, business life and the public sector. (Arene 2020.)

The universities of applied sciences have set out to be carbon neutral in 2030. In order to achieve this goal, they have developed a joint model for calculating the emission of each university and an updated calculation is to be done annually. They have also agreed on jointly planned measures to reduce carbon footprint and emissions. The universities of applied sciences state that at the moment, the most significant contributions to the carbon footprint are related to commuting and travelling, real estate, food services, and procurements. Consequently, the planned measures will also be related to these areas. (Arene 2020.)

In 2022, a steering group was appointed by Arene with the mission to renew the joint competences for students at universities of applied sciences. The purpose of listing joint competences is to identify what kind of working life competencies is needed across different fields of education and generate a national framework. How the identified competences are included in the curriculum is up to each university of applied sciences. One of the listed competencies is sustainable development. According to the policy document, every student graduating from a Finnish university of applied sciences should have the basic knowledge about sustainable development, know how to promote sustainable development and be able to function as a responsible member of the working life and the community. (Arene 2022.)