Education for Sustainable Development at the University Level: Interactions of the Need for Community, Fear of Indoctrination, and the Demands of Work

Promoting education for sustainable development (ESD) in schools and universities has captured the attention of global community. The process of promoting ESD programs in universities represents difficult and complex task. However, understanding the different elements that are involved in the activity of teaching for SD at the university level is needed to facilitate that promotion. Indeed, it is not well understood what personal and contextual elements are likely to support or inhibit university professors in their attempts to teach for SD. This study was designed to uncover these elements that are involved in a typical university classroom. A series of interviews with professors and students as well as classroom observations were used to collect the data for this study. Data analysis indicates that teaching for SD is complex and multifaceted. Furthermore, there are different contradictions and challenges that prevent university professors from teaching for SD (i.e. personal philosophies, perspectives, university rules, classroom size, teacher¿s responsibilities, and unclear understanding of the sustainability concept itself).