| Abstract: | In an era of dramatic human-induced environmental problems and failing socio-economic and
institutional systems, it is widely recognized that higher education has the legal, ethical and moral
responsibility to transform itself to become a leading force in catalyzing societal changes for
sustainable development (SD) by seriously threatening the well-being of current and future
generations. The objective of this paper was to review how HEIs around the world are addressing
SD principles and to draw lessons to Ethiopian Universities. Methodologically, the paper is a
systematic review of study reports, international agreements, charters and declarations and
practical University response case illustrations. Therefore; document analysis (content) of
secondary sources that are published in scholarly journals, discussion papers, government
working papers, declarations around the world were explored, sorted, classified and merged. Case
syntheses show that numerous HEIs sector-specific sustainability agreements, charters and
declarations have been created identifying areas which need to be addressed. Despite the action
needs to be taken are voluntary and not legally binding, curricula, research, campus operations,
community outreach, university collaboration and exchange, educating the educators, embedding
SD in to the institutional framework and in daily campus experiences, transdisciplinary ,
assessment and reporting related issues are commonplace regarding addressing sustainability
principles in HEIs. In Ethiopia, despite HEIs are responding to sustainability agenda specially in the
area of agriculture, environment and resource management by addressing SD principles,
institutional wide policy responses and practices are inadequate across disciples. Therefore;
reorienting curricula, exercising progressive pedagogies, developing partnership and quality
standards for SD, integrating SD in to research and development at university level, integrating SD
in to the qualifications framework and learning outcomes, integrating SD into quality assurance
systems are some of the lessons drawn from global experiences to be reconsidered in Ethiopian
HEIs contexts. |
