Framework to Integrate Sustainability in Curriculum

sustainability framework quadrants: What, why, how, where

Seneca students care about their families, their communities, and the planet. As educators, let’s share the responsibility of helping students become agents of change who navigate real-world problems using equitable and sustainable approaches.

The purpose of this resource is to help Seneca faculty educate students in environmental, social and economic sustainability in ways that positively impact future generations.

You can explore each quadrant of the framework in any way that suits your needs and goals. Each quadrant includes Guiding Questions and a Take Action tab for deeper exploration into sustainability resources.

What is Sustainability?

To get started, reflect on your own knowledge and attitudes towards the climate crisis, environmental degradation, climate justice, global sustainability, and how your industry relates to sustainability. How confident are you in your knowledge of sustainability?

Next, create your own definition of sustainability without consulting any resources. After you develop your definition, compare it with Seneca’s definition provided in the Seneca Libraries Sustainability Guide. Do you see any gaps? Similarities? Differences? This analysis will help you solidify your ideas about sustainability and consider how it might be integrated into your course. 

Explore the guiding questions below, and then select the “Take Action” link to dig a little deeper into the meaning of sustainability.

Guiding questions:

What role does sustainability play in my value system, my day-to-day life and my work life?
How can I become aware of my students’ learning needs in sustainability?

Why sustainability?

"Indigenous teachings speak of a “seventh generation principle.” This emphasizes that decisions made today should consider the impacts that will be seen seven generations from now. Our individual and collective decision-making must consider the generations to come if we are to realize a truly sustainable future" (Seneca Sustainability Plan 2021-2026).

By integrating sustainability into the classroom, we are fostering a collective sustainability mindset shared by everyone in the Seneca community and considering future generations in all that we do.

Advancing sustainability into our practice also means that we are intentionally and respectfully weaving Indigenous worldviews and philosophies through relevant areas of curriculum, helping the Seneca community advance towards the Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s Call to Action.

Guiding Questions:

In Indigenous teachings, “every aspect of the land, the water, the plants, the animals, all are related and are considered sacred beings to be cared for and protected.” (Why Land Matters, Seneca Skoden Resource, 2021). How does my personal idea of sustainability reflect my spiritual, emotional, physical and cognitive self?
How can I apply the Seventh Generation Principle to my personal and professional life?
How do other communities around the world practice sustainability in ways that may not always be recognized or described as such?

How can I integrate sustainability into my course?

Whether you teach a pathway, diploma, degree, or post-graduate course, you can bring sustainability into your classroom. You can integrate it explicitly in course learning outcomes, assessments and materials, but you can also weave it through your lessons through discussion.

Bringing sustainability into the classroom means:

encouraging “ah-ha” moments that deepen our personal connections to global sustainability issues.
engaging students through sustainability issues, themes and topics, and promoting active participation, data collection, and real-world projects.
connecting with students’ identities, languages, nationalities and cultures. This engages students in global sustainability topics and motivates them to navigate complex challenges.
weaving Indigenous principles into materials, assessments and discussions, and by strengthening our personal relationships with the land, with the whole selves, and with each other.

Guiding Questions

What is the connection between my teaching topics and sustainability?
What does the literature say about embedding sustainability into the teaching and learning of my discipline?
How can I initiate discussions with students through objectives, activities, projects and assessments?
What climate crises are currently taking place in regions that my students are from?

You are now on your way to fostering a culture of sustainability in your courses. Sustainability integration and curriculum development are ongoing, iterative processes, so we hope you return to this resource again, again, and again.

This resource is brought to you by Seneca’s Teaching & Learning Centre, in collaboration with Seneca's Sustainability Committee and Seneca’s Sustainability Education and Research Subcommittee.

We are grateful to the numerous subject-matter experts who generously shared their time and expertise to improve this resource.

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