El camino hacia el desarrollo sostenible de los clusters industriales: un estudio entre los futuros líderes del cluster textil valenciano

We are facing a paradigm shift in which the need to take sustainability into account in each andevery area of society is becoming increasingly evident. In this context, industrial clusters mustbe able to face this challenge with great solvency, and for this, the predisposition shown byfuture business leaders and managers is essential.The aim of this research was to shed light on the perception that university students,as future members of the management area of companies in industrial clusters, have aboutsustainability and the incorporation of more sustainable strategies in these companies. Basedon the information collected from a sample of 300 university students of the Alcoy Campus ofthe Universitat Politècnica de València in Spain, which is located in the area of influence of theValencian textile cluster, the results obtained in this research reveal a significant general interestin aspects linked to sustainability, although with different intensities depending on the gender ofthe students and the type, year and level of studies undertaken. In addition, university studentsshow a greater preference for strategies aimed at the development of more energy-efficientand sustainable infrastructures, the greater incorporation of renewable energies and sustainableinnovation processes, among others. The results also highlight the significant influence that theinclusion of training in sustainability and environmental ethics in university curricula can haveon these processes. All these findings may have relevant implications for educational research,as well as for cluster policies and business strategies. Estamos ante un cambio de paradigma en el que la necesidad de tener en cuenta la sostenibilidaden todos y cada uno de los ámbitos de la sociedad se hace cada vez más patente. En este contexto,los clusters industriales deben ser capaces de afrontar este reto con solvencia y, para ello, lapredisposición que muestren los futuros líderes y dirigentes empresariales se antoja imprescindible.Este trabajo ha pretendido arrojar luz sobre la percepción que los estudiantesuniversitarios, como futuros integrantes de las áreas de dirección y gestión de las empresas delos clusters industriales, tienen acerca de la sostenibilidad y de la incorporación de estrategiasmás sostenibles en las mismas. A partir de la información recogida en una muestra de 300estudiantes universitarios del Campus de Alcoy de la Universitat Politècnica de València enEspaña, el cual se encuentra ubicado en