Undergraduate experiences with sustainability courses: insights for diversifying sustainability education

Many universities have committed to providing opportunities for all undergraduates to engage with sustainability education. However, the disciplines that comprise the broad field of environmental studies and sciences, including sustainability science, remain some of the least diverse scientific disciplines in terms of race, ethnic, and gender composition. To achieve commitments to students, institutions must increase diversity and foster inclusion in sustainability courses and programs. Information about how students perceive, decide to engage with, and experience sustainability education may provide insight into the lack of diversity and help shape efforts to make courses more inclusive. We contribute an analysis of undergraduate student experiences with sustainability courses at Boston University. Through a social survey, we find that respondents who have taken a sustainability course report inclusive course experiences, with some differences across gender identities. Through focus groups designed to reach diverse students, we find that race and gender dynamics influence students’ perception of inclusivity in sustainability courses. Our data also indicate that general education requirements and lack of interest are the primary barriers to choosing sustainability courses. We discuss student-identified strategies to increase the diversity and inclusiveness of sustainability education. Some suggestions for diversifying include increasing student awareness of sustainability topics, designing courses with content that students perceive as relevant, and ensuring that courses meet general education requirements. We also identify actions to increase inclusivity such as addressing race and gender dynamics through representation of diverse identities in course materials and experiences. This study contributes social survey and focus group instruments that researchers can implement at any university in efforts to make sustainability education more diverse and inclusive.