2015 Conference

Workshop

For both existing and future leaders of environmental and sustainability academic programs, one of the most important challenges is how to work with their administration to develop and implement meaningful curricular change. This is especially true for interdisciplinary approaches that transcend traditional departments. This workshop provides strategies, approaches, and ideas for catalyzing change. This session builds upon previous AESS and Council of Environmental Deans and Directors (CEDD) workshops to enhance effective leadership. If you are new to this workshop process, we will work with you to get you familiar with the concepts and procedures we use. If you are a continuing participant we will expect you to report on your progress. We will start by reviewing basic tools for organizing environmental and sustainability curricular and co-curricular efforts across the campus: campus-wide Ponderosa or Piedmont style projects, offices of sustainability, student supported green funds, residence hall and other student mentor programs, internship coordinators, action teams or task forces, climate action plans, and presidents’ committees tasked to oversee them all. We will follow that with a “power mapping” exercise that will assist participants in assessing how they can maximize their leverage and effectiveness. Then we will ask returning participants to report on their progress. Our emphasis will be to highlight exemplary entrepreneurial models that facilitate curricular change. We will also consider strategies for overcoming administrative and conceptual obstacles. The workshop outcome will be twofold—a specific plan for your home institution and the continuing development of a CEDD and AESS support network for helping to implement those plans.