Beyond the Curriculum: Integrating Sustainability into Business Schools

Mollie Painter-Morland (), Ehsan Sabet (), Petra Molthan-Hill (), Helen Goworek () and Sander Leeuw ()
Additional contact information
Mollie Painter-Morland: Nottingham Trent University
Ehsan Sabet: Nottingham Trent University
Petra Molthan-Hill: Nottingham Business School
Helen Goworek: University of Leicester
Sander Leeuw: Nottingham Trent University

Journal of Business Ethics, 2016, vol. 139, issue 4, No 7, 737-754

Abstract: Abstract This paper evaluates the ways in which European business schools are implementing sustainability and ethics into their curricula. Drawing on data gathered by a recent large study that the Academy of Business in Society conducted in cooperation with EFMD, we map the approaches that schools are currently employing by drawing on and expanding Rusinko’s (Acad Manag Learn Educ 9(3):507–519 2010) and Godemann et al.’s (2011) matrice of integrating sustainability in business and management schools. We show that most schools adopt one or more of the four approaches outlined by Godemann et al. (2011). However, we also argue that a fifth dimension needs to be added as the existing matrices do not capture the systemic nature of such curricular initiatives and how these are influenced by internal factors within the business school and external factors beyond. We suggest calling this fifth dimension ‘Systemic Institutional Integration’ and demonstrate that any business school which aims to integrate sustainability further into the curricula cannot succeed without the following: (1) Systemic thinking and systemic leadership, (2) Connectedness to business, the natural environment and society and (3) Institutional capacity building. Utilising further literature and the answers provided by the deans and faculty, we discuss each factor in turn and suggest paths towards the successful systemic institutional integration of sustainability and ethics into management education.

Keywords: Sustainable management; Business schools; Systemic approach; ESGE issues; Curriculum (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2016
References: View references in EconPapers View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (13)

Downloads: (external link)
http://link.springer.com/10.1007/s10551-015-2896-6 Abstract (text/html)
Access to full text is restricted to subscribers.

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:kap:jbuset:v:139:y:2016:i:4:d:10.1007_s10551-015-2896-6

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.springer. ... cs/journal/10551/PS2

DOI: 10.1007/s10551-015-2896-6

Access Statistics for this article

Journal of Business Ethics is currently edited by Michelle Greenwood and R. Edward Freeman

More articles in Journal of Business Ethics from Springer
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Sonal Shukla () and Springer Nature Abstracting and Indexing ().