Embedding sustainability within the curriculum at Gray's School of Art.

Amies, Lorraine; Steed, Josie

Abstract

The paper discusses a project that aimed to develop academic and student understanding of sustainability at Gray's School of Art. The project sits in the context of RGU's Net Zero actions, with the objective of embedding net zero narratives within RGU course portfolios over the next three years. This research, supported by RGU's Emerging Stronger Enhancement Award, reveals that academics and students require curricular and employability-focused tools to help develop and embed a deeper understanding of the themes highlighted by the UN's Sustainability Development Goals (SDGs). The objective was to better understand academic and student needs in terms of acquiring practical- and theoretical knowledge around sustainability and the SDGs, in a way that related to their individual teaching and learning responsibilities/experiences. The project also sought to enable academics and students to develop competencies and literacy within this area. This presentation discusses the activities that were used to engaged with staff and students at Gray's, and with the wider RGU community. After analysis of the collected data, the project outputs included: a bespoke infographic template based on the UN SDGs, which can be adapted for other RGU schools; and a Gray's/RGU sustainability resources area and toolkit, to support the use of SDGs within the student learning environment.

Citation

AMIES, L. and STEED, J. 2022. Embedding sustainability within the curriculum at Gray's School of Art. Presented at the 2022 RGU annual learning and teaching conference (RGU LTC 2022): enhancing for impact, 21 October 2022, Aberdeen, UK.

• Presentation Conference Type: Presentation / Talk
• Conference Name: 2022 RGU annual learning and teaching conference (RGU LTC 2022): enhancing for impact
• Start Date: Oct 21, 2022
• Deposit Date: Mar 6, 2023
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 6, 2023
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Keywords: Sustainability; Art students; United Nations Sustainable Development Goals
• Public URL: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/1904618
• Related Public URLs: https://rgu-repository.worktribe.com/output/1839941 (Full Proceedings)