Sustainability integration in Palestinian universities: a focus on teaching and research at engineering faculties

Abstract

Purpose This study aims to evaluate the current state of sustainability education and research capacity at engineering faculties. More specifically, this research is intended to provide new and much-needed information about sustainability knowledge, teaching and research activities. Design/methodology/approach The first method used is a questionnaire survey completed by teachers and researchers about their activities dealing with sustainability and the second is based on a systematic literature review at the SCOPUS database for scientific publications on sustainability by Palestinian universities in the Palestinian context, and the number of publications in fields related to sustainability in Scopus indexed journals. Findings Some institutions include more sustainability topics in their teaching courses and research activities than others. The number of courses per teaching staff and department and the sustainability contents vary among the selected universities. Teaching activities focus on environmental sustainability, especially on energy, thermal and water efficiency. The number of Scopus indexed publications in fields related to sustainability in the past 20 years is low. The highest number of published papers was those focused on environmental sustainability. Practical implications This study has implications for university researchers and educators by identifying the gaps between the teaching and research conducted and the UN Sustainable Development Goals for 2030. For policymakers, the study shows that the status of sustainability in higher education, mainly at engineering schools, is still in great need for universities’ and government’s support, for example, to increase the number of published papers, number of courses and master programmes addressing sustainability. Originality/value This paper provides a current status for integrating sustainability education and research at engineering schools. The output of this study can be useful for future research to analyse higher education institutions’ impacts on sustainable development.