Teaching Sustainable Development in a Sensory and Artful Way—Concepts, Methods, and Examples

Abstract

Despite significant short-term pressures such as the recent Coronavirus pandemic with its economic and social disruptions, longer-term environmental un-sustainability and its projected intergenerational consequences remain a major threat for the future of mankind. More and new efforts are required in all social spheres with regard to the universal Sustainable Development Goals. In this context, the present article makes the argument for teaching sustainable development in higher education with a more sensory and artful approach, in order to raise students’ awareness of the multisensory reality of human existence and develop skills to engage creatively for sustainability transformations. Rooted in the perspective of sensory and arts-based sustainability science, three experimental bachelor courses—designed and conducted by the author of this article in collaboration with artists—with twenty to twenty-five students in each course from diverse disciplinary backgrounds in environmental studies, cultural studies, and social sciences are presented and discussed. It is argued that the specific course design and the scientific-artistic co-teaching provide an innovative way to teach sustainability topics in a more sensory way. The article ends with an outlook on potentials and challenges of this approach.