Integrating Sustainability into Logistics Oriented Education in Europe

Abstract

In the last decades, logistics has become an important industry sector, with significant impacts on the environment generated through several internal and external logistic processes. We analysed and elaborated on integrating sustainability topics within logistics-oriented programmes at universities across Europe, based on a framework of systemising and classifying sustainability terms. We also analysed pedagogical approaches within the identified courses. In our study, we perceived a moderate diversity of courses from the system and horizontal sustainability perspectives. Courses mostly focus on “principle” and “approach” levels, denoting specialised courses, with less environmental and social topics. Such coverage and distribution might imply a limitation to develop complex, multi-dimensional, and inter-disciplinary understanding, thinking, and problem-solving required for real-world challenges, comprehending all the dimensions. We also perceived a scarcity by using pedagogical approaches, where the majority of the courses emphasise traditional ones. This paper’s novelty lies in providing the first empirical evaluation and elaboration of logistics-oriented programmes at European universities from a sustainability perspective. Thus, our study enriches current knowledge and research on sustainability integration into curricula at the university level, enabling new insights and better correlations between various study fields and pedagogical approaches used.