Date of Completion
2023
Document Type
Honors College Thesis
Department
Environmental Studies
Thesis Type
College of Arts and Science Honors, Honors College, Environmental Studies Electronic Thesis
First Advisor
Cheryl Morse
Second Advisor
Amy Seidl
Third Advisor
Laura Hill
Keywords
sustainability, relational values, student, higher education institutions, sustainability general education, surveys, interviews
Abstract
This study investigates differences among the mainstream Western definitions of sustainability and those informed by relational values as taught in Sustainability General Education (SU) requirement courses at UVM. Relational values are becoming a greater part of sustainability thought and research as alternative definitions are brought to the forefront. Through surveys, interviews, and the analysis of SU syllabi, it was found that there is moderate presence of relational values among UVM students, with the most influence among statements regarding the environmental pillar of sustainability, and little regarding the social pillar. In interviews, it was found that there is intention among a few professors to incorporate relational values or similar topics in their designated SU courses. SU course syllabi analysis revealed that there are many references of instrumental and relational values and fewer comparatively for intrinsic values. Overall, there is presence of relational values among UVM students with some influence from SU courses, but there is room for improvement.
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License.
Recommended Citation
O'Connor, Lydia G., "Surveys, Syllabi and Faculty Interviews: Assessing the Impact of Sustainability Courses at the University of Vermont" (2023). UVM Patrick Leahy Honors College Senior Theses. 580.
https://scholarworks.uvm.edu/hcoltheses/580