Is sustainability just about climate change and recycling? Not quite—and that was the starting point of a dynamic discussion held on June 10 with four academics from Campus+ partner universities in Australia, Singapore, and China: Jo-Anne Ferreira (University of Southern Queensland), Edson Kieu (Nanyang Technological University), Daniel Yonto (Xi’an Jiaotong-Liverpool University), and Ethan Chong (Singapore Institute of Technology).
The webinar challenged narrow interpretations of sustainability, urging educators to rethink how the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) can be meaningfully embedded into university curricula across all disciplines. From redesigning competences to integrating Indigenous knowledge, speakers emphasized that sustainability must become a cross-cutting foundation—not an isolated topic.
More than a technical challenge, the discussion framed sustainability education as a global responsibility and a cultural shift. The takeaway: teaching sustainability isn’t about adding another course—it’s about reimagining the purpose of higher education.