Sustainable Development Goals: A Case of the Community College Student Initiative Project

Understanding and awareness of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals are critical in ensuring students are geared towards protecting the future for themselves and others. This qualitative case study research design aims to increase the level of awareness and engagement among our students to create sustainable leaders and foster more sustainable organizations, households, and communities at the micro and macro levels. A design thinking workshop was used to raise students’ level of awareness and engagement. An open-ended survey was used to gather data on students’ views of how the business community and higher educational institutions can play their part in the nation’s sustainability issues. The design thinking workshop resulted in the development of a sustainable development project proposal on renewable energy. Results of the survey revealed that students were not fully aware of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. The study recommends that higher educational institutions need to play a more critical role in educating students about the SDGs and need to infuse sustainability within the curriculum.