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Students as Change Agents for Community–University Sustainability Transition Partnerships

Author

Listed:
  • Rachael Budowle

    (Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82072, USA)

  • Eric Krszjzaniek

    (Management & Marketing Department, College of Business, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071, USA)

  • Chelsea Taylor

    (Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82072, USA)

Abstract

While higher education institutions play a role in regional sustainability transitions, community–university partnerships for sustainability may be underdeveloped and fraught. Moreover, the specific role of students in building and strengthening those partnerships remains little explored. This research occurred in Laramie, Wyoming—the first community to resolve to pursue carbon neutrality in the top coal-producing state in the U.S.—amidst declining state revenue and absent any formal community–university sustainability partnership. Drawing on a community resilience framework and the social-theoretical construct of agency, we examined an informal, multi-year partnership developed through a project-based, community-engaged Campus Sustainability course at the University of Wyoming. Through a chronological sequence case study, we synthesized autoethnography, document analysis, and semi-structured interview methods involving community and university stakeholder and student participants. We found that students, rather than other university actors, played a vital bridging role in absence of a formal community–university sustainability partnership. They also served in a catalyzing role as change agents alongside community stakeholders, providing the potential to develop stronger community–university partnerships and advance sustainability transitions across other Wyoming communities. Findings suggest a need to keenly attend to power dynamics and whose agency is driving higher education institutions’ roles in regional sustainability transitions in specific contexts.

Suggested Citation

  • Rachael Budowle & Eric Krszjzaniek & Chelsea Taylor, 2021. "Students as Change Agents for Community–University Sustainability Transition Partnerships," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(11), pages 1-26, May.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:11:p:6036-:d:563240
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Birgit Hoinle & Ilka Roose & Himanshu Shekhar, 2021. "Creating Transdisciplinary Teaching Spaces. Cooperation of Universities and Non-University Partners to Design Higher Education for Regional Sustainable Transition," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(7), pages 1-21, March.
    2. Lieselotte E. Vaneeckhaute & Tom Vanwing & Wolfgang Jacquet & Bieke Abelshausen & Pieter Meurs, 2017. "Community resilience 2.0: Toward a comprehensive conception of community-level resilience," Community Development, Taylor & Francis Journals, vol. 48(5), pages 735-751, October.
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    5. Robert E. Kopp, 2021. "Land-grant lessons for Anthropocene universities," Climatic Change, Springer, vol. 165(1), pages 1-12, March.
    6. McComas, Katherine A. & Stedman, Richard & Sol Hart, P., 2011. "Community support for campus approaches to sustainable energy use: The role of "town-gown" relationships," Energy Policy, Elsevier, vol. 39(5), pages 2310-2318, May.
    7. Verena Radinger-Peer & Gesa Pflitsch, 2017. "The role of higher education institutions in regional transition paths towards sustainability," Review of Regional Research: Jahrbuch für Regionalwissenschaft, Springer;Gesellschaft für Regionalforschung (GfR), vol. 37(2), pages 161-187, October.
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    Cited by:

    1. Ernesto Antonini & Jacopo Gaspari & Cristina Visconti, 2021. "Collaborative Learning Experiences in a Changing Environment: Innovative Educational Approaches in Architecture," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(16), pages 1-26, August.

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