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Merging Systems Thinking with Entrepreneurship: Shifting Students’ Mindsets towards Crafting a More Sustainable Future

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  • Matthew Lynch

    (Department of Engineering, Østfold University College, 1613 Fredrikstad, Norway
    School of Economics and Business, Norwegian University of Life Sciences, 1430 Ås, Norway)

  • Gunnar Andersson

    (Department of Engineering, Østfold University College, 1613 Fredrikstad, Norway)

  • Frode Ramstad Johansen

    (Department of Engineering, Østfold University College, 1613 Fredrikstad, Norway)

Abstract

The major challenges confronting humanity are systemic in nature: climate change, pollution, poverty, and inequality. Entrepreneurship fails to tackle these challenges, and ‘creative destruction’ is mostly just leading to the destruction of the natural world that we inhabit. The present economic, financial, and productive systems can and should be transformed to lead and power a shift towards sustainability. If we are to reverse the course of destruction that current capitalist systems are creating, we need to introduce more of a systems perspective into entrepreneurial education. This article addresses how merging systems thinking and entrepreneurship can be used to nudge students towards sustainability. Through a single case study, we argue that a practice-based pedagogy that combines perspectives from entrepreneurship and systems thinking can be used as a catalyst to bring about local changes in business models by making the business case go beyond the individual organization and seeing entrepreneurship as being about creating more sustainable business systems.

Suggested Citation

  • Matthew Lynch & Gunnar Andersson & Frode Ramstad Johansen, 2021. "Merging Systems Thinking with Entrepreneurship: Shifting Students’ Mindsets towards Crafting a More Sustainable Future," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(9), pages 1-16, April.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:13:y:2021:i:9:p:4946-:d:545183
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. Lynch, Matthew & Kamovich, Uladzimir & Longva, Kjersti K. & Steinert, Martin, 2021. "Combining technology and entrepreneurial education through design thinking: Students' reflections on the learning process," Technological Forecasting and Social Change, Elsevier, vol. 164(C).
    2. Stephen Deets & Vikki Rodgers & Sinan Erzurumlu & David Nersessian, 2020. "Systems Thinking as a Tool for Teaching Undergraduate Business Students Humanistic Management," Humanistic Management Journal, Springer, vol. 5(2), pages 177-197, December.
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    Cited by:

    1. Cecilia Haskins, 2021. "Systems Engineering for Sustainable Development Goals," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 13(18), pages 1-3, September.
    2. María Belén Calavia & Teresa Blanco & Roberto Casas & Belén Dieste, 2022. "Improving Design Project Management in Remote Learning," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-25, September.

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