The structured certificate program has been developed by the interdisciplinary “Teaching” working group, which forms part of the Bonn Program for Sustainability Transformation (BOOST) at the University of Bonn and is led by Dr. Simon Ebert.
Besides teaching key sustainability-related competencies, the focus is also on reflecting critically on the knowledge and skills that students will have acquired and putting them into practice. Combining theory and practice, the certificate program has a modular structure and is composed of a transdisciplinary basic module, a subject-specific consolidation module and a practical module. Students working toward teaching degrees can also take specific consolidation courses in education for sustainable development (ESD). The acquisition of new skills as part of the certificate is supplemented by a learning portfolio.
Alongside gaining a specific qualification, recognition of student engagement also plays an important role, as the certificate allows students to highlight any sustainability-related knowledge and skills that they have acquired outside the classroom and present them in the form of an additional qualification.
A transdisciplinary approach with a practical bent
“With the new Sustainability Certificate, we’ve developed an offering that allows students to tackle key questions of future relevance in a transdisciplinary way and with a practical dimension,” explains Professor Annette Scheersoi, Vice Rector for Sustainability. “Only by working together and incorporating a range of views can we hope to shape sustainability. The fact that the idea was devised in a participatory process reflects precisely this mission while also reinforcing the efforts being made to put our University’s Sustainability Strategy in place. We want to give all our students the opportunity to engage with sustainability issues proactively and in depth, as part of both their academic education and our own social responsibility.”
The basic module will be offered every summer semester. It comprises a lecture series that explores key sustainability questions from various disciplines and research perspectives. Students can register for the certificate and take the other modules at the start of any semester (winter or summer).
See https://www.uni-bonn.de/de/universitaet/ueber-die-uni/nachhaltige-uni/nachhalitigkeitszertifikat for more information.