Reaching beyond compliance: Obstacles to integrating sustainability into decision -making processes in an institution of higher education
type: CreativeWork
description: There are emerging opportunities for institutions of higher education to respond to current environmental and public health crises. By setting institutional examples and modeling for others how to prioritize sustainability as a grounding framework for decision-making, institutions of higher education have an opportunity to facilitate society's transition to a more sustainable future. Sustainability principles stem from an international consensus that the pursuit of economic viability as an end in itself, conditioned by a neo-classical model of economics, does not maintain or enhance ecological health and human well-being. There are a number of universities worldwide who are making an effort to evaluate current policies and embrace sustainability however, there are no universities that could be characterized as 'sustainable'. This study examines two interrelated points of debate with respect to the obstacles to integrating sustainability into the decision-making process in an institution of higher education. These are: (a) What parameters characterize the current decision-making process? What within the process obstructs the integration of sustainability principles? (b) What influences a decision-makers construction of a rationale for embracing or rejecting sustainability in everyday decisions? As entry points into the university decision-making process, this study focuses on operational policy with a comparative analysis of food services, purchasing and waste management. The data was collected and analyzed with the application of a grounded theory methodology. The study illustrates how the conventional decision-making process integrates three dominant parameters, which shape decision outcomes: fiscal constraint, academic and operational divisions, and institutional values. These three factors are further influenced by the system of communication within the university. The study extends the analysis through a constructivist framework to examine the factors that influ…
abstract: There are emerging opportunities for institutions of higher education to respond to current environmental and public health crises. By setting institutional examples and modeling for others how to prioritize sustainability as a grounding framework for decision-making, institutions of higher education have an opportunity to facilitate society's transition to a more sustainable future. Sustainability principles stem from an international consensus that the pursuit of economic viability as an end in itself, conditioned by a neo-classical model of economics, does not maintain or enhance ecological health and human well-being. There are a number of universities worldwide who are making an effort to evaluate current policies and embrace sustainability however, there are no universities that could be characterized as 'sustainable'. This study examines two interrelated points of debate with respect to the obstacles to integrating sustainability into the decision-making process in an institution of higher education. These are: (a) What parameters characterize the current decision-making process? What within the process obstructs the integration of sustainability principles? (b) What influences a decision-makers construction of a rationale for embracing or rejecting sustainability in everyday decisions? As entry points into the university decision-making process, this study focuses on operational policy with a comparative analysis of food services, purchasing and waste management. The data was collected and analyzed with the application of a grounded theory methodology. The study illustrates how the conventional decision-making process integrates three dominant parameters, which shape decision outcomes: fiscal constraint, academic and operational divisions, and institutional values. These three factors are further influenced by the system of communication within the university. The study extends the analysis through a constructivist framework to examine the factors that influ…
author: Newman, Julie
keywords: Education, Higher, Administration
date published: 2004-01-01T08:00:00Z
date modified: 2026-07-24T05:22:12Z
provider: University of New Hampshire
publisher: Networked Digital Library of Theses and Dissertations
type: WebPage
source organization: University of New Hampshire