• Energy Research

AbstractThere has been increasing research on pedagogical approaches, sustainability competences, and how to connect them in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). This paper's aim is to provide deeper insights into the system of pedagogical approaches and sustainability competences, as well as how these interrelate. A survey was developed to investigate sustainability teaching in 15 HEIs. The survey was sent to educators of each HEI from which 668 responses were obtained. The responses were analysed in a five‐step process: (1) descriptive statistics; (2) Pearson correlations; (3) principal component analyses (PCAs) to detect groups; (4) Pearson correlations between the groups; and (5) regressions. The first step provided the base to carry out the PCAs, from which three groups for the pedagogical approaches (Universal, Social, and Environmental) and three for the sustainability competences (Extrospective‐social, Introspective‐personal, and Cogitative‐processual) were obtained. The correlations between the groups showed that: (1) the competences are closely interrelated; (2) the pedagogical approaches are somehow interrelated; and (3) the pedagogical approaches are somehow interrelated to the competences. The regressions showed that the Universal and Social groups would be most suitable to develop all the competences' groups. The Environmental group develops only the cogitative‐processual competences' group. The results served as bases to propose the Sustainability Teaching System (STS), which provides deeper insights into the system of pedagogical approaches and sustainability competences by grouping them, as well as showing directionality and strength. To improve sustainability teaching, it is necessary to understand the pedagogical approaches' groups and how they can develop the competences' groups.

AbstractThere has been increasing research on pedagogical approaches, sustainability competences, and how to connect them in Higher Education Institutions (HEIs). This paper's aim is to provide deeper insights into the system of pedagogical approaches and sustainability competences, as well as how these interrelate. A survey was developed to investigate sustainability teaching in 15 HEIs. The survey was sent to educators of each HEI from which 668 responses were obtained. The responses were analysed in a five‐step process: (1) descriptive statistics; (2) Pearson correlations; (3) principal component analyses (PCAs) to detect groups; (4) Pearson correlations between the groups; and (5) regressions. The first step provided the base to carry out the PCAs, from which three groups for the pedagogical approaches (Universal, Social, and Environmental) and three for the sustainability competences (Extrospective‐social, Introspective‐personal, and Cogitative‐processual) were obtained. The correlations between the groups showed that: (1) the competences are closely interrelated; (2) the pedagogical approaches are somehow interrelated; and (3) the pedagogical approaches are somehow interrelated to the competences. The regressions showed that the Universal and Social groups would be most suitable to develop all the competences' groups. The Environmental group develops only the cogitative‐processual competences' group. The results served as bases to propose the Sustainability Teaching System (STS), which provides deeper insights into the system of pedagogical approaches and sustainability competences by grouping them, as well as showing directionality and strength. To improve sustainability teaching, it is necessary to understand the pedagogical approaches' groups and how they can develop the competences' groups.

Growth and diversification of tourism activities in Antarctica have not been matched by proactive strategies for planning or management. Recognizing that the adaptive management approach has been effectively implemented in managing tourism in protected areas, we examine to what extent this approach has been incorporated into the Antarctic tourism research and management, and what constraints exist for its implementation. To better understand the extent of literature contributions, we conducted an appraisal of 72 peer-reviewed journal articles published from 1992 to 2020 and Antarctic management documents. From a scientific perspective, researchers have been advocating for adaptive management approaches to Antarctic tourism and have applied different elements, particularly ecological assessments, design of management measures, monitoring, and regulatory mechanisms. However, these contributions have not been necessarily translated into management policy and regulations. We acknowledge that full implementation of an adaptive management approach is not easily achievable due to the unique Antarctic regime. However, we argue that comprehensive site-specific and regional adaptive management models could be applied as the first step for a more systematic implementation. This incremental approach could contribute to enhanced stakeholder participation and improved decision-making processes, ultimately leading to a more proactive and effective management of Antarctic tourism, essential for the conservation of the continent.

Growth and diversification of tourism activities in Antarctica have not been matched by proactive strategies for planning or management. Recognizing that the adaptive management approach has been effectively implemented in managing tourism in protected areas, we examine to what extent this approach has been incorporated into the Antarctic tourism research and management, and what constraints exist for its implementation. To better understand the extent of literature contributions, we conducted an appraisal of 72 peer-reviewed journal articles published from 1992 to 2020 and Antarctic management documents. From a scientific perspective, researchers have been advocating for adaptive management approaches to Antarctic tourism and have applied different elements, particularly ecological assessments, design of management measures, monitoring, and regulatory mechanisms. However, these contributions have not been necessarily translated into management policy and regulations. We acknowledge that full implementation of an adaptive management approach is not easily achievable due to the unique Antarctic regime. However, we argue that comprehensive site-specific and regional adaptive management models could be applied as the first step for a more systematic implementation. This incremental approach could contribute to enhanced stakeholder participation and improved decision-making processes, ultimately leading to a more proactive and effective management of Antarctic tourism, essential for the conservation of the continent.

This study analyses how Spanish universities are communicating their commitment to sustainability to society. That entailed analysing the content of their websites and their scientific papers in sustainability science and technologies and measuring the impact of such research in social media. Results obtained from bibliometric approaches and institutional document analysis attest to intensified interest in sustainability among Spanish universities in recent years. The findings revealed an increase in the number of universities using terms associated with sustainability to designate the governing bodies. The present study also uses an activity index to identify universities that devote high effort to research on sustainability and seven Spanish universities were identified with output greater than 3% of the total. Mentions in social media were observed to have grown significantly in the last 10 years, with 38% of the sustainability papers receiving such attention, compared to 21% in 2010. Publications in open access journals have had a greater impact on social media, especially on Twitter and Facebook. The analysis of university websites showed that only 30% had social media accounts and only 6% blogs specifically designed to disseminate their sustainability activities.