Greener Futures in Suits and Ties: Environmental Literacy and Intrigue Among Management and Law Undergraduate Students at Dalhousie University

Abstract

Environmental and sustainability issues are prominent and routinely studied issues in our society. These issues are not only important to address, but they have also long been the focus of increasing interest and educational demand. In recent years, universities have begun incorporating and offering environmental education programs, but what about the stimulation of environmental and sustainable knowledge in students in non-science related courses? The goal of this research is to evaluate the level of interest undergraduate students in Management and Law programs at Dalhousie University have in environmental literacy and sustainability initiatives. We investigated whether Management and Law students believe environmental education is important and whether it is incorporated in their studies. We also examined their interest in making environmental or sustainable courses required in their degrees, their participation in Environmental Science (ENVS) or Sustainability (SUST) courses and campus sustainability initiatives, and their willingness to complete an online module on sustainability literacy. Data collection was completed over one week through the distribution of an online survey. The survey included both open-response and closed-response questions. We received 46 survey responses. Survey results revealed that few students have taken an ENVS or SUST course as part of their degree (13.1%) but half (50%) agreed an environmental science course be incorporated into all undergraduate programs at Dalhousie. Over half of the students showed interest in participating in sustainable initiatives through the school, and 84.8% believed environmental knowledge is important in today’s world. Students showed little interest in completing an online sustainability module, with only 26% stating they were somewhat too very interested. Significant differences in responses between Law and Management students were found when asked about the importance of environmental knowledge, where fewer Law students believed in importance compared to those in Management. To satisfy student desire to learn more about these concepts, we recommend that undergraduate programs at Dalhousie incorporate environmental and sustainable concepts into the existing curriculum.