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Holding a sustainability bearing through cutty-grass and clearings: Implementing sustainability during disruptive organisational changes

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Abstract

This article explores our experiences as faculty implementing a five year sustainability strategic plan within the Outdoor and Environmental Education (OEE) curriculum centre during a time of organisational restructuring. This paper builds on the work of Jansen and Boardman (2011) who describe the process of developing the strategic plan and some initiatives arising from it. Now at the end of the five year timeframe and with the benefit of hindsight, we describe some of the problematic aspects of our sustainability initiative. The role of a strategic plan appears crucial in providing a general bearing, however remaining ‘true’ to a small centre and its vision also limited possibilities for interdisciplinary sustainability. We discuss how disruptive organisational changes provided unexpected opportunities for our sustainability initiative. The ongoing journey through ‘cutty-grass thickets’ and ‘clearings’ for sustainability is described with a view to providing inspired self generalisation for others on a similar journey.

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Correspondence to Chris North.

Additional information

Chris North is Curriculum Coordinator for Outdoor and Environmental Education at the University of Canterbury, Christchurch, New Zealand. His teaching background includes, secondary and tertiary institutions in Aotearoa/ New Zealand and internationally. He has worked as a tourist guide and outdoor instructor for a range of organisations. Through his research Chris is exploring outdoor education and teaching teachers about outdoor education Chris is a founder of toitū te whenua/ Leave No Trace New Zealand.

Chris Jansen is a Senior Lecturer at the University of Canterbury, where he teaches and supersises school leaders studying at the Masters degree level in Educational Leadership. Chris works alongside principals and other school leaders through implementing school based professional learning communities, and regularly facilitates workshops and presentations for a range of schools and other organisations a round Aotearoa/New Zealand. Australia, the Pacific and Asia. Chris was the Curriculum Coordinator of Outdoor and Environmental Education at UCCE from 2003 to 2010 and has taught Outdoor Education in a range of settings, including Mangere College, Auckland, where he spent six years as head of Physical/Outdoor education.

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North, C., Jansen, C. Holding a sustainability bearing through cutty-grass and clearings: Implementing sustainability during disruptive organisational changes. Journal of Outdoor and Environmental Education 16, 2–11 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03400941

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Key words

  • Sustainability education
  • Higher Education
  • outdoor education
  • initial teacher education
  • organisational change