Debates relevant to transdiciplinary and sustainability oriented teaching at the higher education level anticipate necessary transitions in curricula. This article describes an international sustainability-oriented teaching and learning programme at the higher education level, where theoretical concepts developed over recent decades were applied in teaching practice, tested and reflected upon. The authors have operationalized conditions for learning success in a transdisciplinary learning environment, designed courses so that desirable competences were not only a by-product of sustainability oriented teaching, but its primary educational goal, developed (formative) assessment tools, observed the specifics of the environment in which particular courses have been realized (e-learning setting), and received feedback on students' perceptions of various aspects of their learning. While the content of the programme was concerned with the principles of sustainability, its methodological focus on competences was associated with a change in communication practices between teachers and students that have been gradually liberated from the traditional transmission model in favour of a more open and interactive one. Analysis of the students' perception of the learning process showed their attitudes and approaches to learning ranged from a surface approach to a deep approach; desirable approaches have been identified as core educational qualities to be preserved within curricular innovations. The article contributes to understanding the role of the learning environment which provides the opportunities for teacher interventions to support interactive and self-directed learning.

The Leuphana University of Lüneburg has launched an initiative that will conduct a longitudinal study on sustainability transformations in conjunction with transformative research.

Education for sustainability (EfS) poses new challenges to higher education as it necessitates various shifts: from teacher- to learner-centered pedagogies, from input- to output-orientation and from a focus on content to problem-solving and process orientation. E-learning, which follows the principles of situated, constructivist learning, addresses some of these challenges and offers opportunities to design powerful learning environments for EfS. In this conceptual paper, we elaborate characteristics of such e-learning environments that support competence development and education for sustainability. To illustrate and support our line of reasoning we use three mini case studies of our own educational praxis and critically discuss opportunities and threats of such e-learning settings.

Purpose: For two decades the Leuphana University of Luneburg addresses socio-ecological issues in research, education and administration. To realize projects like “Agenda 21 and University of Luneburg” (1999), “Sustainable University” (2004) and its mission statement of “Carbon Neutral University” (2007) entails non-trivial organizational changes. Creating an authentic “Carbon Neutral University” induces multi-level learning and decision problems within the organization. Concepts of organizational learning are considered as most promising approaches to analyze and understand sustainability oriented projects.Design/methodology/approach: Past, present and future sustainability projects are explored. An organizational learning perspective is applied to identify specific phases and mechanisms of organizational developments towards realizing the university’s mission statements. Empirical facts are discussed against the theoretical background of organizational learning.Findings: From an organizational learning perspective, formalized and shared knowledge are necessary but insufficient preconditions for complex sustainability related activities in universities. If universities follow demanding mission statements they have to continuously trigger individuals’ willingness and ability to learn, generate new kinds of knowledge and contribute to organizational problem solving.Originality/value: A conceptual perspective is developed for organizational learning in complex fields like sustainable development.

Universities are key actors in sustainable development by generating new knowledge as well as contributing to the development of appropriate competencies and raising sustainability awareness. Within a project called ‘Sustainable University’ at the Leuphana University of LA¼neburg (Germany), a scenario analysis was carried out in order to think structurally about both the challenges that universities could face in the long run and to establish what chances and problems might arise in future from implementing an orientation towards sustainable development. This analysis results in the characterisation of a ‘Higher Education Landscape 2035’ consisting of eight clusters of possible future developments. This paper describes the process of inter- and trans-disciplinary scenario development, gives an overview of the scenarios identified, and finally discusses the adaptability of the LA¼neburg idea of a sustainable university to the future system of higher education.

For two decades the Leuphana University of Luneburg has addressed socio-ecological issues in research, education and administration. Realizing projects such as "Agenda 21 and University of Liineburg" (1999), "Sustainable University" (2004) and its mission statement of "Carbon-Neutral University" (2007) entails non-trivial organizational changes. Creating an authentic "Carbon Neutral University" induces multi-level learning and decision problems within the organization. Concepts of organizational learning are considered as most promising approaches to analysing and understanding sustainability-oriented projects.Past, present, and future sustainability projects are explored in this chapter. An organizational learning perspective is applied in order to identify specific phases and mechanisms of organizational developments towards realizing the university's mission statements. Empirical facts are discussed against the theoretical background of organizational learning. A conceptual perspective is developed for organizational learning in complex fields such as sustainable development.

Meeting the manifold challenges connected to climate change makes high demands on individual competencies. To prepare actors for those challenges learning settings are needed in higher education that are suitable for that goal. A theoretical framework for relevant key competencies can be found in the discourse of Education for Sustainable Development (ESD). In this paper we introduce and discuss two learning settings that employ adapted sustainability science approaches: the syndrome approach and scenario analysis. Both approaches are discussed with reference to their didactic goals to foster the acquisition of the corresponding competencies. The usefulness of these two approaches in creating appropriate learning settings is demonstrated in empirical studies.