More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University

Sustainability discourse provides directions for sustainable development in the global context; education should be transformed to address sustainability concerns. Many universities have adopted a sustainability focus and university instructors play a vital role in inculcating sustainability princip...

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Main Authors: Anh Thu Nguyen, Paul Berger, Ellen Field
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier 2025-03-01
Series:Cleaner and Responsible Consumption
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784325000087
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author Anh Thu Nguyen
Paul Berger
Ellen Field
author_facet Anh Thu Nguyen
Paul Berger
Ellen Field
author_sort Anh Thu Nguyen
collection DOAJ
description Sustainability discourse provides directions for sustainable development in the global context; education should be transformed to address sustainability concerns. Many universities have adopted a sustainability focus and university instructors play a vital role in inculcating sustainability principles in students, but in business education there is little research on how marketing instructors interpret sustainability or how that affects their teaching. This qualitative case study used semi-structured interviews and content analysis of course syllabi to gain the insights of marketing instructors at a university in Canada; specifically, how they interpret sustainability, how they integrate sustainability into their marketing instruction, and the perceived factors affecting their teaching practices. Thematic analysis with NVivo identified a dilemma; business worldviews limit what marketing instructors think about sustainability and whether and how they teach it in marketing courses. If marketing instructors are not teaching about sustainability, it is a missed opportunity to transform production, consumerism and marketing. As universities are increasingly trying to implement sustainability integration in teaching and learning, this research provides useful implications for marketing instructors, educational leaders, business schools, professional associations and textbook publishers.
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spelling doaj-art-4d183e02c0494037b37b57a7271da6b92025-08-20T02:57:33ZengElsevierCleaner and Responsible Consumption2666-78432025-03-011610025710.1016/j.clrc.2025.100257More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian UniversityAnh Thu Nguyen0Paul Berger1Ellen Field2Mount Royal University, 4825 Mt Royal Gate SW, Calgary, AB, T3E 6K6, Canada; Corresponding author.Lakehead University, Thunder Bay, 955 Oliver Rd, Thunder Bay, ON, P7B 5E1, CanadaLakehead University, Orillia, 500 University Ave, Orillia, ON, L3V 0B9, CanadaSustainability discourse provides directions for sustainable development in the global context; education should be transformed to address sustainability concerns. Many universities have adopted a sustainability focus and university instructors play a vital role in inculcating sustainability principles in students, but in business education there is little research on how marketing instructors interpret sustainability or how that affects their teaching. This qualitative case study used semi-structured interviews and content analysis of course syllabi to gain the insights of marketing instructors at a university in Canada; specifically, how they interpret sustainability, how they integrate sustainability into their marketing instruction, and the perceived factors affecting their teaching practices. Thematic analysis with NVivo identified a dilemma; business worldviews limit what marketing instructors think about sustainability and whether and how they teach it in marketing courses. If marketing instructors are not teaching about sustainability, it is a missed opportunity to transform production, consumerism and marketing. As universities are increasingly trying to implement sustainability integration in teaching and learning, this research provides useful implications for marketing instructors, educational leaders, business schools, professional associations and textbook publishers.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784325000087Education for sustainable developmentMarketing educationMarketing instructorsSustainabilitySustainability integrationBusiness schools
spellingShingle Anh Thu Nguyen
Paul Berger
Ellen Field
More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University
Cleaner and Responsible Consumption
Education for sustainable development
Marketing education
Marketing instructors
Sustainability
Sustainability integration
Business schools
title More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University
title_full More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University
title_fullStr More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University
title_full_unstemmed More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University
title_short More green thoughts than actions: Insights from marketing instructors at a Canadian University
title_sort more green thoughts than actions insights from marketing instructors at a canadian university
topic Education for sustainable development
Marketing education
Marketing instructors
Sustainability
Sustainability integration
Business schools
url http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2666784325000087
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