Resumen de Do engineering students view sustainability differently from students in other majors?
Despite emphasis on sustainable development by a variety of international organizations including the accreditationorganization ABET, many undergraduates conceptualize sustainability in more narrow terms than internationallyaccepted definitions of sustainability and sustainable practice. This study examines the breadth and depth of studentperceptions of what sustainability is, their beliefs regarding sustainability, and how they can and will contribute to a moresustainable future. Differences and similarities between engineering students and those outside of engineering in business,education and environmental majors are highlighted. Responses to three short answer questions from a surveyadministered to 228 engineering undergraduates and 186 undergraduates in other majors are thematically coded andanalyzed qualitatively. Consistent with previous studies, many engineering students (almost 50%) and a majority ofstudents outside of engineering (over 60%) operationalize sustainability as an environmental issue, neglecting aspects ofsocial and economic equality that are widely recognized as being essential pillars of sustainable development. Asprofessionals in their chosen profession, students see their most likely contributions to sustainability as reducing wastethrough recycling and reuse, making more efficient use of resources, and using renewable energy. When asked to identifywhat they are least likely to contribute to in terms of sustainability over their professional lives, students again point toreducing waste and making efficient use of resources. However, many also see contributing to public advocacy and policychange as well as creating sustainable products and structures as areas where they are unlikely to contribute during theircareers. These results suggest that many students may misperceive sustainability as a vague concept that does not lend itselfto action or that sustainable development is only an issue of environmental protection without regard to the promotion ofsocial and economic equality.
