Developing global perspectives: global citizenship and sustainable development within higher education.

Abstract

This volume and supporting papers constitute the submission for the award of a PhD research degree, by publication. Sixteen works completed by the author spanning ten years have been included for consideration. All the papers relate to a sustained endeavour to enhance higher education practice by exploring the salience of global perspectives, global citizenship and sustainable development, starting at the level of curriculum and pedagogy, escalating to encompass the development of an institutional-wide model and the concept of the ‘Global University’ and then extending to address university leadership, to examine how this might secure a ‘Sustainable University’. The contribution to knowledge lies in: the examination of the relevance of the concepts to higher education; the development of global perspectives as a pathway for change; the articulation of a framework that enables the relationship between concepts to be explored and; the proposition that global perspectives not only supports the institutional policy drivers of employability, diversity and internationalisation but would enable universities to contribute towards a more sustainable society. The papers individually and collectively, provide empirical evidence of a critical and reflexive account of a participative and holistic approach to change. The account of the change process, from curriculum development, to a consideration of institutional structure, and university leadership, contributes to knowledge in the articulation of what has facilitated and hindered engagement, and in demonstrating how practitioner knowledge may contribute to advance policy and practice within higher education.