Furman University

With funding from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (Furman University) and the School of Environmental Studies (Middlebury College), the Shi Center for Sustainability (Furman) and Office of Sustainability Integration/Environmental Studies Program (Middlebury) sponsored this faculty development workshop to help nurture the development of a “learning community‟ where those participating will share on site experiences as well as collaborate over time through more informal networks.

The Furman-Middlebury approach is unique in that: 1) it focuses on infusing sustainability in existing courses; 
2) includes assessment of faculty and student experiences; 3) encourages campus based discussion about learning outcomes for sustainability; and 4) has unique resources for faculty participants including online tools to promote resource sharing. It also has an interregional connection between the northeast and south that creates opportunities to explore sustainability from different perspectives over time.

Following the workshops, over the remainder of the summer faculty worked on revising their courses.

This ongoing collaboration produced a book chapter and AASHE conference presentation on the versatility of the workshop approach.  The chapter, which appears in the book Taking it to the Next Level: Strategies for Adaptation Across the Sustainability Curriculum, also outlines the adaptive (Middlebury) and emergent (Furman) approaches that each institution has taken to integrate sustainability into the curriculum.