The Sustainability Education and Curriculum Committee (SECC) is comprised of school representatives and is charged with developing a comprehensive sustainability curriculum and implementation strategy, including cross- and discipline-appropriate approaches in close collaboration with the respective units. The SECC directs the allocation of Institute Strategic Plan (ISP) funds to support curriculum development and to document and share sustainability and SDG education successes. This work is carried out in alignment with other ISP initiatives such as Transformative Teaching and Learning.
“SECC manages resources to promote learning across the UG curriculum through grants to faculty to develop course components focused on the topic of sustainability. Its broad representation from across the different GT colleges enables more effective coordination of initiatives for sustainable education.”
The Center for Teaching and Learning is pleased to announce the recipients of the third round of Undergraduate Sustainability Education Innovation Grant. Recipients from this round represent four colleges and 13 schools, with total support exceeding $144,000. The grants aim to transform instruction using the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (UN SDGs).
“These awards advance Georgia Tech’s Strategic Plan to connect globally and amplify impact by contributing to global efforts that advance the U.N. SDGs through our education, research, and service,” said Rebecca Watts Hull, assistant director of Faculty Development for Sustainability Education Initiatives. “Huge thanks to Sustainability Next for funding these grants and to the Undergraduate Sustainability Education Committee (USEC) for managing them.”
All three rounds of grant-funded projects feature high enrollment and core courses, significantly expanding the reach of Georgia Tech’s sustainability-across-the-curriculum initiatives.
Grant recipients are encouraged to join the Community of Practice on Transformative Teaching with the SDGs. More than 30 faculty members participate in the Community of Practice, meeting regularly to present works in progress, get peer feedback, share resources, and develop strategies to engage more faculty and students in sustainability education.
Want to get involved? Contact Matthew Realff, chair, for more information about the Undergraduate Sustainability Education Committee or reach out to Rebecca Watts Hull for support with sustainability and SDG course design or redesign.
Established in 2022, the Undergraduate Sustainability Education Committee works to implement the educational goals of the Sustainability Next initiative of the Georgia Tech Institute Strategic Plan. In Spring 2023, the committee awarded 21 Undergraduate Sustainability Education Innovation Grants, as well as 9 more in Fall 2023, all of which will lead to the integration of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals into courses taken by nearly every student at Georgia Tech. The committee works in concert with the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) to provide professional learning opportunities for instructors seeking to incorporate Education for Sustainable Development into their teaching.
In Fall 2023, the USEC launched the comprehensive overview of all courses taught in the Georgia Tech cColleges that directly and indirectly teach social, environmental, and economic sustainability.
In the fall of 2024 USEC expanded their outreach to include Graduate and other curriculum beyond undergraduate degree programs. This resulted in a name change to Sustainability Education and Curriculum Committee to incorporate this expansion.
A Unifying Framework: United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)
The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development provides a shared blueprint for peace and prosperity for people and the planet, now and into the future. At its heart are the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which are an urgent call for action by all countries — developed and developing — in a global partnership. The UN SDGs underpin our framework for catalyzing action and advancing the public good at a global scale. A Unifying Framework: United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Through Georgia Tech’s affiliation with the University Global Coalition, sustainability thought leaders collaborate with higher education leaders from across the globe to advance the SDGs through education, research, service, and campus operations. In 2020, we launched the 17 Rooms initiative at Georgia Tech to familiarize the campus community with the SDGs. The inaugural event convened local leaders and identified partnerships and practical steps to accelerate progress on each UN SDG. Several of the resulting recommendations from this collaboration were integrated into the Sustainability Next Plan.
Georgia Tech also co-founded and currently co-leads Regional Centres of Expertise (RCE) Greater Atlanta, officially acknowledged by the United Nations University. RCEs support the multi-stakeholder implementation of the SDGs at the regional level through education and training. RCE Greater Atlanta brings together universities and colleges from across the Atlanta region with nonprofit, community, government, and business partners. It approaches all SDGs through an equity and justice lens, building on the city’s rich history as the home of the Civil Rights Movement.
