Innovative new ARIES resources now available on sustainability site

Submitted by admin on Mon, 04/11/2011 - 10:00

The Australian Research Institute for Environment and Sustainability (ARIES) has developed two new modules for teaching and training students in tertiary education, in an attempt to provide students with the opportunity to develop an informed understanding of sustainability issues.

The two resources, the Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) teaching module and the Indigenous Concepts of Country and Sustainability (ICCS) project, were both funded by the Australian Government Department of Education, Employment and Workplace Relations under the Skills for the Carbon Challenge initiative. Both resources will be published for use on the Australian Learning and Teaching Council Sustainability website.

Recent ARIES research highlighted a gap that existed within the higher education system for courses or modules focusing solely on sustainability issues and the role students might choose to play in contributing to solutions.

Subsequently, the EERE course was developed to increase understanding of the broader context and the skills associated with promoting the benefits of energy efficiency and renewable energy, according to ARIES Institute Manager, Jessica North.

“The demand for these skills is only going to increase as we progress towards the Australian government’s target of a five percent reduction [of 2000 levels] in greenhouse gases by 2020,” said Ms North. “Employers already want to hire people who are not only technically competent but also able to engage and influence others about energy efficiency.”

The modular construction of the unit will allow teachers and lecturers to either utilise the content within existing courses, or to develop new short courses.

“They can be easily customised to make an interesting and relevant addition to a wide range of discipline areas in both the university and VET sectors,” said Ms North.

The ICCS project produced a three-hour module that can be inserted across a variety of university curricula – particularly within non-technical courses including business, education, arts, health and other social sciences. It focuses on the Indigenous concept of Country, which provides an excellent way for students to engage with systemic thinking, according to Robert Perey, Project Director for the ICCS module.

“The Indigenous concept of Country is the holistic engagement of people with a specific physical location and embodies a deep emotional connection,” said Mr Perey.

“Country defines identity and with identity comes obligation to oneself, to others past, present and future, and to nature. Non-Indigenous people have difficulty understanding the idea of Country, yet it embodies the ecological values of sustainability."

The resources are available at:

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