Education

Human activities have pushed the Earth beyond its safe operating limits. As a result, the planet’s natural resilience is declining, global temperatures are rising rapidly, ecosystems are increasingly degraded, and key systems are showing early warning signs of approaching tipping points. Addressing these interconnected crises requires more than disciplinary expertise – it calls for systems thinking, sustainable innovation and transformation, and an understanding of how human and natural systems interact. It also calls for new competences to be integrated as part of the teaching goals across all university curricula, which in turn calls for competence development among educators.

Research-based education as a green solution

Universities, as pillars in education, innovation, and public sector services, play a pivotal role in educating future generations and driving change. By embedding sustainability and planetary health into education, universities can equip students to acquire the necessary understanding to navigate complexity, make informed decisions, and develop skills for the green transition and the green solutions needed to restore balance between societal development and the Earth’s life-support systems.

Research-based education in Sustainability & Planetary Health at the University of Copenhagen

Our mission is to empower UCPH to embed sustainability and planetary health in education across all disciplines by fostering collaboration among educators, researchers, and departments at UCPH. We aim to develop innovative teaching practices, share resources, and co-create curricula that prepare students, researchers and society at large to address global challenges and lead transformative changes for a healthy planet and society.

Our mission is to empower UCPH to embed sustainability and planetary health in education across all disciplines.

Our network provides a platform for researchers, teachers, course managers, and programme directors across UCPH departments and faculties. It is for those who already teach within the area as well as those who have an interest in integrating sustainability and planetary health, including transformative approaches to education, into their teaching. Participants can explore how to include these topics in their courses and programmes. The network offers inspiration and opportunities for collaboration with a view to creating new educational activities, programmes, or research within this scope.