UBC Graduate Research

Exploring sub-concepts in sustainability for home economics education : two case studies Kuemmerle, Nicole

Abstract

“Sustainability”, “voluntary simplicity” and “going green” are fashionably appropriate mantras for today’s world. The increasing pace of globalization and its anthropogenic impact on Earth, including the social and economic damage that contemporary lifestyles can generate, is impacting the fabric of society and consequently families. It has been proposed that home economics educators take action through a revitalized pedagogy of sustainability that encourages students to integrate and live in the modern world through emergent ideologies such as sustainability and the associated subconcepts of sustainability, collaborative consumption and upcycling. This paper explores the viability of future-proofing home economics programs through the use of alternate modes of consumption while modeling values of sustainability and sustainable practices to students. A review of the literature identifies a gap in the use of the outlined subconcepts in home economics curriculum delivery. To facilitate the future integration of collaborative consumption and upcycling in home economics education, this self-study narrative describes my personal and professional beliefs and experiences as I transcended the typical views of home economics curriculum delivery, allowing students to explore and experience some of the key concepts of sustainability, while offering them autonomy in its future use in their everyday lives.

Item Citations and Data

Rights

Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International