| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 58.37 |
| Liaison | Sohair Fahmy |
| Submission Date | Sept. 10, 2024 |
Cairo University
AC-6: Sustainability Literacy Assessment
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
2.00 / 4.00 |
Sohair
Fahmy Sustainability office coordinator Faculty of science |
Does the institution conduct an assessment of the sustainability literacy of its students?:
Which of the following best describes the literacy assessment? The assessment is administered to::
Which of the following best describes the structure of the assessment? The assessment is administered as a::
A copy of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment(s):
A list or sample of the questions included in the sustainability literacy assessment or the website URL where the assessment tool may be found:
- Does your organization offer courses bearing any name of the topics related to sustainability? Yes or NO
- What courses do you consider essential for sustainable development that are not taught?
- Do you think that teaching courses related to the environment or sustainable development is an important and necessary thing for students?
- Does your institution offer scientific research or scholarships to faculty members in the field of sustainability (eg, renewable energy, sustainable building design, environmental economics, wisdom and indigenous technologies, population and development, total environmental quality management, etc..).
- understanding of topics of sustainability behavior modification relevant to student life;
- familiarity with current CU sustainability programs;
- sustainability identity and students' commitments as people concerned about sustainability (to measure shift over time at CU);
- and understanding of sustainability issues and problems.
A brief description of how the literacy assessment was developed and/or when it was adopted:
The sustainability office coordinator and members met to develop a brief sustainability literacy survey for Cairo University undergraduate and graduate students. They aimed to develop a pilot survey, to test whether we can get meaningful results that can be used to revise the curricula in different faculties and institutes to incorporate sustainability focused courses. In addition, the survey also included different questions about sustainability research projects that can be started in campus to enforce the culture of climate change and sustainability development.
A brief description of how a representative sample was reached (if applicable) and how the assessment(s) were administered :
An online survey using Google form was distributed to all faculty, staff, and students of Cairo University May 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 and to assess sustainability literacy and culture and to assess change over time.
https://forms.gle/ebmojykFRtAWhE6u8
A brief summary of results from the literacy assessment(s):
Over the past two years, students, faculty, and staff of Cairo University have become more and more aware of sustainability in all areas of study such as energy use, waste reduction, water use, transportation, food choices, and course enrollment. Overall, 85% of respondents indicated that their sustainability-related behavior and level of awareness of social justice issues has grown somewhat since they joined CU. 75 %of respondents reported that their knowledge of sustainability issues has grown since they joined CU. 33.1% of the respondents answered the questionnaire that their institutions offer courses related to sustainable development, while 66.9% believed that
There are no decisions related to sustainable development in their institutions.
Among the courses taught to the various faculties were 23, namely:
1 - Green Chemistry -
2 - Environmental Sciences
3- Critical thinking
5- Political systems and constitutional law
6 - Economy
7- Population, women and society
8 Environmental and Organic Chemistry
9 - Environmental Engineering
10 - International Media
11 - Microbiology
12 - Environmental Economics
13 - Environmental culture
14 - Economic development in Africa
15 - A regional economic study of the Nile Basin
16 - Economics of the environment and natural resources in Africa
17 - Environmental Biotechnology
18 - Human Rights
19 - Environmental pollution
20 - Environmental Biophysics
21 - The Safe Woman Program
22 - Pests of plants
23 - Insect Economy
87.8% of respondents believe that 40% of faculty members teach or conduct research on development issues While 10.8% believe that the percentage is 60%, while 1.4% of the participants believe that 80% of the faculty members provide decisions related to sustainable development.
65% of respondents “Strongly Agree” or “Agree” that sustainability accomplishments are a source of pride for them as a member of the CU community. And the subsequent knowledge assessment shows that CU students andemployees are mostly familiar with topics regarding Climate Change, Biodiversity, and Inter-generational Equity with 80%, 75% and 60% of respondents indicating that they know something about these concepts respectively, but for topics relating to the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, levels of familiarity dropped slightly. In general, as the number of years since joining CU increased, respondents demonstrate improvements in their sustainable knowledge, behaviors, and awareness
-
Optional Fields
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.