| Overall Rating | Bronze |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 36.20 |
| Liaison | Laurel Pikcunas |
| Submission Date | March 3, 2022 |
University of Hawaii at Manoa
EN-6: Assessing Sustainability Culture
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Matthew
Lynch Director UH System Office of Sustainability |
Does the institution conduct an assessment of sustainability culture?:
Which of the following best describes the cultural assessment? The assessment is administered to::
Which of the following best describes the structure of the cultural assessment? The assessment is administered::
A brief description of how and when the cultural assessment(s) were developed and/or adopted:
UHM conducts an Earth Day survey every two years, and the National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE) every 2-3 years.
Earth day Survey:
Starting in 2018 on Earth Day, The Mānoa Institutional Research Office and the UH Sustainability Office began a survey on students, faculty, and staff that assessed the sustainability culture at UH Mānoa. The survey is conducted online every two years and opened for two weeks to all students, faculty, and staff. The short survey includes four open-ended questions and three multiple choice questions.
National Survey of Student Engagement (NSSE):
NSSE is the most popular undergraduate student survey in the U.S. Since 2000, over 1,600 colleges and universities have participated in the survey and approximately 5 million students have completed the survey, administered by the Indiana University School of Education, Center for Post-secondary Research. This survey collects data from first-year and senior students on learning and engagement related practices and activities. UHM runs the survey every 2-3 years.
A copy or sample of the questions related to sustainability culture:
A sample of the questions related to sustainability culture or the website URL where the assessment tool is available:
The Earth Day Survey: included four open-ended questions and three multiple choice questions.
Open response questions:
Question 1: Which sustainability and climate change issues concern you the most, and why?
Question 2: Please list different ways you have learned about the issues described in Question 1, including any specific classes at UH.
Question 3: Please list different ways you have learned about the issues described in Question 1, including any specific classes at UH.
Question 4: Can you talk about how sustainability and climate change issues have influenced or might influence your decisions and life choices, no matter how small or big those choices are?
Multiple choice questions:
Question 5: Overall, how concerned are you regarding various sustainability/climate change issues we are facing?
Question 6: How interested are you in seeking information about sustainability/climate change issues?
Question 7: Would you like to receive information about how you can learn more about sustainability, climate change, and related issues?
The questions to the NSSE Sustainability Consortium module can be found here: https://manoa.hawaii.edu/miro/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/NSSE-Optional-Consortium-Sustainability-Questions.jpg
A brief description of how representative samples were reached (if applicable) and how the cultural assessment is administered:
The Earth Day survey was conducted online and opened for two weeks to all students, faculty, and staff. All students who completed the survey were entered into a prize drawing.
The NSSE survey sample received an email invitation from the UHM Provost containing a link to complete the survey online. The survey was sent to UHM freshman and seniors, and received a 52% response rate. All students who completed the survey were entered into a prize drawing.
A brief summary of results from the cultural assessment:
Earth Day Survey results:
95% of survey respondents are concerned or very concerned about sustainability /climate change issues. The top three concerns are global warming, ocean and beach, consumer culture.
84% of Mānoa’s community are interested in seeking more information about sustainability/climate change issues.
People learn about sustainability and climate change issues through integrated ways, including courses, news, internet, movies, research projects, talks, workshops, earth day events, people, and various organizations. News stories are the primary information resources for both students and employees.
Results show that sustainability and climate change issues have changed people’s choices and decisions in various aspects, from daily choices like choices of purchasing, transportation, food, and recycling, to major decisions on academic programs, research projects, career, employer, political decisions, financial investment, and place to live or retire.
NSSE Survey results:
On the 15 questions in the sustainability module, responses to two questions indicated improvement is needed because too many students reported that they
(1) never “participated in a campus or community sustainability project” and/or
(2) had never “gone on a field trip in [their] bioregion.”
Given the importance of having students build relationships with the place they live by seeing, touching, listening, which will help them understand their kuleana, we recognize the need to do better.
On the other hand, positive responses to two questions indicate areas to celebrate success: students reported
(1) some or greater emphasis in coursework on “evaluating the moral dimensions of social or environmental problems” and
(2) student respondents sometimes or often “altered [their] behavior to become more sustainable.”
Survey results: https://manoa.hawaii.edu/wasc/wp-content/uploads/sites/26/2021/07/8c.-NSSE-Sustainability-Results-2020-Table.pdf
Website URL where information about the assessment of sustainability culture is available:
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.