University of Saskatchewan
AC-1: Academic Courses

University of Saskatchewan requested that AASHE Staff correct a mistake in this reporting field for the reason specified below.

Previous Value: 2022-2023 Course Inventory Methodology The aim of this inventory was to provide updated data on the number and types of sustainability, indigenization, and internationalization courses being offered at the University of Saskatchewan. This information can then be compared with previous inventories (in the case of sustainability courses), used to inform future course offerings and to promote these courses to interested students. Sustainability course information also contributes to the University’s Sustainability Tracking, Assessment, and Rating System (STARS) score. This inventory updated previous sustainability course inventories conducted in 2013-2014, 2015-2016, 2022-2023. In 2022-2023, courses were not reviewed for Indigenization and Internationalization themes (as they were in 2018-2019). These inventories were conducted separately from the sustainability course inventory. Definitions Definitions of Sustainability-focused and Sustainability-inclusive courses are from the STARS Technical Manual Version 2.2. Sustainability-Focused Courses To count as sustainability-focused, the course title or description must indicate a primary and explicit focus on sustainability. This includes: • Foundational courses with a primary and explicit focus on sustainability (e.g., Introduction to Sustainability, Sustainable Development, Sustainability Science). Courses with a primary and explicit focus on the application of sustainability within a field (e.g., Architecture for Sustainability, Green Chemistry, Sustainable Agriculture, Sustainable Business). As sustainability is an interdisciplinary topic, such courses generally incorporate insights from multiple disciplines. • Courses with a primary and explicit focus on a major sustainability challenge (e.g., Climate Change Science, Environmental Justice, Global Poverty and Development, Renewable Energy Policy). The focus of such courses might be on providing knowledge and understanding of the problems and/or the tools for solving them. The course title or description does not have to use the term “sustainability” to count as sustainability-focused if the primary and explicit focus of the course is on the interdependence of ecological and social/economic systems or a major sustainability challenge. If the course title and description do not unequivocally indicate such a focus, but it is evident from the course description or syllabus that the course incorporates sustainability challenges, issues, and concepts in a prominent way, the course may qualify as sustainability-inclusive (see below). Courses that Include Sustainability Courses that are not explicitly focused on sustainability may contribute towards scoring if sustainability has clearly been incorporated into course content. To count as sustainability-inclusive, the course description or rationale provided in the course inventory must indicate that the course incorporates a unit or module on sustainability or a sustainability challenge, includes one or more sustainability-focused activities, or integrates sustainability challenges, issues, and concepts throughout the course. While a foundational course such as chemistry or sociology might provide knowledge that is useful to practitioners of sustainability, it would not be considered “sustainability-inclusive” unless the concept of sustainability or sustainability challenges and issues are specifically integrated into the course. Likewise, although specific tools or practices such as GIS (Geographic Information Systems) or engineering can be applied towards sustainability, such courses would not count unless the description or rationale provided in the inventory clearly indicates that sustainability is integrated into the course. Methodology The Usask Open CourseWare site was the main method for screening courses for inclusion in the inventory. Each department in each college was scanned for relevant undergraduate and graduate courses that might fall into one of the four categories of interest. Key terms in the course descriptions were considered as indicators that a course might be appropriate to include in the inventory. The list of terms is not exclusive and in all cases the course description, learning outcomes and syllabus was reviewed to verify the context of each term as it related to the course material. The previous two inventories were also used as a reference point for sustainability courses. The level of information available through Open CourseWare was highly variable. In cases where a syllabus was publicly available, learning outcomes, reading lists, and course content were reviewed to better determine whether a course should be placed in the inventory based on the definitions below. In some cases, this information was not available or the course description was sufficient to warrant placing the course squarely into one or more of the inventory categories. In addition, this method allowed for efficiencies as several courses had the potential to belong to multiple categories in the inventory and could be categorized together at one time. Sustainability terms: Renewable Sustainable (sustainability) Anthropogenic Urbanization Urban planning Globalization Biodiversity Conservation Environment Ecosystem Biosphere Stewardship Impact assessment Climate change Global warming Greenhouse gas emissions Ecological footprint Carbon footprint Deforestation Greenwashing Pollution Non-renewable Social justice Remediation Desertification Corporate social responsibility (CSR) Courses not represented in this inventory include: • most thesis, practicum, special project, and clinical courses (ENVS Sustainability research courses are included) • zero-credit courses or courses not for academic credit • Special topics courses with irregular course numbers (i.e. 298, 898 course numbers) • Courses not offered in the last three academic years, and courses not listed in Open CourseWare system Additionally, the Gwenna Moss Centre for Teaching Effectiveness's criteria for sustainability content was also used. It is as follows: Level 1 (content) inclusive: Course content considers the social, environmental, or economic development that meets the needs of the present while mindfully and respectfully protecting the ability of future generations to meet their own.  Example :N+1 articles, activities or unit or module about sustainbility that talk about economy, social issues, or the environmental impact of something. Level 2 (activity) focused: Students practice and get feedback or reflect/journal on sustainability skills that are the focus of the course.  Example: Sust. Skills such as problem-solving, communicating about sustainability, using technology for People, Planet & Prosperity.assignments with peer review/feedback, drafts submitted for review, laddered assinments, journal ling exercises Level 3 (assessed) focused: Students are assessed on sustainability competencies with an explicit interdisciplinary component. Example: Course outcomes that focus on the development of competencies related to People, Planet, Prosperity. Level 4 (ethos/lived) focused: Students have choice within and between assignments that assess sustainability. Students will take action on sustainability in the course.  Example: There is evidence that students will shift in mind, heart, and skill set through this course. Students will take action on sustainability in the course. Students are in community, doing a real project for a community. There is land-based learning or place-based learning. Focused Definition: ● Foundational courses with a primary and explicit focus on sustainability (e.g., Introduction to Sustainability, Sustainable Development, Sustainability Science). ● Courses with a primary and explicit focus on the application of sustainability within a field (e.g. Architecture for Sustainability, Green Chemistry, Sustainable Agriculture, Sustainable Business). As sustainability is an interdisciplinary topic, such courses generally incorporate insights from multiple disciplines. ● Courses with a primary and explicit focus on a major sustainability challenge (e.g., Climate Change Science, Environmental Justice, Global Poverty and Development, Renewable Energy Policy). The focus of such courses might be on providing knowledge and understanding of the problems and/or the tools for solving them.

Explanation: revision