Business schools must show students sustainability doesn’t mean sacrifice

These summary insights are from the roundtable on the theme: Bridging the gap between higher education and the future of sustainable work. The provocateur for this roundtable was Professor Rana Sobh, Dean, College of Business and Economics, Qatar University.

Identify sustainability champions to push for change

In the past two decades, a widening gap has emerged between faculty members hesitant to address sustainability issues and younger generations for whom the climate crisis is a defining aspect of their lives. While students grow up with sustainability ingrained in their worldview, many educators still perceive it as a buzzword or side issue, rather than an urgent collective challenge. Many roundtable attendees reported encountering scepticism from faculty colleagues when trying to push forward sustainability initiatives. 

The solution? Identifying champions within institutions — those who already see the value in sustainability and can drive change from within. By building alliances between educators and networks – both within and between institutions – with a shared vision of the future of education, we can push for progress more effectively. It can also help to share best practices and new initiatives, such as how to translate sustainability concepts into actionable, measurable learning experiences. 

Frame sustainability as success not sacrifice

To achieve lasting impact, sustainability should not be framed as a burden or sacrifice. Instead, business schools must reimagine their role: how can they prepare students for prosperous careers while addressing sustainability challenges? Long-term success is more attainable when sustainability is seen as a driver of wellbeing, economic progress, social justice and overall life satisfaction rather than a limitation.

At its core, sustainability is about being responsible citizens — people who care about one another and the environment while staying connected to fundamental human values. Education should prioritise societal contributions, asking, “What problem am I addressing?” and “How am I adding value?”. Yet, current incentive structures in education often reinforce a narrow definition of success centred on personal achievement rather than collective wellbeing.

By shifting to a holistic mindset, we can support students to focus on collective success rather than individual achievement. Indigenous teachings, such as the "seven generations" principle, offer a valuable model — encouraging long-term thinking that considers the wellbeing of future descendants.

" Business schools must reimagine their role: how can they prepare students for prosperous careers while addressing sustainability challenges?"

Don’t avoid tough conversations

While helping students to work towards a macro vision of a safer, cleaner and prosperous future, we also need to encourage difficult but necessary conversations in classrooms. Attendees emphasised that, while topics such as climate change, resource management, and renewable energy are complex, they are essential for equipping students with the knowledge and mindset needed to address global challenges. Avoiding these discussions only perpetuates outdated or narrow-minded approaches that no longer serve students, businesses or society.

Partnerships can create a business case for sustainability

While business schools have always trained students to optimise for individual success, the workforce increasingly demands collaboration to address global challenges. Experiential learning is a powerful way to encourage students to work together in interdisciplinary teams – just as they will need to do in the workplace – while coalitions and partnerships can create new role models for collaboration and drive sustainable innovation at scale. 

Industry, too, will benefit from deeper partnerships with academic institutions and policymakers. At its core, sustainability must be financially viable to ensure widespread adoption. Expanding the impact ecosystem through partnerships ensures that sustainability efforts create reciprocal value — benefiting both businesses and the broader community.

Thank you to our roundtable partners: the Global Business School Network, Times Higher Education, International Coalition for Sustainable Infrastructure, ABET, Lenovo 360, and Instructure. 

Thank you also to everyone who attended this roundtable. We look forward to continuing the conversation as we work to create educational models and opportunities that better prepare students for a changing world.