Multi-Dimensional Assessment of a Bavarian and Czech University: A Case Study of Sustainability Implementation

Abstract

Evaluating the effectiveness of sustainability implementation at Higher Education Institutions is still challenging, due to less multi-dimensional approaches. Purpose is to present a new assessment - Sustainable Maturity model (SuMa model) for evaluating the implementation of sustainability at two universities in a border region with different maturity profiles through an internationally designed case study. Therefore, internal documents were analyzed, and interviews were conducted. The pilot implementation of this model showed that it can also be used internationally to evaluate the current state of sustainability implementation. As the assessment results prove, the critical point is effectiveness of strategy implementation and communication. Also, a lack of common understanding of sustainability still exists. The case study shows that the cultural and historical differences that exist in rural areas matters for implementing sustainability. The new SuMa assessment-model is a very suitable tool that delivers relevant indicators for measurable and comparable results over time and, above all, helps and supports the implementation of sustainability across all activities in the higher education landscape. It thus offers the possibility of being a standardized tool used worldwide.

Keywords: Higher Education Institutions; Sustainability; Strategy Implementation; Assessment