Intercultural networks deepen learning for transformative sustainability education: lessons from co-designing transdisciplinary international learning labs

Abstract

In this paper, we emphasize the value of an intercultural network of researchers, students, and practitioners engaged in co-creating and delivering transdisciplinary sustainability learning opportunities. The network, the Transdisciplinary Education Collaboration for Transformations in Sustainability (TRANSECTS), is a north–south partnership with hub universities in Canada, Germany, and South Africa. Here, we introduce one pathway for learning — Transdisciplinary International Learning Labs (TILLs) — which are immersive learning experiences that take place in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and CulturalOrganization (UNESCO)-designated Biosphere Reserves/Regions. We describe preliminary lessons learned through collaborating across national and disciplinary boundaries to design, deliver, and evaluate this novel sustainability educational format. Drawing on a framework for transformative transdisciplinary learning, we explain how TILLs have contributed to single, double, and triple loop learning by students and the academics and practitioners who co-design and implement them. We share these lessons to inform other lab models that seek to provide transformative sustainability education.