Sustainability NOW
We ask our students to ‘dream big and dare greatly,’ but threats like climate change,
population growth, and technological automation are threatening the realization of those dreams.
UCSC’s Educational Partnership Center (EPC) strives to build college-bound communities that
increase college-going rates among traditionally non-college-going students and families, but in
as few as 22 years, the world will experience food shortages, wildfires and the mass dire off of
coral reefs (Davenport, 2018). The EPC must maintain its operational viability by altering its
service models to address college access and sustainability issues that threaten service regions
and constituencies.
Climate change is threatening the viability of the EPC’s service regions and will soon
have significant effects on the socioeconomic well-being of Monterey County—affecting critical
employment sectors like agriculture. Global population continues to surge and is expected to
reach 8.4 billion by 2032 (Basile, 2013). Increasingly, vital resources are dwindling in the face
of unfettered population growth. Technological automation also poses a significant threat, with
the Global Risks Report of 2017 reporting that “47 percent of US jobs are at risk of automation,
affecting over 80 percent of low-income workers” (25). The urgency to address these issues is
NOW.
Sustainability NOW is an interdisciplinary, project-based curriculum and organizational
strategy that helped the EPC address these threats while simultaneously improving the local
educational system. Sustainability NOW required a vision, mission, and a strategic framework.
It also required an understanding of relevant audiences and communication plans tailored to
highlight the value of the initiative for an array of stakeholders. It was designed to raise the
EPC’s sustainable development to another level while simultaneously impacting shared
challenges. Sustainability NOW’s strategic framework led to the EPC being certified via
UCSC’s Green Office Certification Program and led to the establishment of strategic
partnerships that will sustain the project’s momentum in the years ahead. All goals for
Sustainability NOW were met or nearly met, with participating students raising their content
knowledge and sustainability ambition by 9 percentage points over baseline respectively. At its
core, Sustainability NOW is a curricular tool and strategic solution set for the EPC and
educational service providers alike as we collectively work toward achieving expanded outcomes
that benefit the greater social good.

Christopher Mutshnick, March 29th 2019

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