While a handful of Georgia Tech faculty members have been bringing sustainability concepts and skills into their courses for many years (even decades, for some), sustainability across the curriculum began expanding significantly with the creation of the Center for Serve-Learn-Sustain (SLS) in 2015. Focusing on community-engaged sustainability education that centers the “equity” component of sustainability’s three “Es” (equity, economy, environment), SLS was Georgia Tech’s 2015-2020 Quality Enhancement Plan (QEP) and earned a commendation from the Institute’s accreditation body for its “exceptional execution.” Since its inception, SLS has provided many opportunities for faculty development and built a Teaching Toolkit that continues to support the work of Georgia Tech instructors to advance sustainability learning across all six colleges. Following completion of its role as the QEP, SLS was institutionalized as part of the Office of Undergraduate Education. 

Growing faculty engagement with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) sparked collaboration between the Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL) and SLS on faculty development opportunities related to the SDGs. In early 2020, the “Think Globally, Teach Locally” workshop highlighted the work of five faculty members across diverse disciplines. The following year, CTL and SLS extended this collaboration through the RCE Greater Atlanta, a regional sustainability network acknowledged by the United Nations University in 2017 as a Regional Centre of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development. In early 2021, CTL and SLS led a cross-institutional planning team that included faculty and educational developers from Georgia State and Kennesaw State Universities to present a virtual workshop called “Going Global” that included nearly 50 faculty members from 14 colleges and universities across the U.S., Europe, and South America, all interested in teaching with the SDGs.  CTL, SLS, and Kennesaw’s Center for Excellence in Teaching and Learning (CETL) then partnered to offer a Fall 2021 Faculty Learning Community (FLC) on Teaching with the SDGs and a Spring 2022 Sustainability/SDG Fellows Program. Members of the FLC collaborated on a video and live workshop presentation for USG’s 2022 Teaching and Learning Conference that showcased nine faculty members highlighting synergies between SDG teaching and High Impact Practices. In December 2021 these initiatives were recognized with an award during the 12th Global RCE Conference. CTL staff continue to lead cross-institutional collaboration and expand faculty resources in sustainability and SDG faculty development through a Community of Practice launched in summer 2022. 

In addition to the work of SLS and CTL to support faculty interested in engaging with sustainability and the SDGs in their teaching, campus conversations about the SDGs expanded through the 2020-21 Institute Strategic Planning (ISP) process. Several portions of the ISP embrace Sustainability Education that equips students to solve global challenges and create a more just and sustainable society. Specifically, ISP objectives that support Education for Sustainable Development (SDG target 4.7) include: “strengthen the curriculum in areas that support the U.N. Sustainable Development Goals” and “make experiential, problem-based service learning a signature of all academic and research programs.” An implementation team called Sustainability Next began meeting in 2021 and published a detailed plan of action in 2022. The Education for Sustainable Development portion of the Sustainability Next Plan includes a new position within CTL to support faculty development in Sustainability Education across all six colleges and to partner on Plan implementation. CTL continues to partner with SLS to advance community-engaged, equity-centered sustainability education and collaborates with Sustainability Next leadership to “scale up” Sustainability Education across all six colleges. Sustainability Next also launched a new ISP-aligned Undergraduate Sustainability Education Committee and supports Sustainability Curricular Innovation Grants to advance sustainability and SDG concept and skill integration in high impact courses.