Educating, Engaging & Enabling: Sustainability in a state Business School and Industrial Engineering Department in Chile.

ABSTRACT The important role of academic institutions or Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) in the advocacy of sustainable education is being monitored by an increasing number of stakeholders each year. However, these institutions will only achieve sustainability changes when social, cultural and economic obstacles are faced and challenges overcome. Acknowledging the importance of a holistic understanding when implementing sustainable issues, the aim of this study was to analyse the integration of sustainability in academic activities, research, and entrepreneurial projects in a state university in Chile. The study analysed the business school and industrial engineering department, by investigating three specific research questions using a qualitative method approach. The results showed that the staff members and the students interviewed exhibited a positive attitude towards sustainability highlighting its importance for society, environment, and the economy of the country. Yet, the business school only incorporated sustainability as a sub-topic in other modules, on the other hand the industrial engineering department evidence a more comprehensive approach of the issue including it in academic activities, research and the entrepreneurial projects that supported. No relationship was found between the innovative centre part of the analysed university, and faculties under study. All these entities proved to work independently of each other and foster their own entrepreneurial projects integrating in some cases sustainability issues. The stakeholders involved proved to be valuable for the interviewees and key actors for the successfully integration of the issue. It can be summarized that despite the institutional effort made by the university there is still a disconnection between both faculties related to the integration of sustainability. Moreover, students are not aware of the committed that the university subscribed in 2008 and do not perceived the engagement across the campus and in their curricula