Reimagining sustainability education: a self-directed competition model to foster undergraduate engagement with sustainability challenges

Abstract

Addressing sustainability challenges such as climate instability, resource inequity, and biodiversity loss requires educational models that cultivate agency, systemic insight, and emotionally grounded engagement. This study examines learning outcomes associated with the multinational Reimagine Our Future sustainability competition, which engages undergraduate students from several countries. It further investigates how self-directed learning (SDL), systems thinking, and whole-brain “Think–Feel–Do” engagement emerged from participant data as a coherent learning triad. Following the 2025 competition cycle, we administered a post-competition survey to all participants who made final submissions ( N  = 118). The survey included Likert-scale items spanning multiple outcome domains, as well as open-ended prompts exploring participants’ experiences, perceived challenges, and intended future actions. These data were complemented by semi-structured interviews. The analysis proceeded in two stages. First, we conducted outcome-level interpretations of individual survey items and qualitative responses. Second, we performed an exploratory principal component analysis (PCA) of the survey items to identify latent structures, supported by reliability testing and convergence with interview narratives. Because the study employed a cross-sectional post-participation design, findings primarily reflect participants’ perceived learning outcomes and experiences. Participants reported high satisfaction and substantial gains in confidence related to independent inquiry, addressing sustainability challenges, interdisciplinary teamwork, innovative problem solving, and systems-oriented sustainability thinking. They also expressed strong intentions to incorporate sustainability into their future studies, careers, and personal actions. PCA yielded three interpretable components that aligned closely with SDL, systems thinking, and whole-brain engagement, with strong internal reliability and convergence with interview themes. Interview responses described shifts from uncertainty to ownership, from fragmented issue awareness to systemic understanding, and from general concern to a sustained sense of agency. The findings suggest that sustainability competencies may develop effectively when autonomy, systemic reasoning, and integrated cognitive-emotional engagement co-develop within challenge-based learning environments. The empirically derived triadic framework offers practical guidance for designing flexible, scalable, and transformative sustainability learning experiences across diverse higher education contexts.