Integrating sustainability competencies into electrical engineering courses

Abstract

Integrating sustainability into electrical  engineering education is essential for preparing students to  address complex technology and societal challenges, requiring  the combination of disciplinary competencies with  sustainability competencies such as, e.g., systems-thinking and  critical thinking. In this work, we explore how sustainability  content and competencies can be more effectively taught and  assessed within two existing courses in electrical engineering at  Lund University: Project in Embedded Systems, and Power  Electronics: Interfacing Batteries and Photovoltaics in Power  Grids. Both courses are assessed primarily through project  work, providing a natural context for further integrating  sustainability-oriented learning outcomes and more explicit  development of sustainability competencies. Through  interviews, we investigate current practices and challenges in  embedding sustainability-related content, competencies and  perspectives within our respective departments. We identify  opportunities for constructive alignment between learning  outcomes (LOs), teaching and learning activities (TLAs), and  assessment strategies, targeting the development of  sustainability competencies. Based on these insights, we  propose revisions and additions to the course LOs, also aligned  with the SOLO taxonomy. We further outline and suggest  TLAs that can be incorporated into existing course and project  structures to support co-creation, reflection, and peer learning.  We discuss the generalizability of this approach to other  courses in electrical engineering and related disciplines.  Implementation in our courses is planned for 2026, followed by  an evaluation of the outcomes through a student questionnaire.