Exploring Climate Change Friendly Behavior among Tertiary Students in Promotion of Sustainable Development Goal Number 13: a case of a University in Zimbabwe
- August 13, 2019
- Posted by: RSIS
- Category: Geography
International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS) | Volume III, Issue VIII, August 2019 | ISSN 2454–6186
Tshuma Doreen Taurai1*, Chatsiwa, Jaison2
1Great Zimbabwe University, School of Curriculum Studies, Masvingo Zimbabwe
2University of the Witswatersrand, Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, Braamfontein, Johannesburg, South Africa
*Corresponding Author
Introduction: – Climate change and climate variability are presenting new challenges that are threating human livelihoods and sustainability across the globe. Societies therefore need to find coping strategies that work for them to reduce the effects brought by climate change. The main aim of this study was to explore climate change friendly behavior among University students, in promoting Sustainable Development Goal 13 (SDG 13), both in campus and off campus. SDG 13 deals with climate action. Climate change is real and this calls for changes in our actions, attitudes and behavior. According to Smith (2015; 29) ‘achieving change in individuals and organizational behavior to meet the challenges of global environmental change will be seen as a defining benchmark for our generation’. Research has shown that societies globally have a basic understanding of what climate change is. The question however, is that with that knowledge, are people changing their behavior to address and reduce the impacts of climate change? This paper therefore addresses climate friendly behavior if any among University students both on-campus and off-campus.
Key words: climate change, sustainable development, carbon footprint, climate friendly behavior
I. BRIEF LITERATURE REVIEW
Sustainable Development Goal Number (SDG) Number 13
The United Nations set up 17 sustainable development goals in 2015 with the aim of achieving a better and more sustainable future for everyone. The adopted theme was ‘Transforming our World: The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development’ (Gratzer & Keeton, 2017). Among the goals is SDG 13 which is aimed at educating young people on climate change thereby putting them on a sustainable path at an early stage in life.
