Integrating Energy and Environment in Postgraduate Management Education: A Case Study from Symbiosis Institute of International Business, Pune, India

In recent times, environment and sustainability have caught the attention of various sections of society as issues threatening the very fabric of global business and polity. Climate change as a major environmental challenge is now at the centre stage of attention by world leaders, academia, business and industry and civil society. The sluggish market conditions across the world as well as recessionary pressures has led to renewed thinking amongst the various business and industry entities about integrating sustainable environment practices into mainstream business practices for cost effectiveness. The recent Rio +20 summit in 2012 has further reiterated the role played by education in building sustainable development, recommending among other issues the internationalization of educational systems at all levels of learning. The present chapter seeks to focus on a new direction in management education which has significant implications for environment protection as a major driver of corporate business action at international level. Recent advances in environmental protection and sustainability have become relevant as an important business opportunity for many companies, apart from being seen as a green branding exercise. The chapter discusses the case of a unique and integrated mechanism aimed at building capacity in energy and environment at the Symbiosis Institute of International Business through designing sustainability-based curricula and implementing courses matching the needs of business and industry. These include recent and emerging areas such as sustainable energy development, global carbon markets, renewable energy, corporate environmental management, sustainability reporting, etc. The case study draws upon some of the current approaches of global educational institutions in promoting sustainability as part of the UN decade of Education for Sustainable Development (2005–2014). In a rapidly growing Indian economy, the corporate sector sees the importance of environmental sustainability as an integral part of legitimate business strategy. The study also addresses some of the key issues and challenges in embedding a sustainability domain in management education in comparison to the existing curriculum at international level. Key recommendations are proposed in integrating environmental sustainability as an important part of curriculum development in management education.