Drama as a transformational capability of sustainability science

Wall, T ORCID: 0000-0003-2334-3279, Österlind, E, Lehtonen, A, Khalaim, O, Fries, J, Hallgren, E and Piasecka, S Drama as a transformational capability of sustainability science. Sustainability Science. ISSN 1862-4065 (Accepted)

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Abstract

Education for sustainable development (ESD) is a foundational aspect of the transformatory capability of sustainability science at the individual and group levels. Despite international frameworks to promote and monitor the development of sustainability competences, evidence of the efficacy of ESD remains limited and even challenging. This article proposes drama-based educational approaches, as part of an increasing body of arts-based methods used in sustainability science, which materially impact a wide range of sustainability competences. Drama is a practice-based approach that intentionally uses carefully designed educational activities involving body, story, interaction, and collaboration to generate sustainability awareness, knowledge, mindsets, and action-taking for individuals and groups within higher education. Examples of applied drama practices can include various forms of role-play, forum play (playing out roles and pausing/fast-forwarding/reversing to explore possible solutions), and legislative theatre (where participants collaborate with lawmakers to address local issues). This article draws on an international project applying drama methods across disciplinary areas, and outlines how drama methods may contribute to sustainability competences applied in practice. As a result of this, we propose further research to inform future high-impact practices of applied drama for the field of ESD.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Liverpool Research Institute for Climate & Sustainability (LiRICS); Liverpool Institute for Research in Education (LIFE); Environmental Sciences
Subjects:	G Geography. Anthropology. Recreation > GE Environmental Sciences L Education > L Education (General) L Education > LB Theory and practice of education > LB2300 Higher Education P Language and Literature > PN Literature (General) > PN2000 Dramatic representation. The Theater
Divisions:	Liverpool Business School
Publisher:	Springer
Date of acceptance:	16 September 2025
Date Deposited:	19 Sep 2025 15:27
Last Modified:	19 Sep 2025 15:30
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/27184

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