Contemplative practice and resilience: sustainability pedagogy to support wellbeing and transformation

A course integrating contemplative practices with content on individual, community, and social-ecological resilience improved undergraduate wellbeing in three ways: a short-term boost following class sessions, a moderate increase in coping capacity over the semester, and, for some students, lasting lifestyle changes that helped them transcend previous challenges. However, many students experienced persistent stress and limited coping capacity that hindered their readiness for sustainability learning and action. The findings inform the design of sustainability pedagogies and strategies to address the mental health crisis on U.S. campuses.

Study at a glance

Abstract

Abstract A focus on cognitive – rather than affective or embodied - learning in higher education limits opportunities for students to practice reflexive and collaborative competencies that support effective participation in social-environmental problem solving. At the same time, undergraduate learners are struggling, seeking help for problems related to everyday life in higher numbers than ever before. With the nested goals of facilitating sustainability change agency and supporting student wellbeing, we developed a 2-credit undergraduate course on contemplative practice and resilience. We used a mixed methods approach to investigate the integration of contemplative practices alongside content on individual, community, and social-ecological resilience. Our research was guided by two questions: How does contemplative practice contribute to student wellbeing? How do contemplative practices for sustainability learners impact change agency? Our analysis revealed the course positively impacted participant wellbeing in one of three ways: (1) class-level , which describes a short-term wellbeing boost that followed class for some students, (2) semester-level , which reflects a moderate increase in wellbeing characterized by increased awareness and capacity for coping with challenge over the course of the semester, and (3) lifestyle , which describes the new skills and changed mindsets demonstrated by several students that allowed them to transcend, rather than cope more effectively with, previous challenges. Observing increased wellbeing across the entire group was encouraging, but we also found that students were suffering more deeply than we anticipated. Persistent stress and limited coping capacity impacted their readiness for sustainability learning related to engagement and action. These are important findings related to the design of effective sustainability pedagogies, the development of strategies to address the mental health crisis across U.S. universities, and the ways contemplative practice can support both efforts.