Driving Higher Education Sustainability: Investigating Practices, Cultural Influence and External Pressures in Nigerian Higher Education Institutions

Abstract

While scholars have argued that Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) have the potential to help build a sustainable future, there remains a lack of understanding of what it means to strengthen sustainability practices and culture, especially in developing nations where multifaceted sustainability concerns exist. This dissertation uses the Sustainability Tracking and Rating System (STARS) framework to investigate campus sustainability practices and implementation barriers within the unique context of Nigerian HEIs, with a focus on understanding the influence of hierarchical organisation culture and external pressure – whether coercive, normative, and/or mimetic – on sustainability performance. Drawing on the Competing Value Framework (CVF) to identify institutional policies, leadership and management styles as the three major components of hierarchical culture, findings reveal the absence of a standard framework for measuring sustainability performance and the lack of distinct departments for sustainability teaching and research. While institutional policy and leadership style were found to promote sustainability initiatives, a rigid management approach affects adaptability and innovation, which are critical to sustainability project implementation. Additionally, external pressures were found to drive sustainability initiatives. This research advances the application and adaptation of sustainability theories within the Nigerian context, providing a novel framework for Africa and other developing countries, while offering practical recommendations for policy adjustment, institutional management techniques, and mechanisms for governments to promote sustainability performance in HEIs within the context of developing countries.