France
Back to School for the Planet
Back to School for the Planet (BTSP) is a French association providing guidance and tools for higher education programs to help them open their new sustainability-focused classes to their alumni.
An initiative of Back to School for the Planet
Overview of the project
BTSP creates an opportunity for higher education institutions to develop new bonds with alumni while updating their skills and providing an invaluable experience for current students, who benefit from classroom interactions and knowledge sharing with alumni of their program, who are able to discuss current workplace obstacles to sustainable development.
BTSP offers tools and support to programs and professors who to open their courses to alumni in th ebest possible conditions to enhance both alumni and student experience. BTSP also improves exisiting pedagogical practices thanks to the creaion of a new type of lifelong learning which directly benefits alumni, students and professors.
The BTSP initiative was piloted in autumn 2020 in the MSc in Hospitality Management at ESSEC Business School, Paris.
Following the success of the pilot, BTSP was registered as a non-profit association in January 2021 with the aim of encouraging and supporting the good practice in as many schools as possible.
BTSP transforms the learning experience by bringing alumni back to the classroom alongside current students to update their knowledge and competencies through newly introduced sustainability courses.
Pilote operation, experimentation
10/06/2020 - project still in progress
The BTSP initiative was piloted in autumn 2020 in the MSc in Hospitality Management at ESSEC Business School, Paris, with the participation of
– 2 sustainability-focused courses (Sustainability Essentials in Hospitality Management and Sustainable Finance and Law for Hospitality Managers) taught online,
– 3 lecturers,
– 7 program alumni, and
– 61 full-time enrolled students.
In feedback surveys, students and lecturers felt that the classroom discussions were enriched by the presence of alumni already experienced in the field, while alumni (surveyed both immediately and four months after the courses) shared the impacts that the experience had on them, including:
The following testimonial from a participating alumna summarizes the perception and high potential of this initiative: “I probably wouldn’t have made the decision to take a sustainability course if it hadn’t been offered by the program from which I graduated. It was easy to enroll and required no financial investment.”
About the
organisation
organisation
Dedicated to fostering a new learning environment for students and alumni alike and offering lifelong qualitative education to alumni, Back to School for the Planet (BTSP) is a French association providing guidance and tools for higher education programs to help them open their new sustainability-focused classes to their alumni. Its objective is to accelerate change in professional practices by updating the competencies of those who have or will soon have high-level responsibilities in companies and institutions. BTSP creates an opportunity for HE institutions to develop new bonds with alumni while updating their skills and providing an invaluable experience for students.
A project
in collaboration
in collaboration
Other partners / supporters
Back to School for the Planet was selected to be featured on SDSN’s blog :
Back to School for the Planet (BTSP) Piloted at ESSEC Business School