MOOC for Sustainability: Cultivating Sustainability Leadership in Campus Management ThroughOpen Online Education

Higher education institutions (HEIs) serve as key hubs of education and research while also acting as influential societal agents in advancing sustainability. As HEIs increasingly integrate sustainability into their education, research, and operations, their role as sustainability leaders continues to evolve. This article explores how HEIs can cultivate sustainability leadership and institutional agency through open, digital education formats within the integrative framework of campus sustainability. Drawing from a case study on the development of the MOOC for Sustainability: Empowering Global Campuses course coordinated by the Finnish University Network for Asian Studies (Asianet), it examines how sustainability leadership education can be embedded into institutional practices to foster both individual leadership capacities and broader organizational transformation. The study highlights how MOOCs, as scalable learning tools, can bridge sustainability leadership education with campus operations, enabling HEIs to align learning with action. It discusses the importance of strategic leadership competencies, stakeholder engagement, and systems thinking in sustainability leadership development. Additionally, the article reflects critically on the challenges of MOOCs, including learner engagement, impact assessment, and institutional integration. By emphasizing the role of faculty and staff alongside students and formal leaders, this research contributes to the discourse on sustainability leadership and organizational change in HEIs.