Integrating ESG and AI in higher education: a conceptual framework for curriculum innovation

This paper examines the challenges and opportunities of integrating Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG) principles with artificial intelligence (AI) tools in higher education (HE), particularly in finance and business-related study programmes. Drawing on a structured review of recent academic literature and informed by insights from the Erasmus+ GenESG project, it identifies four key systemic gaps that hinder effective implementation: lack of standardised ESG frameworks, weak interdisciplinary integration, ethical uncertainties surrounding AI use, and low student engagement with sustainability topics. The paper argues that addressing these challenges requires a holistic rethinking of curricula, combining ethical, digital, and sustainability literacies. Through an analysis of pedagogical approaches and institutional barriers, it offers recommendations for more coherent and future-oriented ESG teaching in higher education (HE), grounded in interdisciplinary, practice-based, and ethically aware strategies.