Steering Through Multi-Level Contradictions: Paradoxical Leadership in the Sustainability Transition of Malaysian Higher Education

Sustainability leaders in Malaysian higher education navigate paradoxes embedded in institutional efforts to implement sustainability agendas. By drawing on comparative case studies of two public and two private universities, it reveals how leaders confront multi-level tensions ranging from macro-level policy ambitions to individual-level ethical dilemmas. These tensions include national policy ambitions versus limited support, organizational growth imperatives versus environmental commitments, and individual ethics versus pragmatic workload demands. Using semi-structured interviews, document analysis, and limited observation, this study investigates how these tensions are nested and cascading in nature: contradictions at one level intensify dilemmas at another. Leaders adopted dynamic strategies (e.g. symbolic gestures, temporal and spatial separation, and integrative reframing) to cope with or manage paradoxes. Notably, public and private universities differed in these tensions and the dominant logic driving responses: Public institutions leaned toward symbolic and compliance strategies due to bureaucratic constraints, while Private institutions pursued integration framed within market imperatives. The findings contribute to paradox theory by illustrating how sustainability tensions are experienced and managed across institutional levels. The study also offers practical insights into developing leadership capabilities, aligning HRM systems with sustainability goals, and fostering multi-level coherence in sustainability governance. These insights are especially pertinent for universities seeking to advance meaningful sustainability transformations amid persistent structural and ideological contradictions.