Sustainability roundtable helps to educate the workforce of the future

Sustainability Roundtable

Frouke de Reuver, NSW Office of Environment and Heritage; Suzie Wright, UWS Careers & Cooperative Education; Melissa Houghton, Sustainability at Work; and Professor Geoff Scott, UWS Office of Sustainability).

The University of Western Sydney recently hosted an Industry Roundtable for Careers in Sustainability, as a way of involving students in important discussions about the future of the field of sustainability.

The Roundtable, held at the UWS Parramatta campus, included discussions about the development of curriculum content, as well as the opportunities that exist for careers in the field of sustainability.

Professor Geoff Scott, Executive Director of the Office of Sustainability at UWS, says there is an increasing need to equip students for the many careers that are now emerging in the field.

"This Industry Roundtable formed part of the University's growing engagement with industry partners to grow curriculum and career opportunities for our students," says Professor Scott.

The Roundtable helped flesh out sustainability trends and career opportunities in key fields including water management, accounting, waste management, organisational development, environmental protection, renewable energy, local government and IT.

Senior staff from 14 organisations were in attendance, providing UWS with valuable insights regarding the employer expectations of UWS graduates.

Freny Tayebjee, Manager of Careers & Cooperative Education at UWS, says the Roundtable was an excellent forum to find out how sustainability is incorporated in a range of graduate positions.

"It also provided the opportunity to discuss our Internship Program, and the very positive contributions students can make during their placement," says Ms Tayebjee.

The attendees included representatives of Chartered Accountants, Deloitte, Eco Transit, the New South Wales Office of Environment and Heritage, IBM, SITA Australia, Sydney Water, Western Sydney Institute TAFE, Western Sydney Regional Organisation of Councils as well as the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities.

The University of Western Sydney is home to one of 101 United Nations Regional Centres of Expertise (RCEs) around the world.

The Regional Centre of Expertise on Education for Sustainable Development in Greater Western Sydney (RCE-GWS), based at the UWS Hawkesbury campus,  has a mandate to engage local and regional groups – including businesses, public organisations and community groups – in the development of sustainability education programs.