Promoting environmental sustainability through service learning and community capacity building

Community-based service learning provides opportunity of civic engagement and allow students to make real contribution to people’s lives in their own community. Through this service learning subject, the paradox of excess and deprivation, exemplified by abundant food waste and poverty, was addressed through campus-community partnership. Some aspects of empowering pedagogy advocated by Shor (1992) were adopted to facilitate learning experiences which are participatory, problem prosing, and democratic. The problem solution projects fostered a dialogic and active learning experience. The learning outcomes showed that students have acquired a change-maker mindset and developed a strong sense of civic responsibility in promoting a sustainable environment. Through multi-disciplinary team work and concerted effort with community stakeholders, students had the chance to develop generic competence in problem-solving, inter-personal effectiveness, and their creativities. The experience also has an impact on their personal values and behaviors. The capacity of the community was enhanced by the solutions co-created by the students and partner organization.