Perception-based actions on sustainable living: a case of foreigners of Chulalongkorn University, Thailand

Living is sustainable when it recognizes the effects of our lifestyle decisions on the environment and figures out how to make life better and lighter for everyone. A "people lens" approach to sustainability is novel, contemporary, and highly advantageous. Chulalongkorn University, Higher Education Institutions acting as the spearheads of sustainable living in local and international communities, are mandated to implement crucial policies, practices, and programmes supporting sustainable living of foreigners of Chulalongkorn University. This study aimed to identify factors influencing sustainable living of foreigners of Chulalongkorn University and to provide recommendations for boosting sustainable living in the university. By applying mixed methods approach, policy makers regarding sustainability were interviewed using open-ended questions coupled with an online questionnaire for surveying behaviour, awareness, and attitude of foreigners of Chulalongkorn University. The interview data was interpreted using content analysis whilst statistical analysis via SPSS version 29 was applied for examining 22 indicators of sustainable living categorized into 4 sectors including Teaching and Research, Environment and Climate, People and Society, and Administration and Governance. The results demonstrated that 215 foreigners responded to the survey. They were from 55 countries. Among 22 indicators, only 5 indicators classified in the Environment and Climate category showed an increased number of behaviours change towards sustainable practices, consisting of refilling water instead of buying water bottle, implementation of 7Rs practices, environmentally friendly travelling, reduced printing of documents, and checking of eco-label signs before buying products. Meanwhile the remaining indicators showed a significant decrease in sustainable actions in the university compared to the past actions. The findings showed that socio-graphic factors including gender, age, race, occupation and length of stay significantly influence sustainable lifestyle behavior changes among foreigners of Chulalongkorn University. In addition, foreigners’ engagement in sustainable programs of Chulalongkorn University was less than 50 percent, which reflected that there are challenges, and the university environment is not yet friendly for sustainable living. Half of the respondents believed that foreigners’ experiences and cultural diversity influence sustainable living in the university. On the other hand, university policymakers stated that ineffective communication, lack of awareness in institutional culture, sustainability leadership and a limited number of activities to strengthen the capacity of foreigners were also the cause. This study therefore suggested that there is a need for establishing a course on sustainable living, which should be compulsory learning with no-credit, enforcing a bilingual system, creating an anonymous feedback system, designing inclusive and collaborative communities, having up-to-date databases, and decentralizing leadership to cultivate sustainable living in the university.