Innovative Pathways to Sustainability: Integrating Education, Communication, and Learning
A special issue of Sustainability (ISSN 2071-1050). This special issue belongs to the section "Sustainable Education and Approaches".
Deadline for manuscript submissions: 31 December 2026 | Viewed by 670
Special Issue Editors
Interests: instructional communication; communication education; teacher–student relationship; instructor communication behaviors; student learning outcomes
Special Issue Information
Dear Colleagues,
In recent decades, Sustainability has emerged as a central paradigm for addressing the profound social, environmental, and economic challenges faced by contemporary societies. Achieving sustainable development requires not only technological innovation and policy reform but also deep transformations in the ways individuals learn, communicate, and engage with sustainability-related practices. Education plays a pivotal role in shaping the knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors necessary to advance sustainable futures. Within this context, communication processes become essential drivers of effective learning environments and meaningful educational outcomes. As societies attempt to foster sustainability competencies such as systems thinking, collaborative problem solving, ethical reasoning, and responsible action, understanding the communicative dynamics that underpin successful teaching and learning becomes increasingly important. Concepts such as communication education, teacher–student relationships, instructor communication behaviors, and student learning outcomes are therefore crucial to advancing educational practices aligned with sustainability.
The aim of this Special Issue is to explore innovative pathways that integrate instructional communication, communication education, and relational teaching practices into sustainability-oriented learning contexts. By bringing together research from communication studies, education, psychology, and sustainability science, the Special Issue seeks to deepen our understanding of how communicative processes shape learning experiences that promote sustainable behaviors, values, and competencies. Contributions to this Special Issue will therefore demonstrate how communication-informed educational practices can enhance students’ capacity to engage with sustainability challenges, empower educators to cultivate inclusive and impactful learning environments, and support institutions in achieving sustainability goals.
In this Special Issue, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research areas may include (but not limited to) the following:
- Instructional Communication
- Communication Education
- Teacher-Student Relationship
- Instructor Communication Behavior and Student Learning Outcomes
We look forward to receiving your contributions.
Prof. Dr. Facundo Froment
Dr. Manuel de Besa Gutiérrez
Guest Editors
Manuscript Submission Information
Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 250 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for assessment.
Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Sustainability is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.
Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.
Keywords
- sustainability education
- sustainability-oriented learning environments
- instructional communication
- communication education
- teacher-student relationship
- instructor communication behavior
- student learning outcomes
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