17.4.2)Education for SDGs specific courses on sustainability.

The courses offered by TKU with a focus on SDGs include:

1. Distinctive Dual-Tower Courses
Starting in 2022, the university introduced the "AI and Sustainability" program as part of its distinctive dual-track curriculum. This program includes two courses, "AI and Programming Languages" and "Exploring Sustainability," each worth 1 credit, which have been incorporated into the compulsory courses for new students. These courses help students gain an understanding of sustainable development while learning about AI and artificial intelligence to prepare for future developments. Following the concept of "sustainable governance," the Sustainable Development and Social Innovation Center serves as the hub to collaborate with various colleges across the university. Their aim is to nurture "sustainability competence" education within the university. They have introduced the "Exploring Sustainability" course, which guides students through the process of social awareness, social participation, and social innovation. This approach enhances both "exploration literacy" and "sustainability literacy" as two core competencies, fostering the development of future-oriented sustainable citizens within the university.
淡江大學「探索永續」、「AI與程式語言」通識課程授課教師教學知能研習活動
探索永續

2. Micro-program of Sustainable development
TKU has set a micro-program of SDGs, a distributive study open to students of all grades. This program provides SDGs-related training and knowledge such as “Environmental Ethics,” “Marine Technology,” and “Human Rights and Social Justice,” covering three main categories—humanities, society, and technology.
永續發展微學程

3. Courses opened by each college (compulsory or elective)
The school encourages all colleges to offer diverse and different-oriented courses related to sustainable education according to their professional fields. The school requires teachers to state the sustainable development goals related to the teaching plan when submitting a teaching plan, thereby encouraging teachers to incorporate SDG practice and experience into curriculum design to facilitate the promotion of education related to sustainable development goals. In 2022, the SDG-related courses include:

◆The Civil Engineering Department offers a "Low Carbon Green Building" course that starts with the concept of low carbon and explores the content and certification systems of green buildings, as well as the future development pathways.

◆The Architecture Department offers a "Sustainable Architecture" course, teaching architecture students about the significance, operational objectives, and design methods of sustainable architecture. Sustainable architecture must be considered as part of the ecological environmental system. Through design, it operates in harmony with the natural systems of sound, light, heat, air, water, resources, energy, and nutrition, meeting various human life needs while simultaneously achieving goals of low carbon, energy efficiency, health, safety, and coexistence with nature.

◆The Mechanical Engineering Department offers an "Energy Engineering" course that introduces fundamental scientific principles related to energy, applications of energy, future trends in energy, an overview of non-renewable and renewable energy, an introduction to electrical and power systems, efficient energy conversion, energy management, analysis and evaluation of efficient energy use, and environmental issues related to energy.

◆The Aerospace Engineering Department offers a course titled "Introduction to Green Energy Technology." This course begins by discussing the most widely used fossil fuels and nuclear energy globally, exploring their impacts on the Earth's environment and the necessity of transitioning to green energy. It starts with an introduction to the most common sources such as wind and solar power and continues with topics like hydropower and ocean energy. Additionally, the course includes relevant videos on green energy to enhance students' understanding, shares knowledge on energy transformation, and elaborates on the current status and development of sustainable green energy in Taiwan.

◆The Department of Economics offers a course titled "Environmental Economics" dedicated to SDGs 3, 4, 12, and 13. The course aims to equip students with the ability to apply economic theories to analyze problems related to environmental use, environmental policies, and conservation. It also introduces current critical international environmental issues, enabling students to gain a profound understanding and insight into these topics. Approximately more than 60 students have enrolled in this course.

◆The Department of Economics offers a course titled "Labor Economics," which is dedicated to SDGs 1, 4, 5, 8, and 17. This course covers a range of topics, from gender equality issues to dignified employment and the establishment of partnerships. It guides students in understanding the concept of a sustainable labor market. Additionally, it provides students with a comprehensive understanding of the regulations and policies they may face in their future career, including regulations related to employment security, minimum wage, labor discrimination, and social insurance and benefits. Understanding the impact of institutional design on the operation of a sustainable economy. Approximately 60 students enroll in this course each year.