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363-0387-00L 3 Credits BSC , DS , MSC , NDS D-ARCH , D-MAVT , D-MTEC , D-GESS , D-ITET , D-HEST , D-USYS

Corporate Sustainability

Lecturers & Examiners: Prof. Dr. Volker Hoffmann, Prof. Dr. Catharina Bening-Bach, PD Dr. Bastien Girod, Dr. Lucas Miehé
VVZ CR n/a

Last Updated: 2026-06-03 00:07:20

Abstract

The lecture explores current challenges of corporate sustainability and prepares students to become champions for sustainable business practices.

Objective

Students are able to - describe the role, potential, and limits of corporate sustainability for sustainable development. - assess and critically evaluate the sustainability framework conditions of a specific company, identifying key fields of action. - design and present concrete, actionable solutions for addressing a sustainability challenge of a specific company. - make informed decisions and develop strategic recommendations in collaboration with peers.

Content

In this course, students learn about key concepts in corporate sustainability and develop skills to implement them in the real world. The course prepares students for making well-​informed sustainability decisions in their future careers. The course uses constructive alignment to bring the various innovative teaching and learning elements (e.g., case-​based experiential learning, reflective thinking and blended learning with videos and quizzes) into a coherent transformational journey. Students can flexibly, efficiently, and effectively acquire the conceptual foundations that are essential for a substantial understanding of corporate sustainability. For part of the course, students will work in groups to complete a series of graded and non-graded assignments that guide them in looking in depth at a selected business sustainability challenge. Full participation in this part of the course is essential, so please ensure you are available. The course structure allows most group work to be completed in the classroom, minimizing coordination efforts. This group work will also be included in the overall course grade. The course combines asynchronous videos, live sessions, with a group work phase between weeks 5-10 of semester during which students deep-dive into one of 10 sustainability challenges. For further details on the course structure etc. visit the following link: http://www.sustec.ethz.ch/teaching/lectures/corporate-sustainability.html

Resources

Lecture Notes

Presentation slides will be made available on Moodle after lectures.

Literature

Literature recommendations will be distributed via Moodle, and are available from the start of the course.

General Information

Language
English
Levels
BSC , DS , MSC , NDS
Frequency
Yearly recurring

Examination

Type
end-of-semester examination
Mode
written 60 minutes
Aids
Closed book
Digital
The exam takes place on devices provided by ETH Zurich.
The examination will account for 50% of the grade and will be conducted electronically. The exam questions will be only in English. The use of a paper-based dictionary is permitted. The group exercises (sustainability team phase) and one individual assignment count as compulsory continuous performance assessments (obligatorische Leistungselemente) and count with 50% to the final grade.

Course Components

Type Title Time & Place Hours
lecture with exercise Corporate Sustainability No time listed 2 h weekly

Offered In