Assessing sustainability cognizance in higher education institutions

The world is subjected to a paradigm shift in the form of sustainable development. It is essential for developed and particularly developing counties, to incorporate sustainability and help in the establishment of sustainable societies through awareness among the young population. This paper investigates the sustainability awareness among university students in the developing economy of Pakistan through a structured questionnaire, the analysis was carried out using Structural Equation Modelling (SEM) and SPSS. The study highlights the role of both public and private education sectors in promoting sustainability. The findings reveal that the private education sector is leading in making the students cognizant of sustainability and sustainable development whereas, the public sector is lagging behind. In order to fulfill and implement the sustainability goals in the country both sectors need to play their part by integrating sustainability into the curriculum and modifying the policy framework.