The Blue Route, Ruta Azul: Implementation of Sustainability Competencies in Higher Education Programs in Engineering

Despite efforts to communicate sustainability concepts through various media, we continue in an unsustainable trend at a global level. The 2030 Agenda aims to meet the 17 sustainable development goals that could reverse the accelerated social, environmental, and economic deterioration. Education is the most powerful tool to raise awareness among new generations about our state and the tragedy we are approaching. Here, we present an institutional work scheme in higher education called the Ruta Azul (The official name of the program is Ruta Azul, for this reason, this name will be used.) (Blue Route), where teachers of all careers are prepared with sustainable concepts and competencies that will be transmitted to students, and they, in turn, will be exposed to challenge-based teaching facing real problems in their environment and thus developing sustainable skills necessary to change the way new generations act. Our results indicate the development of solid sustainability competencies in teachers and students and a deep awareness of the current situation. A particular case is that of engineering careers, which are fundamental to the solution and fulfillment of the Sustainable Development Goals. This intense and aggressive approach is necessary to raise student awareness about sustainability, and this Ruta Azul approach is an excellent option to develop at any university on the planet. © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2025.

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