Understanding Deep-Seated Paradigms of Unsustainability to Address Global Challenges: A Pathway to Transformative Education for Sustainability

This study investigates the foundational causes of unsustainability that obstruct efforts to address global challenges such as climate change, environmental degradation, water crises, and public health deterioration. Using qualitative research with in-depth expert interviews from education, environmental studies, and business, it finds that these global challenges, while visible on the surface, are deeply rooted in worldviews that shape human behavior, societal structures, and policies. Building on this insight, the thematic analysis then manifests three interrelated systemic paradigms as the fundamental drivers of unsustainability: a crisis of meaning, reflected in fragmented identities and collective disorientation; a disconnection from nature, shaped by human-centered perspectives; and the influence of global political-economic systems which prioritize growth logics over ecological and social concerns. These paradigms underlie both structural and cognitive barriers to systemic transformation, influencing how education for sustainability is designed and implemented. By clarifying a systemic and holistic body of knowledge regarding unsustainability, this paper contributes to the discourse on entrepreneurial competences and challenges the foundational insights of sustainability education that are rooted in critical consciousness, ecological empathy, and systems understanding toward a more sustainable future.