Sustainability-Oriented pedagogy as a socio-economic strategy: A mixed-methods empirical study in Mexican FLE education

The last two decades have been marked by an intensifying convergence of socio-environmental crises. Scientific evidence confirms that climate change, biodiversity loss, resource depletion, food insecurity, and socio-economic inequality have escalated at unprecedented rates, placing severe pressure on communities, governments, and educational systems worldwide. The IPCC (2022) warns that “climate change has caused widespread adverse impacts and related losses and damages to nature and people,” emphasizing that educational institutions must play a role in strengthening societal resilience.

These systemic challenges disproportionately affect emerging economies such as Mexico, where socioeconomic disparities heighten vulnerability to environmental risks, extreme weather events, and disruptions in food and water systems. According to UNESCO, “the poorest and most marginalized are disproportionately affected by environmental degradation and climate-related disasters” (UNESCO, 2017, p. 12). This makes sustainability education not only an academic concern but an ethical and socioeconomic imperative in contexts where inequalities intersect with ecological fragility.

Public universities in Latin America, particularly those located in regions facing climate variability and limited economic resilience, are uniquely positioned to respond. UNESCO has repeatedly stated that higher education must support “the development of the knowledge, skills, values and attitudes that empower learners to contribute to sustainable development” (UNESCO, 2017, p. 7). This expectation extends beyond technical training and calls for pedagogical approaches that help students understand and navigate socio-ecological complexity.

Within this global framework, the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) position education at the center of sustainable development and social transformation. SDG 4.7 explicitly mandates the integration of sustainability principles across educational systems, stating that by 2030 all learners should acquire “the knowledge and skills needed to promote sustainable development, including through education for sustainable development and sustainable lifestyles, human rights, gender equality, promotion of a culture of peace and non-violence, global citizenship, and appreciation of cultural diversity” (UN, 2015). This goal recognizes that sustainability requires not only scientific knowledge but also cultural understanding, ethical reflection, and civic engagement.

UNESCO reinforces this vision by noting that “education is the most powerful tool we have for changing mindsets and fostering the values that underpin sustainable development” (UNESCO, 2019). Consequently, educational systems are urged to adopt pedagogical models that cultivate critical thinking, ecological consciousness, socio-economic awareness, and global citizenship. Such models must help learners interpret complex global phenomena, understand their local effects, and identify sustainable pathways for their communities.

In this context, innovative pedagogical approaches—especially in disciplines not traditionally associated with sustainability, such as foreign language education—are increasingly necessary. As UNESCO’s Framework for Education for Sustainable Development emphasizes, transformative education must engage students cognitively, emotionally, and behaviorally, enabling them to become “agents of change capable of addressing global challenges at the local level” (UNESCO, 2020, p. 18). This integrative perspective provides a compelling rationale for embedding sustainability learning within French as a Foreign Language (FLE) programs in Mexico and other emerging contexts.

Traditionally, foreign language education has centered on the acquisition of linguistic competence, cultural knowledge, and communicative skills, following the competencies promoted by the Council of Europe’s Common European Framework of Reference for Languages (CEFR). The CEFR emphasizes communicative competence and intercultural mediation, asserting that language learning enables learners to “act as social agents” within diverse cultural environments (Council of Europe, 2020). While this communicative approach has been foundational, scholars increasingly argue that it must be expanded to address broader societal issues—particularly those related to social justice, sustainability, and global citizenship (Byram, 2008; UNESCO, 2019).

This position is reinforced by UNESCO, which affirms that language education is inseparable from the values, worldviews, and identities that learners negotiate within the classroom. In the words of UNESCO’s Education for Sustainable Development framework, “languages shape the ways in which individuals understand the world and relate to one another” (UNESCO, 2020, p. 27). As such, integrating sustainability themes into foreign language pedagogy is not an add-on but a natural extension of the discipline’s humanistic foundation.

Research in applied linguistics highlights that language learning is fundamentally a social, reflective, and identity-forming practice. According to Norton (2013), language learning engages learners in the negotiation of “who they are and who they desire to become,” suggesting that foreign language classrooms offer fertile ground for authentic engagement with global issues. Similarly, Kramsch (2013) argues that languages are “symbolic systems through which individuals construct meaning, interpret reality, and imagine their relationship with others.” These insights support the integration of sustainability themes as a way to deepen learners’ cultural, ethical, and critical literacies.

In Mexico, however, French as a Foreign Language (FLE) programs rarely incorporate sustainability-oriented content, despite the rich potential they offer for project-based learning, reflective practices, and dialogic interaction. This omission is striking given that Mexico is one of the countries most vulnerable to climate change and socio-environmental inequality (UNDP, 2022). Foreign language programs thus represent an untapped space for developing sustainability competencies alongside linguistic ones.

Language classrooms are inherently social and dialogic spaces. According to the OECD, classrooms are environments where learners “make sense of the world through interaction, questioning, and collective meaning-making” (OECD, 2019). In such spaces, students negotiate perspectives, challenge assumptions, and explore culturally situated responses to real-world problems. These dynamics make foreign language education exceptionally well-suited for sustainability education, which requires critical thinking, empathy, intercultural understanding, and ethical decision-making.

In recent years, researchers have begun to explore this potential more explicitly. For example, UNESCO (2021) notes that integrating sustainability into language pedagogy “encourages learners to articulate their experiences, values, and visions for the future across linguistic and cultural boundaries.” This positions FLE classrooms as ideal laboratories for sustainability literacy, where students can discuss ecological challenges, examine cultural perspectives on consumption and resource use, and develop socio-environmental agency through meaningful communicative tasks.

In this sense, foreign language education is far more than an academic discipline—it is a transformative space where learners develop the linguistic, intercultural, and ethical tools needed to participate responsibly in an increasingly interconnected and environmentally fragile world.

At the Faculty of Foreign Languages (FLEX) at the University of Colima, a sustained pedagogical initiative has emerged to integrate sustainability-based learning into the French as a Foreign Language (FLE) curriculum. This initiative encompasses four hands-on, community-engaged projects—Linguistic Garden, Sustainable Recipes, Flea Market, and Sustainability Debates—each designed to merge communicative competence with ecological, cultural, and socio-economic reflection. These projects situate language learning within authentic, meaningful tasks that prompt students to connect linguistic development with everyday decisions, community practices, and global challenges.

Throughout the semester, students consistently expressed that the interventions reshaped their understanding of what language learning could and should be. Many reported a shift from a narrow, grammar-focused perception toward a broader appreciation of FLE as a vehicle for personal growth, environmental awareness, and civic responsibility.

One student captured this transformation clearly:

“Before, I thought French class was only vocabulary and grammar. With the garden project, I understood that learning a language can also help me think about my relationship with the environment.”

Another student emphasized the emotional and reflective dimension of the sustainability projects:

“When we were taking care of the plants in the garden, I felt that French stopped being a school subject and became a tool to understand the world and to take care of something that belongs to all of us.”

Others noted how project-based activities helped them connect classroom French with real-world social and environmental issues:

“At the marché aux puces, I realized how much we consume without needing to. Explaining these topics in French made me reflect more on my own habits.”

This integration of linguistic and ecological learning was especially evident in reflections on the Recettes Durables project, in which students prepared culturally authentic, environmentally responsible meals:

“I had never thought about the environmental impact of a dish. Preparing sustainable recipes and talking about them in French helped me better understand the relationship between culture, food, and the planet.”

Similarly, several learners highlighted the social justice dimension that emerged during the sustainability debates:

“Debating climate change in French made me feel more confident speaking, but also more aware of inequalities. I realized that some countries are more affected than others, and that really struck me.”

A recurring theme in student reflections was the realization that language learning creates space for collective meaning-making, ethical questioning, and socio-cultural awareness:

“I had never taken a class that combined language with such important topics. I felt that my voice mattered and that I could express myself better about issues that concern me.”

Taken together, these verbatim insights illustrate the pedagogical transformation at the heart of this study: FLE became not only a site for linguistic development, but also a productive environment for ecological consciousness, critical thinking, and socio-economic awareness. The sustainability-oriented interventions helped students reposition themselves as active learners, community members, and emerging ecological citizens, aligning with global calls for transformative education.

Education for Sustainability (EfS) has evolved into a comprehensive and transformative educational paradigm that emphasizes systemic thinking, intergenerational responsibility, social equity, and action-based learning (Sterling, 2014). Rather than treating environmental issues as isolated phenomena, EfS promotes learning experiences that help students understand the interconnectedness of ecological, social, and economic systems, enabling them to analyze how individual and collective actions contribute to global challenges.

UNESCO emphasizes that EfS must “empower learners to take informed decisions and responsible actions for environmental integrity, economic viability and a just society” (UNESCO, 2017, p. 7). This aligns EfS with the broader goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, where education is positioned as a primary catalyst for societal transformation.

Tilbury (2011) further argues that EfS enhances learners’ ability to critically reflect on consumption patterns, develop civic engagement, and adopt sustainable lifestyles, noting that active, experience-based learning environments are central to such development. The OECD similarly stresses that sustainability education must cultivate not only knowledge but also the “values, attitudes and forward-looking skills required to navigate uncertainty and complexity” (OECD, 2019, p. 4).

In this context, EfS is not merely a curricular theme but a pedagogical orientation that redefines how learners understand themselves, their communities, and their roles within the planet’s socio-ecological systems.

Transformative Learning Theory (Mezirow, 2000) provides a powerful theoretical foundation for understanding why sustainability education can trigger profound personal and behavioral change. Mezirow posits that learning becomes transformative when individuals encounter experiences that challenge their assumptions, prompting reflection that leads to new ways of thinking and acting.

Sustainability-focused activities frequently provoke such “disorienting dilemmas,” as learners confront the environmental and socio-economic consequences of their routines. The IPCC (2022) notes that awareness of climate impacts increasingly generates “value shifts and behavioral adjustments among individuals when educational spaces provide reflective opportunities.” When students understand the tangible effects of consumption, waste, or resource use, they begin to question habits previously taken for granted.

Within sustainability pedagogy, transformation often emerges through:

• Engagement in real-world tasks (e.g., gardening, composting, cooking sustainably)

• Collective reflection on environmental and social justice

• Dialogues that challenge norms around consumption

• Experiential learning that links bodily experience with abstract knowledge

Students in the present study reflected on precisely these kinds of transformative engagements. One participant described how the process reshaped her personal habits:

“Before, I used to throw all my trash together. With the debates and activities, I realized that my actions do make a difference. Now I try to separate my waste and reduce it.”

Such reflections exemplify how sustainability interventions activate both cognitive and behavioral transformation, consistent with Mezirow’s framework.

While EfS has been widely integrated into STEM, engineering, and social sciences curricula (Wiek et al., 2011), its application in language education remains relatively emergent—even though language learning inherently cultivates many of the competencies central to sustainability: empathy, intercultural understanding, social participation, identity negotiation, and critical reflection.

The Council of Europe’s revised CEFR Companion Volume asserts that languages are not neutral tools but “resources for acting as social agents in diverse and complex societies” (Council of Europe, 2020, p. 32). This aligns directly with the aims of sustainability education, which emphasizes ethical reasoning, collaborative problem solving, and a sense of planetary responsibility.

UNESCO expands this connection by stating that “language and culture shape the ways individuals perceive environmental issues and formulate responses to them” (UNESCO, 2020, p. 24). FLE, therefore, naturally lends itself to sustainability literacy because it encourages learners to explore cultural perspectives on food, consumption, waste, community life, and environmental stewardship.

In Mexico, however, French as a Foreign Language (FLE) programs rarely incorporate sustainability-oriented content, despite powerful opportunities for project-based learning, dialogic inquiry, and community engagement. The experiential nature of language learning—through role-plays, debates, collaborative projects, and intercultural exchanges—creates ideal conditions for sustainability discourse.

A reflection from the flea market project in this study illustrates the synergy between language learning and ecological awareness:

“I had never realized that my consumption choices had such significant consequences. The marché made me see that many objects still have value and can continue circulating within the community.”

Students thus not only practiced French but also engaged in critical eco-social reflection, a key competence in sustainability education (Cebrián & Junyent, 2015).

Ecopedagogy, grounded in the work of Paulo Freire (1970) and later developed by Moacir Gadotti (2008), situates education as a means for socio-environmental emancipation. It calls for pedagogies that address environmental injustices, promote ethical consumption, and challenge structures of oppression that underlie socio-ecological crises.

Gadotti argues that ecopedagogy aims to cultivate “planetary consciousness and an ethic of care for all forms of life” (Gadotti, 2008, p. 23). This involves integrating ecological and social justice issues into curricula, encouraging students to question dominant paradigms of consumption, development, and progress.

Critical pedagogy reinforces this perspective by positioning learners as agents capable of transforming society. Freire maintained that education must foster critical awareness (conscientização) so that individuals can recognize and act upon inequities embedded in their social contexts. Within sustainability education, this means helping learners understand how environmental problems intersect with inequality, economic systems, and power relations.

Language education, with its emphasis on dialogue, narrative, and identity, is deeply compatible with ecopedagogical principles. Students’ reflective journals in the present study repeatedly referenced a newfound awareness of the ethical and political dimensions of sustainability:

“When researching food waste for the activity, I realized that it is not only an environmental problem but also a social injustice. It made me think about how many people do not have access to food.”

By linking sustainability content with linguistic expression, the curriculum fosters critical reflection, intercultural dialogue, and civic consciousness, reflecting the goals of both EfS and ecopedagogy.

This study adopted a convergent mixed-methods research design, drawing on the methodological frameworks established by Creswell and Plano Clark (2018) and Tashakkori and Teddlie (2010), to capture the multidimensional nature of sustainability-oriented pedagogy in a French as a Foreign Language (FLE) context. A mixed-methods approach was selected because sustainability learning involves cognitive, affective, behavioral, and linguistic components that cannot be fully understood through a single methodological lens.

The quantitative dimension of the design aimed to measure shifts in:

• attitudes toward sustainability

• responsible consumption behaviors

• linguistic performance (fluency, accuracy, coherence)

• engagement and participation

In parallel, the qualitative dimension sought to document students’ emotions, perceptions, reflective processes, transformative experiences, and identity shifts associated with the pedagogical interventions. Qualitative data illuminated how learners constructed meaning around sustainability themes and how they linked these insights to their linguistic development.

The use of a convergent design enabled the simultaneous collection and subsequent integration of both data types. As recommended by the OECD (2019), multimodal evidence strengthens the internal validity of educational studies that address complex, real-world competencies like sustainability literacy.

The study involved 48 undergraduate students enrolled in a B1–B2 French as a Foreign Language (FLE) course at the Faculty of Foreign Languages (FLEX), University of Colima. Participants ranged from 18 to 25 years of age and represented diverse socio-economic backgrounds, consistent with the heterogeneity of public higher education in Mexico.

Approximately:

• 58% identified as women,

• 40% as men,

• 2% as non-binary,

• Inter-rater reliability was applied to oral performance scoring.

• Data triangulation strengthened interpretive validity.

• Participant anonymity was assured, and consent obtained according to institutional guidelines.

• Reflexivity was incorporated to minimize researcher bias, particularly in the analysis of reflective journals.

Students collaboratively cultivated herbs, vegetables, and edible plants on campus while learning vocabulary related to ecology, agriculture, food systems, and environmental stewardship. The combination of physical activity, responsibility for living organisms, and reflective journaling created rich opportunities for transformative learning.

One student expressed the emotional dimension of the experience:

“I had never planted anything before… producing even a small amount of food changes my relationship with nature.”

Others noted how the garden helped them connect environmental issues to personal identity:

“Watering the plants every day made me think about how I use water at home. I had never reflected on that until I did it in French.”

A third student described the project as an awakening:

“Learning ecology-related vocabulary while I was planting made me feel that French is useful for understanding and caring for the world, not just for exams.”

These reflections demonstrate how physical engagement with nature can facilitate both linguistic acquisition and ecological awareness, aligning with Mezirow’s concept of disorienting dilemmas and Gadotti’s vision of planetary consciousness.

This project invited students to research, prepare, and present sustainable meals using local, seasonal, low-impact ingredients. Students practiced functional vocabulary (quantities, utensils, cooking processes) while exploring socio-economic issues related to food.

A commonly cited insight was the economic impact of local purchasing:

“I didn’t know that buying local products helped support the families in my community.”

Students also expressed surprise at the cultural dimension of sustainability:

“Talking in French about sustainable recipes made me realize that food also tells a story about the planet and about people.”

Another reflection highlighted the affective and social elements:

“Cooking with my classmates was incredible; I felt that we were doing something good for ourselves and for the environment. And all of it in French.”

This project strengthened eco-culinary literacy, reinforced communicative competence, and deepened student understanding of the intersections among food, economy, culture, and the environment.

Students organized a reuse market promoting circular economy principles. They categorized, priced, described, negotiated, and exchanged second-hand objects using French for all interactions.

One student summarized the main insight:

“Reusing is not only ecological; it is also economical.”

Others discovered the emotional and ethical dimensions of reuse:

“Seeing my things in someone else’s hands made me think about the value they still have. I felt like part of a community.”

“I had never taken part in a market like this; explaining it in French helped me reflect on how much we buy without really needing it.”

This project fostered socio-economic reflection, intercultural pragmatics, and a tangible understanding of responsible consumption, central to SDG 12.

Learners engaged in debates on food systems, climate change, environmental justice, waste reduction, energy use, and responsible consumption. Debates were structured to scaffold argumentation, counterargument, evidence-based reasoning, and collaborative meaning-making.

Students reported significant gains in confidence:

“Debating climate change in French made me feel more confident talking about complex topics.”

Others described increased awareness of global inequalities:

“I didn’t know that poorer countries suffer more from the pollution produced by others. Discussing it in French opened my eyes.”

Another learner highlighted the link between debate and civic responsibility:

“I felt that I was learning French in order to act in the world, not just to pass the class.”

These reflections illustrate the value of debates as spaces for critical eco-social reflection and linguistic empowerment.

The quantitative analysis revealed consistent and meaningful post-intervention improvements across all measured indicators:

These findings align with previous sustainability education research (Tilbury, 2011; Cebrián & Junyent, 2015) demonstrating that applied, experiential learning leads to measurable gains in awareness and behavior.

The consistent improvement in oral fluency (+18%) suggests that embedded, real-world tasks promote deeper linguistic engagement than traditional grammar-focused instruction. This supports research indicating that meaningful communicative contexts enhance lexical retention, fluency, and pragmatic awareness (Borg & Al-Busaidi, 2012). When students enacted sustainability tasks—cooking, gardening, debating, negotiating in a flea market—they were not merely practicing vocabulary; they were using French as a tool for action, aligning with the CEFR’s conception of learners as social agents (Council of Europe, 2020).

The qualitative data further reveal a synergistic effect between sustainability themes and linguistic development. Student reflections frequently described how discussing ecological issues in French increased their confidence and sense of communicative purpose:

“When I talked about climate change in French, I felt that my words had a real impact. It wasn’t just an assignment; it was my voice.”

This demonstrates that sustainability content fosters intrinsic motivation, a key predictor of long-term language acquisition.

Quantitative results indicated a marked increase in ecological awareness (+32%) and responsible consumption (+27%). These findings resonate with Tilbury’s (2011) claim that EfS promotes critical reflection on consumption and environmental justice. Students’ reflective journals illustrated profound personal insights:

“Now I understand that my daily habits are not neutral. They affect the water, the soil, and the climate.”

Such statements illustrate the emergence of what UNESCO (2020) terms “ecological citizenship”—the capacity to act on behalf of one’s community and the planet.”

The Linguistic Garden project, for instance, enabled learners to experience ecological interdependence firsthand. This aligns with Mezirow’s (2000) transformative learning framework: through embodied, meaningful experiences, students encountered disorienting dilemmas that prompted them to revise previously unexamined assumptions about nature and consumption.

The interventions also fostered a deeper understanding of the socio-economic dimensions of sustainability. The flea market and cooking projects encouraged learners to reflect critically on consumption, inequality, waste, and the circular economy—concepts rarely discussed in traditional language classes. One student shared:

“The marché made me see that sustainability is about social justice, not just recycling.”

Another noted:

“When talking about local producers, I realized that my decisions can support vulnerable economies.”

These reflections align with Gadotti’s (2008) argument that ecopedagogy must address the interconnectedness of environmental degradation, poverty, and structural inequality. They also reflect SDG 12 (responsible consumption) and SDG 10 (reduced inequalities), highlighting the potential of FLE classrooms to cultivate globally aware, socially engaged learners.

Collectively, the data support the interpretation of the FLE classroom as a micro-laboratory for ecological citizenship, where language learning becomes inseparable from ethical reflection and civic engagement. In this environment, learners negotiate personal meanings, co-construct knowledge, and explore their identities as both language users and socio-ecological actors.

This conceptualization echoes UNESCO’s assertion that:

“Education must enable learners to become agents of change capable of addressing global challenges at the local level.”

By combining linguistic tasks with sustainability-oriented actions, the interventions allowed students to practice agency, contribute to community-oriented activities, and envision alternative futures—core components of sustainable development education.

The study’s findings hold significant implications for language pedagogy and higher education policy:

• Curricular Integration: Sustainability themes can be embedded naturally within FLE curricula without sacrificing linguistic rigor.

• Pedagogical Innovation: Experiential, action-oriented approaches promote both language proficiency and sustainability competencies.

• Socio-Ecological Equity: Language education can support social justice goals by fostering awareness of global inequalities and consumption ethics.

• Institutional Alignment: The approach aligns with UNESCO’s SDG 4.7, the CEFR Companion Volume, and national policies promoting environmental education.

These results underscore the need for higher education programs—particularly in emerging economies—to adopt holistic, interdisciplinary pedagogies that unite cognitive, social, and ecological learning.