CAMPUS SUSTAINABILITY: DOES STUDENT ENGAGEMENT WITH ECO-CAMPUS ENVIRONMENTAL ACTIVITIES AND GREEN INITIATIVES REALLY MATTER?

Abstract

This study seeks to investigate the relationship between a) personal willingness towards environmental activities, b) attitudes towards personal responsibility, and c) attitudes toward the faculty’s responsibility for creating a sustainable environment, and intention to engage in eco-campus environmental activities and green initiatives. The research used multiple regressions for data analysis in an attempt to achieve the objective across a sample of 374 students in a public university in Sabah, Malaysia. Their participation was purely voluntary. The construct validity was assessed by computing the exploratory factor analysis with varimax rotations. Empirical results revealed that personal willingness towards environmental activities, and attitudes towards the faculty’s responsibility for creating a sustainable environment significantly affect students’ intention to engage with eco-campus environmental activities and green initiatives. The first was found to have the strongest effect. The research provides a unique perspective of students’ intention to engage with eco-campus environmental activities and green initiatives, which has previously not been much covered in the Malaysia context. The measurement produced can be used as a research tool for more exploratory and explanatory research regarding the investigated issues. Direction for future research is also presented.