Qualitative case study reveals adaptive leadership strategies among school leaders implementing sustainability education, highlighting how flexible repertoires overcome centralized constraints.
School leaders implementing Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) in centralized systems face structural constraints that limit sustainability initiatives. This qualitative case study of eight school leaders identified three strategic responses: creative resource recombination under resource constraints, institutional embedding to sustain initiatives, and multi-level network building across organizational boundaries. These strategies, unified by tempered radicalism, form the Strategic Repertoire Framework for ESD Leadership (SRF-ESD). The framework reconceptualizes ESD leadership as a constraint-responsive repertoire rather than a fixed leadership style. The findings offer practical implications for leadership preparation and policy by emphasizing adaptive capacity, cross-sector collaboration, and institutional embedding to advance sustainable school improvement.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Abidin et al. (2026) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 5 closely related papers on similar clinical questions. Consider them for comparative context: