Principles of Regenerative Curriculum Design

Through this process, they developed a sense of agency as changemakers, while cultivating a deeper connection to the place, its people, and its problems. This approach not only strengthened their sense of belonging and responsibility but also enriched their portfolios with transferable, practice-based skills highly relevant to their future careers. In turn, this reciprocal engagement reshaped how local business leaders and policymakers viewed the role of the business school, recognising it as a place-leader and anchor institution that contributes directly to sustainable, inclusive innovation.</p><p dir="ltr">Adopting this paradigm shift in business education has not been without challenges.

One of the most significant transformations involves reimagining the role of the educator. No longer the sole authority or transmitter of knowledge, the educator becomes a facilitator of a longitudinal, real-time, co-created learning experience. This role requires humility, adaptability, and a commitment to scaffolding rather than delivering learning.

It also demands sustained, reciprocal relationships with external partners—businesses, civic bodies, and community organisations. Maintaining such networks requires ongoing investment and care to prevent community fatigue and ensure ethical, mutually beneficial collaborations. Finally, there is the logistical complexity of scaling this approach amidst growing student cohorts and limited access to appropriate venues for field-based learning.</p><p dir="ltr">Despite these constraints, feedback from students and stakeholders reinforces the profound value of the regenerative approach.

One postgraduate student reflected: “My personal learning that I will take with me is paying more attention to the role of the place in identifying and seizing entrepreneurial opportunities. We are proud of ourselves to help make contributions to the city we now call home.” This sense of local contribution and civic pride demonstrates the emotional and intellectual impact of a curriculum grounded in place and purpose.</p><p dir="ltr">The theoretical foundations of our curriculum design are richly interdisciplinary.

In addition to Design Thinking, we draw on place-based pedagogy, which recognises the value of engaging with the local environment as a central element of learning. We also incorporate Schwittay’s (2021) notion of critical-creative pedagogy, which combines experiential teaching, serious play, and future-oriented practices to move beyond critique toward generative action. Complementing this is Wahl’s (2016) concept of regenerative systems thinking, which advocates for a societal shift from extractive and degenerative models to those that are holistic, resilient, and regenerative.</p><p dir="ltr">These theoretical strands converge in the classroom and beyond, where students tackle real-world, multi-stakeholder challenges such as the decline of the High Street or the socio-economic implications of the proposed Eden Project.

They move beyond diagnosis to design, envisioning and prototyping viable, place-sensitive futures. This process enhances their reflexivity, sharpens their ethical awareness, and deepens their understanding of interconnected systems.</p><p dir="ltr">At the core of our pedagogical practice is the belief that students should not be taught to analyse organisations in isolation from their contexts. Instead, they must understand how such organisations are embedded in, and shaped by, local ecosystems.

These ecosystems—comprising histories, cultures, resources, opportunities, and constraints—are living, evolving, and deeply influential. By situating organisational learning within these real-world contexts, we promote what we call ‘place empathy’: an acute awareness of how places influence, and are influenced by, business strategy and values.</p><p dir="ltr">Our students are not passive recipients of theoretical knowledge; they are active co-creators of learning.

They bring their personal experiences, cultural perspectives, and creative insights into dialogue with empirical evidence and structured inquiry. Academics facilitate this co-creation, not by delivering static content, but by orchestrating a collaborative, scaffolded process marked by well-defined learning milestones. These milestones guide not only the students but the entire ecosystem of participants—academics, practitioners, and community members—through a shared journey of exploration and transformation.</p>