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This study aims to introduce management students to climate change by providing them with an opportunity to address it in their own lives, through a class exercise.

An in-class exercise was designed, carried out and described in this study. Student teams were assigned different questions on how to address major causes of climate change. Each team did research to generate answers, and ranked their answers based on the speed of implementation. Teams reported their answers to the class. The instructor facilitated a debriefing session, during which all responses were ranked with respect to other variables, including cost savings, time savings and lifestyle fit. This exercise uses few resources and can be adapted to different time lengths and teaching/learning formats (e.g. on-ground, virtual, asynchronous online).

This exercise can help students to gain an understanding of climate change and its causes and complexities. Students learn how to implement a diverse set of personal actions to mitigate climate change; these can start in the present and continue throughout their lives. In addition, this exercise may help students to make the leap from individual climate change mitigation practices to organizational and societal practices, when they are in the position to do so as future leaders.

Although classes, exercises, and assignments ask management students to consider issues such as climate change at the organizational level, this individual-level exercise can allow students with limited organizational experience to engage more quickly with climate change and better understand organizational and societal implications in the future. That is, if students first understand how to address climate change in their own lives, they may more effectively transfer and apply that understanding at organizational and societal levels and ultimately synthesize solutions to address climate change in the world.

The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework in the form of a generic matrix of options for integrating sustainability in higher education (SHE) so that university faculty and administrators can make more appropriate and strategic choices with respect to SHE.

This original matrix draws from and extends previous empirical and conceptual research on integrating SHE. The paper addresses the needs and weaknesses stated in earlier literature on SHE.

The matrix includes four different options or scenarios for integrating SHE; these options are based on delivery of SHE and focus of SHE. Advantages and disadvantages of each option are discussed, as well as rationales for choosing each option. In addition, suggestions for future research are included.

The matrix can provide a platform from which to launch discussions about SHE, as well as a template with respect to “how to” integrate SHE.

This original matrix contributes to the literature by providing a broad, non‐discipline‐specific orientation; it is applicable at course, program, and cross‐disciplinary/cross‐university levels, and can be applied internationally. Users can move between and among options, and can implement multiple options simultaneously. Further, the matrix includes all dimensions of sustainability – environmental, social, and economic/financial.

To demonstrate how quality management (QM), a widely accepted management paradigm, can be used to advance education for sustainability in the business curriculum.

The assumptions of QM and environmental sustainability are explored. A class exercise is developed that uses QM tools – and in particular, Deming's 14 management points – to help management students to examine and critique environmentally sustainable practices in organizations.

QM can be used as a bridge between management theory and environmental sustainability. QM can also be used as a framework for teaching environmental sustainability in management classes. The class exercise helps students to enhance their critical skills as they examine and assess sustainable practices in organizations.

A useful perspective on integrating management theory and environmental sustainability. A very useful class exercise for teaching environmental sustainability in management classes, and helping students to enhance their critical skills. The class exercise benefits students, the larger business community, and society since it illustrates the importance of sustainability to future organizational decision makers.

The paper illustrates how environmental sustainability and management theory can be integrated, and presents an original, company‐based class exercise for teaching environmental sustainability in management classes.