Sejahtera leadership: An Indigenous Malay Concept in Higher Education for Sustainable Development
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.31436/jia.v20i2.1171Keywords:
Higher Education, Leadership, Sejahtera, Sustainable Development, MalaysiaAbstract
Leadership for sustainability in the education sector is nascent. Thus, this paper proposes an indigenous leadership style, yet dynamic and contemporary for higher education aligned with sustainable development called sejahtera leadership. The sejahtera leadership concept has been nurtured in a Malaysian public university context. The founding convener for sejahtera leadership advocates leaders at universities and beyond to adopt a sejahtera approach in education for sustainable development since early 2000s. This paper aims to explore how sejahtera leadership contributes to the education for sustainable development. The underlying question was investigated by examining the distinct features of sejahtera leadership style and its practices in higher education for sustainable development. The leadership style introduced in the context of this paper assures that while indigenous in nature, sejahtera leadership is well-corresponded with the education for sustainable development (ESD) agenda, the fourth sustainable development goals (SDGs) on quality education, and has a deeper meaning given the focus on inner self and outer elements of social, economic, and environment development.
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