Climate change has become known to societies as its effects have become quite evident and felt on a global scale. At the same time, a lot of research is being done on the subject. On the other hand, there is a complexity about what climate change education (CCE) is, which plays an active role in struggling with the climate change crisis, and there are relatively few studies in the related literature. This situation negatively affects the awareness of CCE and its place as a concept. This study aims to explain CCE as a concept and its role in climate change awareness. In this way, it is hoped that the awareness of CCE will increase, and the study will contribute to the formation of CCE's identity. In this direction, it has been attempted to explain the idea of climate change education and its role in climate change awareness by providing descriptive data on climate change gleaned from a literature review. In order to better introduce the concept, the history of education were examined. It has been concluded that climate change education is of vital importance, and has a very recent history, but there is no common structure about what it is and how it is implemented. It can be said that this situation of CCE reduces its impact on climate change awareness. Based on the research results, it is evident that there is a pressing need for rigorous investigations into CCE.

The strategic plans of universities have an important role in enabling HEIs to contribute to sustainability transitions. To address the current lack of studies in HEIs in Türkiye, this paper aims to determine how universities in Türkiye integrate sustainable development goals (SDGs) into their strategic plans to indicate the extent to which these universities align with the 17 SDGs and to discuss the visibility of SDGs in strategies. The research has been designed as a qualitative study involving document analysis. QS World University Rankings or being a research university are the two criteria for the sampling. The scope of the study consists of 27 universities, representing 13.4% of the universities in Türkiye. The most striking result was that, apparently, none of the strategic plans mentioned Goals 1 (no poverty), 6 (clean water), and 13 (climate action). The sampled universities in Turkey have established a restricted set of strategic objectives linked to SD Goals 2, 5, 10, and 11. These remarkable findings prompt inquiries into the underlying reasons for this constrained scope, warranting further investigation. A potential factor contributing to the limited objectives regarding these goals could be traced to a lack of awareness and understanding of the intricate connections between these goals and the overarching mission of higher education institutions.

This research aims to examine the duties of the rector, dean, department heads, and chairs of main science or main art disciplines (academic sub-units specific to the Turkish system, such as “ana bilim dalı” and “ana sanat dalı,” typically led by senior faculty within a department), who are in administrative positions in higher education, according to the academic organization regulations in universities in Turkey, within the framework of the plasma leadership concept. As a result of this examination, it is aimed to reveal the similarities and differences by examining the plasma leadership behaviors expected from people in managerial positions according to the duties assigned to them in accordance with the regulation and to contribute to the management process of higher education in Turkey. Another aim of this study is to contribute to the development of management practices in higher education in Turkey, to emphasize the importance and functionality of plasma leadership within the framework of educational management and, accordingly, to look at the duties of the rector, dean, department head and head of department from more original perspectives within the scope of plasma leadership. In this research conducted for these purposes, the document analysis method, one of the qualitative research methods, was used. Official sources and regulations obtained on behalf of higher education, scientific articles, theses, journals and documents related to the subject accessed on the internet were used as data collection tools. The fact that higher education institutions achieve the goals determined in line with their visions, raise qualified individuals and innovative, self-improving faculty members who embrace academic values, and transform into higher education institutions open to development reveals the need for plasma leaders in higher education management. As a result of the research, it was concluded that the duties of the department heads, and chairs of main science or main art disciplines, who are in administrative positions in higher education, according to the academic organization regulations in universities in Turkey, are related to plasma leadership dimensions, and in this direction, it was concluded that people in managerial positions should adopt plasma leadership characteristics and exhibit effective plasma leadership behaviors and this study underscores their necessity and importance. Esta investigação tem como objetivo analisar as funções desempenhadas pelos Reitores, Decanos, Diretores de Departamento e Coordenadores das principais disciplinas científicas ou artísticas (designadas, no contexto do sistema de ensino superior turco, como ana bilim dalı e ana sanat dalı), enquanto titulares de cargos administrativos no ensino superior, à luz do conceito de “liderança plasma”. Estas subunidades académicas são habitualmente coordenadas por docentes seniores dentro dos departamentos universitários. O estudo visa, por um lado, identificar as semelhanças e diferenças entre as funções atribuídas a cada um destes cargos pela regulamentação organizacional das universidades na Turquia e, por outro, examinar os comportamentos de liderança esperados no âmbito da liderança plasma, de modo a contribuir para a melhoria dos processos de gestão no ensino superior turco. Adicionalmente, pretende-se promover o reconhecimento da importância e da aplicabilidade da liderança plasma no contexto da administração educacional, oferecendo uma análise aprofundada e inovadora das funções mencionadas. Para atingir estes objetivos, recorreu-se ao método de análise documental, uma abordagem qualitativa que envolveu a recolha e análise de dados provenientes de fontes oficiais, regulamentos institucionais, artigos científicos, teses académicas, publicações especializadas e documentos disponíveis online relacionados com a temática. A crescente necessidade de que as Instituições de Ensino Superior alcancem os objetivos delineados nas suas visões estratégicas — formando indivíduos qualificados e promovendo docentes inovadores, com forte adesão aos valores académicos e empenhados no seu desenvolvimento contínuo — evidencia a urgência da adoção de modelos de liderança transformacional e adaptativa, como é o caso da liderança plasma. Esta abordagem visa dotar as instituições de uma cultura organizacional aberta ao progresso, ao rigor e à excelência. Os resultados obtidos indicam que as funções atribuídas a Diretores de Departamento e Coordenadores das principais áreas científicas ou artísticas estão alinhadas com diversas dimensões da liderança plasma. Conclui-se, assim, que os responsáveis por cargos de gestão no ensino superior devem desenvolver e incorporar características associadas a este modelo de liderança, adotando comportamentos eficazes e coerentes com os princípios da liderança plasma. O estudo reforça, por conseguinte, a relevância deste paradigma no fortalecimento da qualidade da governação universitária e no desenvolvimento institucional sustentável.