AI and Sustainability-Oriented Teaching: An Exploratory Qualitative Study of Lecturers’ Perspectives from Four Countries

Abstract

This exploratory qualitative study examines how lecturers perceive artificial intelligence (AI) as supporting green behavior in higher education through sustainability-oriented teaching practices, responsible digital use, and institutional adaptation. Although AI adoption, sustainability education, and green behavior have been widely discussed, limited qualitative evidence explains how lecturers interpret the relationship between AI use and sustainability-oriented academic practice. This study clarifies AI-supported green behavior as lecturers’ perceived use of AI to support resource-conscious teaching, digital material optimization, responsible digital practice, ethical academic decision-making, and pedagogical redesign aligned with sustainability values. A qualitative research design was employed using semi-structured interviews with seven lecturers from Indonesia, Malaysia, Denmark, and Morocco. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis. The findings show that lecturers perceived AI as supporting sustainability-oriented academic practices by reducing repetitive workload, enabling cognitive reallocation, strengthening digital material optimization, raising ethical concerns, and highlighting the importance of institutional readiness, lecturer self-efficacy, and adaptive academic leadership. AI does not automatically produce green behavior; rather, its contribution depends on ethical governance, lecturer capability, institutional support, and sustainability-oriented academic culture. This study offers lecturer-centered qualitative insight into AI as a potential enabler of responsible and sustainability-oriented teaching innovation.