Creating Sustainable Posthuman Accounting Learning Environments: The Case for Green Accounting in South Africa

Abstract

The study aims to explore the infusion of Environmental Accounting, or Green Accounting or Sustainability Accounting, into Posthuman Accounting Learning Environments (PALE) that promote deep learning. Posthuman Accounting Learning Environments (PALE) refer to the teaching and learning of Accounting that recognises the contributions of both the human and non-human aspects in the processes of acquiring and disseminating Accounting knowledge; seemingly, such knowledge leads to the derivation of the final products such as the financial statements. The latter, in turn, constitute the final product of the Accounting processes, affecting Accounting information used by shareholders, managers, prospective investors, lending institutions, government, employees, regulatory agencies, and researchers, who attempt to make relevant decisions that impact the circular flow of resources in a country. To date, Environmental Accounting is neglected in all these. Thus, PALE’s significant impact on the social, economic, and environmental conditions is not appreciated or taught in our institutions. This paper demonstrates an urgent need to explore ecological knowledge and its contribution to the teaching and learning of Accounting, leading to the conclusion that the sustainability infused Accounting curriculum embodies the totality of all the teaching and learning experiences aimed at understanding, for example, the issues of cybersecurity, diversified Accounting skills, advanced marketing strategies and the knowledge to align Accounting with globalisation processes, which are the subject matter of the PALE, including the sustainability content, principles, pedagogic approaches, implicit and explicit norms, and values inherent in the sustainability learning and teaching process.