Discourses on sustainability in a network of Argentine universities: exploring representations, cultural roots and transformative processes

Purpose The paper aims to reflect on the function(s) served by the network of Argentine universities for environmental management and social inclusion (UAGAIS), including sharing information, empowering its members and fostering political action. To these functions, the authors add that networks play a prominent role in promoting culturally and locally meaningful representations of sustainability, and as rhetorical devices for positioning universities within the national, regional and international context. Design/methodology/approach Drawing upon a constructionist and cultural approach, two analyses were conducted: the first an analysis of the institutional webpages of selected UAGAIS universities; the second, a discursive analysis of five in-depth interviews conducted with UAGAIS representatives. Both analyses looked at local and cultural specificities of sustainability in higher education, perceptions of the sustainable development goals (SDGs) and the role of UAGAIS for individuals, universities and other social actors involved. Findings Results show how sustainability is used in institutional communication and in the interviews to frame the role of the university in the community. The network serves information and empowering functions, as the same time acting as an amplifier of the activities performed under the “Extensión” framework. Such a culturally situated approach to sustainability is used to engage different social actors and to stress commitment of universities with the environmental and social needs of local communities. Originality/value The results underline the role played by networks in transformative process. Anchored to the culturally rooted “Extensión” concept, the examined network serves as a place to advance the social commitment and the local understanding of sustainability. Moreover, it is rhetorically used to challenge the status quo and advocate for systemic change.