Local issues are global issues. This collaboration between US and Finnish institutions aims to understand and share experiences and insights around global education opportunities for students in rural regions and to build program offerings with collaborative expertise in entrepreneurial sustainability.

Recent study abroad and international education experience surveys from students indicate that students in both Finland and the US prefer short term travel, with global lessons and experiences. And faculty-led travel courses were specifically requested by some students.

The research project sought to gain insight and understanding of student needs and preferences for internationalization of education. As a result, a travel course with several components was created by an institution in the United States in collaboration with partner institutions in Finland. This educational opportunity included several cross institutional collaborative workshops and lectures which were offered both online and in-person as part of a faculty-led travel class. The class involved travel to several countries and visits to partner communities, institutions, and businesses during which students from ten majors in two cross-disciplinary courses sought to understand sustainability in rural Oregon by learning lessons and best practices from the countries visited including Finland, Estonia, Sweden and Iceland.

The research project surveyed students pre and post courses but also illustrated how faculty learn from each other, local businesses and organizations, and the local host communities and cultures. This learning can then be incorporated into future courses taught by the faculty. The significance of this project lies in the lessons shared and learned about student and faculty preferences for global education and collaboration. These insights and best practices are then shared again by the participants with interested parties to develop new ventures, protocols and business practices that incorporate internationalization into courses, projects and future careers.

One result is that innovative opportunities and practices bring in new people and ideas to a community. However, disregard or lack of knowledge around other ideas, practices, and business sustainability for example can lead to long term community decline. This together with the impact of out-migration from rural communities worldwide creates an important role for sustainable innovative, entrepreneurial ventures and ideas. Collaboration across international borders also provides critical connections and a supportive international dialog to share best practices and innovative concepts. Creating a variety of pathways for understanding and sharing key best practices for sustainable entrepreneurship, internationalization of education, and supporting rural economic development via seminars, press releases, and academic conference presentations is then incorporated into developing opportunities for green business thinking and process development. Long-term impacts will be seen as students become professionals and start implementing lessons learned from specialized international courses and experiences, in their own business decision making, communication, and sustainable development practices.

Methodology: This project employs a mixed-methods case study approach, integrating both qualitative and quantitative methodologies. The research design emerged from a collaborative brainstorming process informed by prior work and current practices. Data collection includes pre- and post-travel qualitative and quantitative surveys of students and faculty participating in a summer travel class. Additionally, document review and analysis of experimental global course offerings at and between the partner institutions provide contextual and comparative insights.

This comprehensive approach ensures a robust understanding of the impact and dynamics of international educational experiences within applied learning contexts.