IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jsusta/v17y2025i5p1989-d1599800.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Increasing Collaboration Between Humans and Technology Within Organizations: The Need for Ergonomics and Soft Skills in Engineering Education 5.0

Author

Listed:
  • Violeta Firescu

    (Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Robotics and Production Management, Technical University of Cluj-Napoca, 103-105 Muncii Avenue, 400641 Cluj-Napoca, Romania)

Abstract

Education for sustainability is one of the big challenges that higher education institutions (HEIs) face in the context of Society 5.0, which promotes human-centered design solutions. Therefore, solutions for collaboration between humans and technology in organizations are needed, as Industry 5.0 suggests. However, the concept of Engineering Education 5.0 promotes engineers who are able to solve global changes and are endowed with knowledge, skills, and a mindset for sustainability. This paper aims to highlight the transformative potential of international multidisciplinary consortia in HEIs, both for teaching and learning practices. Using a methodology that combines autoethnography and narrative analysis based on qualitative feedback received from participants, the paper presents lessons learned, good practices, and pilot co-teaching experiences within two Erasmus+ cooperation partnerships. This paper describes the educational process during joint learning sessions based on co-teaching and art-based training, showing educational practices for curricula development in engineering education. The findings show that cultivating teachers’ mindsets, skills, and pedagogical approaches can empower students to become active agents in fostering a more sustainable society and suggest that both ergonomics competencies and soft skills (e.g., self-awareness, creativity, collaboration) are crucial sustainability-oriented competencies, developed within international collaborative and enjoyable learning environments based on transformative learning experiences.

Suggested Citation

  • Violeta Firescu, 2025. "Increasing Collaboration Between Humans and Technology Within Organizations: The Need for Ergonomics and Soft Skills in Engineering Education 5.0," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(5), pages 1-29, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:5:p:1989-:d:1599800
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/5/1989/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/17/5/1989/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Sarah Abdulkareem Salih & Waleed Alzamil & Ali Ajlan & Athira Azmi & Sumarni Ismail, 2024. "Typology of Informal Learning Spaces (ILS) in Sustainable Academic Education: A Systematic Literature Review in Architecture and Urban Planning," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-32, June.
    2. Valery Okulich-Kazarin & Artem Artyukhov & Łukasz Skowron & Nadiia Artyukhova & Tomasz Wołowiec, 2024. "Will AI Become a Threat to Higher Education Sustainability? A Study of Students’ Views," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(11), pages 1-19, May.
    3. Anthony Okuogume & Nuria Toledano, 2024. "Co-Creation in Sustainable Entrepreneurship Education: Lessons from Business–University Educational Partnerships," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(6), pages 1-13, March.
    4. Marcin Butlewski & Wiktoria Czernecka, 2024. "Social Sustainability in Practice: Bridging the Gap from Declarations to Real-World Scenarios on Sustainability Driven by Ergonomics," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(14), pages 1-12, July.
    5. Mantoura Nakad & Linda Gardelle & Rami J. Abboud, 2024. "A Systematic Review of the Different Methods Assessing Sustainability Integration in Engineering Curricula," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(11), pages 1-24, May.
    6. Brigita Gajšek & Anca Draghici & Maria Elena Boatca & Alin Gaureanu & Diana Robescu, 2022. "Linking the Use of Ergonomics Methods to Workplace Social Sustainability: The Ovako Working Posture Assessment System and Rapid Entire Body Assessment Method," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(7), pages 1-20, April.
    7. Eleonora Santos & Milena Carvalho & Susana Martins, 2024. "Sustainable Enablers of Knowledge Management Strategies in a Higher Education Institution," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(12), pages 1-15, June.
    8. Ana M. Osorio & Luisa F. Úsuga & Jaime A. Restrepo-Carmona & Isabel Rendón & Julián Sierra-Pérez & Rafael E. Vásquez, 2024. "Methodology for Stakeholder Prioritization in the Context of Digital Transformation and Society 5.0," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(13), pages 1-18, June.
    9. Branislav Sančanin & Aleksandra Penjišević & Dušan J. Simjanović & Branislav M. Ranđelović & Nenad O. Vesić & Maja Mladenović, 2024. "A Fuzzy AHP and PCA Approach to the Role of Media in Improving Education and the Labor Market in the 21st Century," Mathematics, MDPI, vol. 12(22), pages 1-17, November.
    10. Ana Bustamante-Mora & Mauricio Diéguez-Rebolledo & Yemsy Hormazábal & Yolanda Valdés & Rodrigo Cadena, 2023. "Learning Models for Higher Education in Engineering: Motivation, Self-Determination, and the Role of Information and Communication Technologies," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-29, August.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Citations

    Citations are extracted by the CitEc Project, subscribe to its RSS feed for this item.
    as


    Cited by:

    1. Irina Gerasimova & Irina Oblova, 2025. "Sustainable Development of Soft Skills with the Purpose of Enhancing the Employability of Engineering Students," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-23, March.

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Mantoura Nakad & Linda Gardelle & Rami J. Abboud, 2025. "Stimulating Engineering Students’ Potential for Sustainable Development," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-14, January.
    2. Gloria Janeth Murillo-Aviña & Sialia Karina Mellink-Méndez & Josué Aarón López-Leyva & Víctor Manuel Ramos-García, 2022. "Challenges and Opportunities Post Pandemic of Organizational Ergonomics to Promote the Social Sustainability in Cultural and Creative Industries: A Critical Review and Future Research Agenda," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(22), pages 1-16, November.
    3. Oriana Helena Negulescu & Anca Draghici & Gabriela Fistis, 2022. "A Proposed Approach to Monitor and Control Sustainable Development Strategy Implementation," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 14(17), pages 1-27, September.
    4. Valery Okulich-Kazarin & Artem Artyukhov & Łukasz Skowron & Tomasz Wołowiec & Yuliia Bokhonkova, 2024. "Science and Innovation Management: Sustainable Development Goals 8 and 9 as Challenges for Poland," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-24, November.
    5. Valery Okulich-Kazarin, 2025. "Sustainable Development Goal 4 and Education Research: A Review of Polish Specifics Against the Background of Global Trends," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(6), pages 1-22, March.
    6. Houcine Benlaria & Naeimah Fahad S. Almawishir, 2025. "The Impact of Educational Economic Factors on Institutional Sustainability Performance: The Mediating Role of Green Management Practices," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-20, February.
    7. Amjad, Asim & Ikramullah Butt, Shahid & Agha, Mujtaba Hassan & Ahmad, Ayyaz & Zhang, Faping & Ahmad, Shamraiz, 2023. "Integrating Ergonomics and sustainability: A framework with LDA methodology and implementation roadmap," Technology in Society, Elsevier, vol. 75(C).
    8. Wiktoria Czernecka, 2024. "The Role of Safety Communication in Preventing Accidents at Work and Sustainable Development of the Company," European Research Studies Journal, European Research Studies Journal, vol. 0(Special A), pages 683-693.
    9. Juan Ignacio Dorrego Viera & Rodrigo Bruno Santolin & Valentina Lazzarotti & Andrea Urbinati, 2024. "Sustainability decision‐making in times of crisis: An empirical study in Italy under the lens of the Russian‐Ukraine war," Corporate Social Responsibility and Environmental Management, John Wiley & Sons, vol. 31(5), pages 3988-4006, September.
    10. Barbara Bradač Hojnik, 2024. "Integrating Playful Learning to Enhance Education for Sustainability: Case Study of a Business School in Slovenia," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 16(22), pages 1-17, November.

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jsusta:v:17:y:2025:i:5:p:1989-:d:1599800. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.