Survey on social awareness towards energy conservation and ESD lesson on biofuel as a renewable energy source

The Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 7 aims to ensure that all people have access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and clean energy by 2030. Therefore, the objectives of this study were to investigate (1) the daily attitudes of foreign students at a prestigious university in Taiwan towards energy conservation, (2) their perspectives on biofuel as a renewable energy source, and (3) how an education for sustainable development (ESD) lesson could enhance students’ knowledge about biofuel as a renewable energy source. Data were collected using questionnaires through probability and non-probability sampling methods and analyzed using descriptive statistics and the non-parametric Friedman test. The probability method was employed to analyze 100 responses collected from foreign students representing various regions, including North America, South America, Europe, the Middle East, South and Southeast Asia, North and Northeast Asia, and Africa. The findings indicated that their daily attitudes towards energy conservation and awareness about biofuel were at a satisfactory level. For postgraduate students at the Institute of Education and the Institute of Environmental Engineering, a non-probability test was chosen, and their knowledge of biofuel was enhanced through an ESD lesson. Prior to the ESD, 3.33% of participants had never heard of biofuels, and 30–40% had no understanding of what biofuel entailed. However, approximately 95% of participants demonstrated improved understanding after the ESD. To foster a knowledgeable and active community, it is crucial to incorporate the SDGs into school and university curricula and leverage social media platforms to promote awareness and engagement.